NEW YORK, NY.- Even before the XXXIII Olympiad officially began, the litany of firsts was enormous. The first Olympics in Paris in a century. The first with equal gender participation. The first opening ceremony en pleine air. The first sponsored by a global luxury behemoth.

The first Olympics in which fashion was so central to the identity of the host country itself.

The opening ceremony featured not only a red carpet at the entrance but offered a full-blown runway show in the middle of vignettes devoted to the history and spirit of the country, including the French Revolution and the reconstruction of Notre Dame. As the monuments of Paris — the Eiffel Tower, the Grand Palais, the Place de la Concorde — provided the backdrop to the event, style was at its heart.

The bar was set as soon as it was announced that LVMH would be a premium partner. The goal, according to Thomas Jolly, the Games’ artistic director, was to “shed light on French savoir-faire,” broadly defined. They did it with cabaret and heavy metal, dance, acrobats and 1,800 outfits from brands both new and old. From the start, it was clear the fashion competition stakes would be raised for every other national team.

It’s tempting, during an Olympics, for teams to resort to the usual uniform of blazer and chino in national colors (yes, we’re looking at you, USA and Ralph Lauren), to default to the basic athleisure warmup suit (hello, Italy in Emporio Armani and Canada in Lululemon) or to fall into a trap of national stereotype (Bermudans in Bermuda shorts).

But by the time the Olympics cauldron had risen aloft beneath a hot-air balloon, and Celine Dion had begun to belt beneath the Eiffel Tower, and despite the rain that had pelted down requiring mass distribution of ponchos, it was clear the most-memorable looks belonged to the teams who played their own fashion game. Not to mention the attendees who dressed for the occasion, and the brand that turned out to have been the secret couturière to the celebrity performers.

Here’s who won the fashion gold.

Haiti

Stella Jean, a Haitian Italian designer who is one of the bright lights of Milan Fashion Week, was enlisted to work on Team Haiti’s design. The result featured the work of local Haitian artist Philippe Dodard printed on full skirts and pants and combined with traditional chambray shirting, all of it made out of dead stock materials, and none of it pandering to banal patriotism.

South Sudan

Coco Chanel famously helped crown the little black dress as the epitome of Parisian chic; South Sudan paid homage to that idea in their little black double-breasted suits, with gold buttons and graphic details. Also in black: Team Liberia, whose streetwear-meets-sportswear looks were once again created by Telfar Clemens, and once again married traditional Liberian silhouettes with cool.

Mexico

Instead of opting for a prepster silhouette, Mexico went the streetwear route, modeling white jean-style jackets by the brand Men’s Fashion complete with bright-pink collars and pen-and-ink doodles that referenced the cities of Oaxaca, San Miguel de Allende and Michoacán on the arms.

Czech Republic

It may have rained on the parade of nations, causing any number of national delegations to cover their finery with transparent ponchos, but no one dressed for the conditions more fittingly than the Czech Republic. Their white plastic trenches (inspired by a traditional Czech “baloňák” coat) by designer Jan Černý of Jan Societe and Alpine Pro, were covered in what looked like artistic water blotches, as if in premonition of what was to come.

Mongolia

Mongolia’s uniforms, by Michel and Amazonka Choigaalaa and rife with classical symbolism, were a triumphant bridge between the traditional and the contemporary — although they had some real competition from Sri Lanka, in embroidered white silk looks from Lovi Ceylon, and the Philippines, in Sinag barong shirts by Francis Libiran with a detachable silk sling featuring stylized sun rays.

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo

Even before the opening ceremony had begun, Erivo and Grande set an appropriately chic tone by arriving in full “Wicked” character-themed satin frocks. Erivo dressed in an emerald-green strapless Louis Vuitton with a matching hat and nails, and Grande donned a powder-puff pink sleeveless Thom Browne, pert little bow in her hair and at her waist.

Dior

The sixth LVMH brand to play a part in the Games (Vuitton menswear designer Pharrell Williams even carried the torch), Dior turned out to be the surprise dressmaker to the opening ceremony’s superstars, including Lady Gaga, Aya Nakamura and Celine Dion. Navigating the territory between costume and couture that is the proving ground of fashion, the brand managed to turn Gaga into a burlesque version of a snowy egret; transformed Nakamura into a golden phoenix; and embroidered “thousands of pearls and more than 500 meters” of beaded fringing on the gown that Dion wore for her final number — after said gown was already on her body.

Young French Designers

Fifteen young French fashion designers were enlisted to help dress the performers in the opening ceremony, including breakout Paris Fashion Week names Charles de Vilmorin, Victor Weinsanto and The Frankie Shop. For a country dominated by heritage brands, that’s a major statement of belief in the future of their industry and the values on entrepreneurship.

The effect, said Jeanne Friot, a 29-year-old designer who founded her genderless brand four years ago and who was tasked with creating the Joan of Arc-style armored look (complete with articulated thigh-high vegan leather boots) that galloped across the Seine to deliver the Olympics flag, was to “give a lot of exposure to young Parisian designers, not just the big houses that we know.”

As a result, she said, “I hope people are going to really check on what is going on in fashion after this.” The opening ceremony was their starting line. Let the fashion games begin.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.