When Indian hurdler Jyothi Yarraji sprints on a track, the focus is on her speed and clean finishes. But then, the camera zooms in and you notice her braided hair, the pearls on her ears and acrylic nails. The glam is subtle, but it feels almost instinctive—like this is who she is, both on and off the field. “Athletics is not only about performing; it’s also about expressing yourself and enjoying the track,” says Yarraji; she has been backed by the Reliance Foundation since 2019, training under British coach James Hillier at the foundation’s high-performance centre in Bhubaneswar. As someone who won the 100m hurdles in 12.99 seconds at the 65th National Inter State Senior Athletics Championships in July this year and looked like she was having fun, you best believe her.
There is a formula that elite athletes are expected to follow through their career: train relentlessly, do away with distractions, keep your eye on the stopwatch and aim for gold. We have seen this narrative play out in movies for decades. Remember the scene in Dangal, when Aamir Khan’s character chops off his daughters’ hair so that they can focus on the game? It is a moment meant to show the audience that, in order to achieve greatness, an athlete has to do away with frivolities.
But sports—aside from performance—has been a platform where a few women have chosen to present their most authentic selves on the field. In the 1980s, track athlete Florence Griffith Joyner, also known as Flo-Jo, sprinted in one-legged leotards and manicured six-inch nails to boost her confidence. In the 2000s, tennis player Serena Williams wore catsuits and tutus to reclaim the narrative around the female athletic body. More recently, at the Paris 2024 Olympics, track and-field star Sha’Carri Richardson made long nails part of her athletic persona. And the internet is already rife with instances of Grand Slam–winner Naomi Osaka using fashion to assert her cultural identity.
Yarraji’s first brush with personal style began at home in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Watching her mother get dressed every day—adorn herself with bangles, flowers, a bindi and sindoor—encouraged Yarraji to do the same. “Watching my mother made me love getting ready.” Before she became the national record holder in 100m hurdles and a two-time Asian champion, she spent her afternoons as a child folding freshly washed saris, draping them on herself and asking her mother how she looked. She still wears her mother’s saris when she goes home for festivals. “I like her pattu saris,” she says, reminiscing about her favourite green silk sari from her mother’s wardrobe.
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In her paper published in 2023, researcher Soljana Çili states that personal objects, including dresses, can act as an “anchor of the self ”, a way to reinforce our sense of identity through everyday rituals. Looking back at Yarraji’s childhood, it’s easy to see that it was never about the flowers or bindis alone, but about the confidence that came from taking a moment each day to become yourself before stepping out into the world.
For a long time, that love for personal style was kept away from the track. “I was scared,” she admits. “I feared wearing makeup or stylish clothing, concerned that if I did not perform well on the field, people would judge me.” This changed after she began competing internationally. “I saw how other athletes would dress up and prioritise their own personalities over the opinions of others.” It made her realise that she shouldn’t apologise for being herself. She hasn’t looked back since. Now, teammates even ask her how she create certain looks. “When I started getting appreciated for the looks, it gave me the confidence to experiment more.” Today, braids are designed as carefully as warm-ups. Eyeliner has become part of her routine, as have acrylic nails. When we spoke, she even hoped to wear eye makeup for her upcoming games.
There is something deeply liberating about stepping onto the track in the same uniform as everyone else and still finding ways to hold on to the part that makes you ‘you’. Studies have found that women who dress to express their individuality report greater body confidence and autonomy, affirming their identity on their own terms. That confidence has become an appendage that she carries onto the track. She is acutely aware of how difficult it is for sportswomen out there. Some coaches still believe that athletes should cut their hair short because a longer mane can release histamines in your body, which causes itching and hives. There is also the assumption that paying attention to one’s appearance somehow signals a lack of commitment to the sport.
Jyothi Yarraji during the Athletics Competition at the Stade de France during the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic GamesTim Clayton/Getty Images
For Yarraji, style doesn’t compete with her performance, “When I feel comfortable, I feel confident,” she explains. Thinking about her look before the race offsets the intensity of elite competition. “If I keep my mind occupied by thinking about my hair, my makeup or how I look, it gives me something joyful to focus on, and helps to reduce my anxiety before a race.”
Everything else about Yarraji is wonderfully quotidian. She admires Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s effortless style, and like any 26 year-old, likes shopping for trousers, crop tops, skirts and footwear. She even likes heels. “I don’t wear them often because I am already so tall,” she jokes—at five nine, she really is. But of everything in her wardrobe, she is most proud of the two jerseys that are now framed and hang on her wall—one from her first Commonwealth Games in 2022 and another one from the 2024 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships. “The Indian jersey is the most precious piece that I own,” she says.
When asked if she aspires to be a fashion icon, she brushes it off—“I am just being myself ”—which, for now, means refusing to edit parts of her personality to fit the idea of what an athlete should look like. Maybe that’s why her style is so endearing.
At a time when athletes are expected to build personal brands, Yarraji is building up her authentic self. In the future, she hopes young girls won’t have to feel they have to choose between ambition and individuality. To them, she says: “Dream big. If you don’t dream, it’s not going to happen."
This story appears in Vogue India’s September-October 2026 issue. Subscribe here
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