After his outlandish Pegasus hat last year, what hat will former figure skater Johnny Weir wear during NBC’s broadcast of the Kentucky Derby this year?
The Kentucky Derby is so much more than just a horse race.
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It’s the pageantry, the ambiance and the energy in the air as horses and some of the most notable people in the world come together on the grandest stage of them all in the sport of kings.
One of the long standing traditions at the Kentucky Derby is the hats.
One person who always aims to impress with their hat every year, is former figure skater Johnny Weir. Weir, along with fellow former figure skater Tara Lipinski will be on the NBC Red Carpet before the race.
The biggest question will be what hat will Weir be wearing?
Last year Weir captured the attention of everyone when he wore a Pegasus hat, which featured a literal Pegasus on the hat.
Weir wouldn’t reveal what his hat would be this year, but he did drop some hints about the process and the reasoning behind this year’s hat.
"“My hat will be arriving by FedEx later in the week, but the only thing I’ll give away was … last year it was very literal. It was called Pegasus (the winged horse),” Weir said Tuesday in an NBC Sports teleconference.“But this year it’s a little bit more conceptual. And the hat, I’ve entitled it, ‘To the victor, the spoils.’ So think of that what you will, but it’s going to be very aggressive and very fun, and I’ll be very fun to wear it.”"
Weir and Lipinski are quickly becoming one of the most popular red carpet duos. They were heavily popular at 2014 Winter Olympics, then followed their performance up with fashion and hijinks at the 2014 Kentucky Derby.
Lipinski realizes their role their isn’t even completely about the horses either, but rather the spectacle that is the derby.
"“It’s so obvious that we’re not commentating on the horses,” said Lipinski. “And this event is just so much more than that. … You have to have the fashion and mint juleps, and it’s just such a big, social, fun event that I really feel like Johnny and I really to give kind of like a behind the scenes sort of like sneak peak a what goes on at these big sporting events.”"
Lipinski is right, the derby is really more than just the race. It’s an event much like the Super Bowl is an event where the biggest game of the year is played.
Sure the race is the most important part of the weekend, but there’s plenty surrounding it, like the hats.
The big question still though is what hat will Weir be wearing.
Let’s examine the hints that Weir has dropped.
- It’s concpetual
- It’s entitled ‘To the victor, the spoils.’
- It’s aggressive and fun
Based on the hints Weir has left, it’s safe to assume that much like the race, the hat is going to be large and grand.
Saturday, a fashion statement will be made on the race track.
[H/T: ForTheWin]
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