She looked adore-bubble.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Olympic freestyle skier Eileen Gu put an effervescent spin on the 2026 Met Gala theme of \u201cCostume Art.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n The 22-year-old model \u2014 who nabbed two silvers and a gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics in February \u2014 wore a stunning short bubble dress by Iris van Herpen, a Dutch designer known for unique \u201ctech-couture\u201d looks that blend high fashion with innovative technology, on the red carpet Monday<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cI have 15,000 glass bubbles on me,\u201d Gu told ESPNW of the distinct dress<\/a>. \u201cIt took 2,550 hours to make. There\u2019s technology under the dress that enables reality to kind of come together with art. It\u2019s a play on surrealism, it\u2019s a play on movement, it\u2019s a play on nature, on fun, on whimsy.\u201d<\/p>\n Eileen Gu, 22, wore a stunning short bubble dress by Dutch designer Iris van Herpen to the Met Gala 2026. WireImage<\/p>\n The dress took 2,550 hours to make and consisted of 15,000 glass bubbles \u2014 and Gu\u2019s only accessories were dozens of real bubbles that floated up into the air. Evan Agostini\/Invision\/AP<\/p>\n Gu poses in her dreamy bubble dress at the 2026 Met Gala. Getty Images<\/p>\n She also wore see-through heels and, aside from a small pair of earrings partially concealed by her chic, messy updo, her only accessories were dozens of bubbles floating up into the air around her.\u00a0<\/p>\n When asked why sports are art by ESPNW, the veteran athlete simply replied, \u201cIt\u2019s about self-expression. It\u2019s about breaking boundaries and about being the truest version of yourself.<\/p>\n Gu first attended the Met Gala in 2021, sporting a romantic short black-and-white Carolina Herrera bubble dress with black heels and a bold red lip. The following year, she took an edgier turn in a strapless leather Louis Vuitton mini dress<\/a> with a plunging neckline, metal belt and high black leather boots.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a play on surrealism, it\u2019s a play on movement, it\u2019s a play on nature, on fun, on whimsy,\u201d the most-decorated Olympic freeskier said of her stunning look. Gu previously attended the Met Gala in 2021 and 2022. Kevin Mazur\/Getty Images for The Met Museum\/Vogue<\/p>\n Gu has come under immense fire for competing for her mother\u2019s native China in the Winter Olympics, despite growing up in Northern California. Getty Images for The Met Museum\/Vogue<\/p>\n Despite being in her early 20s, Gu is the most decorated free skier of all time<\/a>, securing six medals in six events at the 2022 and 2026 Winter Olympics.\u00a0<\/p>\n Off the trails, however, Gu has repeatedly been under fire for representing her mother\u2019s native China at the Olympics<\/a>, despite growing up in Northern California and majoring in international relations at Stanford University.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n REUTERS<\/p>\n