Under Armour said that it was focusing on American speed skaters' performance when it designed racing suits with a striking, contrasting color around the upper thigh.
The design may be attention-grabbing but the Baltimore-based athletic apparel brand said using different material in the crotch area "has been commonplace for speedskate skins for decades, to reduce friction."
It said the Olympic athletes "love the look of the skins and how they perform, and are getting compliments from other countries."
Under Armour designed suits for the U.S. speed skaters in the 2014 Olympics and again this year.
The design evolved from one Olympics to the next. This year's pattern has generated buzz for what some on social media call "crotch spots."
"The 2014 UA skin had one panel instead of two, but in testing the new skin, the addition of a second panel reduced friction even more _ by 60 percent," Under Armour said in written statement.
Under Armour said the goal was finding the material that produced the fastest suit.
"We tested a multitude of friction guard materials to find the material that reduces friction the most," the company said. "Altering the color or using a material that comes in a different color would have rendered it considerably less effective."
The long-track speed skaters didn't win any medals in the 2014 Games and voted to ditch the "Mach 39" suits midway through the games for an older Under Armour model. The speedskating federation gave the company a vote of confidence by renewing its partnership with the brand for the 2018 and 2022 Olympics.
The short-track team, which wore a scaled-down version of the Mach 39 throughout the 2014 games, didn't fare much better, winning just a single silver medal in a relay.
So far this year, the short-track team has one medal in South Korea and the long-track team has none.
