When the Olympic Games come to Italy, it’s not enough to strive for athletic excellence. You have to look good doing it, too. Taking to the snow and ice in Torino for more than two weeks starting tomorrow, the U.S. Olympic Team is making sure it eventually heads back across the Atlantic with its reputation—at least as far as style is concerned—intact. During its sojourn in the Piedmontese provincial capital, which lies a mere 90 miles from fashion mecca Milano, the team will be modeling a collection by Canadian company Roots, which earned a place in the pantheon of American-favored athleticwear for its contributions to the athletes’ ensembles (particularly the fleece berets) during the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City.

This time around, the company, an official team outfitter, has opted for a look that’s less fleece and more sleek, inspired by the U.S. squad’s uniforms during the 1956 Winter Games in über-chic, VIP-studded Cortina d’Ampezzo. This year’s uniforms boast an undeniably retro look: mock, zip turtlenecks (as per customary Italian style: hoods are generally snubbed on the peninsula), slim fits, and bold alpine ski stripes in cornflower and sea green on white or midnight blue backgrounds. And the berets, of course, are back.

The slimming, stylish Women’s U.S. Olympic Team Festa Vest ($198; roots.com), featuring those vintage downhill slopes of brilliant color and the Ducati motorcycle-inspired USA font on the back, would spur even the least athletic of us into making a go for the gold. —Giordana Segneri