Nike, Adidas lead suppliers' battle for gold

Designer daughters

An engineer runs over a panel while high-speed cameras record his movements during a test on an Adidas running shoe at the Adidas innovation laboratory in Herzogenaurach May 7, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

The Games are not just about the performance, they are also about making sure athletes look good and the top brands have been working with big name designers for this year's Games.

By an odd coincidence, Adidas and Puma have opted for daughters of famous musicians.

Adidas has had a long partnership with Stella McCartney, whose father Paul McCartney is expected to perform at the opening ceremony. Cedella Marley, daughter of reggae icon Bob Marley, has designed the Jamaican kit for Puma.

"Each of our teams have a unique design," Cartwright said, explaining how Adidas has tried to incorporate national symbols into the kits for countries like Germany, France and Australia.

"The young Germans are a bit happier to wave the flag and be more patriotic so we have an eagle design."

While the Team GB kits has divided opinion in the UK, with some seeing them as too blue, Cartwright shrugs off the critics. "It was in the media for two days," indicating how any publicity is good publicity.

Puma meanwhile plundered the history books to draw inspiration for its running vests for the Jamaican team.

The yellow vests will feature the faces of Arthur Wint, who in London in 1948 became the first Jamaican to win a gold medal, and team mate Herb McKenley, who finished second behind him.

"We want to hear people say, 'Ooh, what's that?' We want to be different, unusual," Puma CEO Koch told Reuters.