Over the years, the United States athletes have terrified the opposition with their performances and sheer domination in the Olympics. 

This year too the performances from Team USA have on a similar level, however, it’s their specially designed masks that have frightened the viewers across the globe. 

The white pleated face covers look like those draped by supervillains in the DC Comics-verse or right out of the frames of a Star Wars film.

According to a New York Times report, the masks were designed and provided by Nike. The “USA”-printed face covers were meant to represent origami given the Summer Games are in Tokyo this year.

ALSO READ | Tokyo Olympics: Americans in the fray on Day 4

“The unique origami-inspired pleated design allows for optimal air flow and air volume within the lightweight, mesh mask,” a company statement said, NYT reported.

However, the masks that have turned innumerable heads aren’t N95s but filter airborne particles at high efficiency, the statement said. 

After the masks made their Olympic debut, social media started buzzing with posts and memes about the freshly-styled face wear. 

A user on Twitter asked if the masks were inspired by “Star Wars”. Well, we have had the same question. 

Another user, hilariously linked Team USA’s masks to the one worn by Bane, the villain in one of the Batman films. It does look very similar.

The masks also gave rise to a lot of memes. One netizen posted a hilariously hypothetical conversation that might have taken place between Team USA and Nike, which gave birth to the mask.

ALSO READ | US basketball team lose to France at Tokyo. What’s next for Durant and co?

Meanwhile, some did appreciate the mask and its design and even craved one for themselves. Guess what, you might be in luck.

Reportedly, called the Nike Venturer, the mask is labelled as “coming soon” on Nike’s website.