Lost Olympic Sports

Baseball, tug of war, and racquets are playfully memorialized in Super 8 shorts by photographer and filmmaker KT Auleta. Taking advantage of the rich color tones film affords, Auleta created minimalist, conceptual sets and let the models take center stage. “With the grain of Super 8, there is a real visual depth, a sexiness,” says Auleta, who has shot for the likes of Viktor & Rolf, Opening Ceremony and Louis Vuitton, and lensed editorials for Elle, i-D and Vogue. “I wanted a carefree feel from the models, allowing playfulness and the interplay between the sexes to shine through.” Along with the likes of croquet, motor boating, pigeon shooting and tandem cycling, the three featured sports disappeared between Olympic cycles over the course of the century. Tug of war—invented in the ancient Chinese State of Chu over 2,400 years ago—appeared over two decades between 1900 and 1920 and was played in two teams of five. Meanwhile, racquets, similar to modern squash except played to 15 points rather than 11 and with a white ball rather than the traditional blue, made a one-time appearance during the London Games of 1908. With baseball missing from this year's Games, Auleta focused on the sport's jovial elements. “I wanted to show six happy, beautiful people having fun,” says the director of her fictional coed team. “Just let the actions play out naturally, leave room for mistakes and capture that energy and lightheartedness.”

Watch the behind the scenes video for KT Auleta's Lost Sports shoot on our Facebook page, here.