See the Greatest Scrunchies in Olympic History

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All hail the mighty scrunchie! Whether worn in your middle school picture or ironically for a '90s throwback party, there's no denying its power, and the Olympic Games every few years only drive that point home. The scrunchie is a popular among the gymnastic and figure skating circles in particular, and with good reason—aside from keeping hair out of the way, it's easy to coordinate with both leotards and glitter-flecked skating costumes alike. We took a retrospective look at Olympic ceremonies of years past and rounded up the most-memorable scrunchies from 1976 to today. Scroll down to see the greatest scrunchie moments from the Olympic Games, spanning a timeline of almost 30 years.

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Debbie Wilcox, 1976

ABC Photo Archives

The very first scrunchie sighting at the Olympics was back in 1976, when U.S. gymnast Debbie Wilcox wore a massive white version to the Montreal event.

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Tracy Wilson, 1988

Bob Thomas/Getty

Wilson's gigantic, ribbon-adorned scrunchie was a definitive look of the decade.

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Kristi Yamaguchi, 1992

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At the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France, Yamaguchi complemented her metallic ensemble with a gold ribbon scrunchie.

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Dominique Dawes, 1992

Tony Duffy/Allsport

U.S. gymnast Dominique Dawes donned a white scrunchie just before taking the balance beam.

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Nancy Kerrigan, 1992

Sal Veder/AP Images

All white everything! A white scrunchie was the final element in Kerrigan's crisp, jewel-adorned skating uniform.

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Tonya Harding, 1994

Chris Cole/Allsport

Harding tied off her French braid with a sizeable red scrunchie.

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Nancy Kerrigan, 1994

Pascal Rondeau/Allsport

At the '94 Games, Kerrigan complemented another all-white getup with a matching scrunchie.

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Shannon Miller, 1996

Jim Davis/The Boston Globe

Though U.S. gymnast Shannon Miller wasn't pleased with her first vault, her white ruffled scrunchie was a total win.

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Dominique Dawes, 1996

Ed Reinke/AP Photo

Dawes mirrored the effect of her red, star-spangled leotard with a coordinating scrunchie.

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Shannon Miller, 1996

Jim Davis/The Boston Globe

Miller's oversized white scrunchie makes a second appearance at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

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Tara Lipinski, 1998

Shaun Botterill /Allsport

In true 1998 fashion, Tara Lipinski matched her blue skating outfit to a sparkly blue scrunchie at the Nagano Olympics.

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Jie Ling, 2000

Gamma-Rapho/Getty

Most decorated scrunchie ever? Chinese gymnast Jie Ling rocked a feathered accessory while competing at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.

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Annia Hatch, 2004

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A bold red scrunchie (and some well-placed blue eyeshadow) topped off Hatch's patriotic getup.

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Viktoria Pavuk, 2006

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A muted orange scrunchie kept Hungarian skater Viktoria Pavuk's ponytail anchored, spin after spin.

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Yang Yilin, 2008

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A set of star-shaped hair clips and glitter hair gel complemented Yilin's bold red scrunchie.

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Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson, 2008

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It's a coup d'scrunchie! While Liukin opted to continue the hot pink color scheme into her updo, her teammate Johnson went for a thinner gold scrunchie.

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Gabby Douglas, 2012

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Douglas swept her layers back using a metallic purple scrunchie at the 2012 games in London.

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McKayla Maroney, 2012

Ronald Martinez/Getty

What's more memorable: Maroney's signature smirk, or her large white scrunchie? We'd say it's about even.

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Elizaveta Ukolova, 2014

Yuri Kadobnov/AFP

Scrunchies seemed to take a hiatus at the Sochi Olympics back in 2014—save for the updo worn by Czech Republic skater Elizaveta Ukolova, who contrasted her navy getup with a red accessory.

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Laurie Hernandez, 2016

BenStansall/AFP

The scrunchie powered on strong through the 2016 Rio Olympics, as demonstrated by gymnast Laurie Hernandez.

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See the Greatest Scrunchies in Olympic History

1 of 21

Debbie Wilcox, 1976

2 of 21

Tracy Wilson, 1988

3 of 21

Kristi Yamaguchi, 1992

4 of 21

Dominique Dawes, 1992

5 of 21

Nancy Kerrigan, 1992

6 of 21

Tonya Harding, 1994

7 of 21

Nancy Kerrigan, 1994

8 of 21

Shannon Miller, 1996

9 of 21

Dominique Dawes, 1996

10 of 21

Shannon Miller, 1996

11 of 21

Tara Lipinski, 1998

12 of 21

Jie Ling, 2000

13 of 21

Annia Hatch, 2004

14 of 21

Viktoria Pavuk, 2006

15 of 21

Yang Yilin, 2008

16 of 21

Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson, 2008

17 of 21

Gabby Douglas, 2012

18 of 21

McKayla Maroney, 2012

19 of 21

Elizaveta Ukolova, 2014

20 of 21

Laurie Hernandez, 2016

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