Olga Graf, Speed Skater, Narrowly Avoids Wardrobe Mishap at Sochi (VIDEO)
Olga Graf, a Russian speed skater competing at the Olympics this year, nearly exposed herself to the crowd in Sochi on Sunday.
The 30-year-old athlete had just won the bronze medal in the 3,000 meter event on Sunday, marking her best personal record, when she unzipped her skating suit in order to cool off. Unknowingly, Graf was both on camera and wearing nothing beneath her suit, making for an embarrassing mishap.
"I totally forgot," Graf explained via a translator, according to ABC News. "We have very good suits and they are very tight… You just want to breathe and you want to take off your suit."
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Graf quickly realized her error and hastily zipped her suit back up while offering a weak smile.
"Only afterward did I realize that maybe this video will appear in YouTube," she added. "But I don't think it will be so bad."
Graf earned Russia its first medal during the Olympics and despite the quasi-wardrobe mishap, she was met with praise, including from the nation's leader, Vladimir Putin.
"You brought an unforgettable moment of triumph and utter joy to millions of fans by taking the first medal for our team," Putin wrote, according to the Washington Post.
Meanwhile, the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi began on Feb. 7 and run through Feb. 23. Upcoming events include figure skating, freestyle skating, snowboarding and curling, in addition to several other wintertime sports.
American snowboarder Shaun White released a video speaking directly to fans via the Associated Press on Monday where he said he was "antsy" for the half-pipe.
"I go up and down," he said. "I'm excited, then I'm not excited because I'm, not nervous, but kind of antsy. And it builds and snowballs into other things, and it's just a lot of mixed feelings rolled up into one. It's the big day before the big day."
One day later, the pro snowboarder was the highest-scoring rider in his heat and overall at Rosa Khutor Extreme Park, allowing him to advance to the Olympic final later tonight.
