Dipa Karmakar explains why artistic gymnasts apply makeup

Some, among the many Indians, who tuned in to catch Dipa Karmakar perform in the women's vault event at Rio Olympics were left with one interesting question -- why have the artistic gymnasts put on such oodles of makeup? After all, it was a sporting event and not a fashion show, admitted many.

The answer is better off explained by the superstar Olympian from Agartala herself. Dipa, who stood fourth in the women's vault final in Rio, mentioned in an interview to the Times of India on Thursday: "Artistic gymnastics is such an attractive sport and we get marks for execution. It has the best costume among all Olympic sport disciplines. We do apply makeup to look good during competition," the 23-year-old said.

Not only artistic gymnastics, we have also seen athletes put on plenty of makeup to make sure that they look angelic during figure skating as well, which is a winter Olympics sport.

So, what basically goes on behind this? Dipa performed the Produnova and the Tsukahara vaults with elan in her maiden Olympics at Rio de Janeiro and it was not her makeup that did all the talking. It was her achievement and the death-defying performances.

This brings us to another question - does makeup for artistic gymnasts really matter as their flexibility and jaw dropping stunts seem to do all the talking. Well, if we speak of visuals and aesthetics, maybe it does. Beauty and sports have always gone hand in hand.

Former American artistic gymnast McKayla Maroney, 20, who won two medals at the 2012 London Olympics, told Teen Vogue: "In gymnastics, everything is a competition. You want to have your hair look the best and your makeup look the best. You want to be the best, and you want to have the prettiest leotard (the one-piece garment gymnasts wear)."

From mascaras to a range of eye shadows and glitter pigments to waterproof gel liners, the women gymnasts are taking it seriously when it comes to makeup. However, that doesn't at all affect their performance.

"I think it's kind of cool to have that sort of badass feeling that you're doing your sport and you're really strong and powerful, but at the same time, you can feel really feminine and beautiful," 22-year-old American gymnast Aly Raisman was quoted as saying by USA Today. "I think for me, having that combination is what makes me feel really confident," the athlete, who won a gold medal and two silver medals at Rio 2016, added.

Our very own Dipa, as of now, looks more focussed on taking her game to higher levels. She has many Olympics to go and rather than concentrating on the makeup part, the Indian superstar is keen on touching further glory. She recounted anecdotes from her meeting with American golden gymnast Simone Biles for a quick chat in Rio de Janeiro.

"She [Simone] told me that my routine on the vault should be called the 'Karmakar vault', not Produnova. I was so happy that I told myself that I will work very hard and one day, hopefully, there will be a vault in my name too," said Dipa.