Last night as we were watching our amazing US women’s gymnastics team win the gold medal, we couldn’t help but notice how absolutely ferocious those ladies looked. I’m not talking about their muscular quads and killer dismounts either–I’m talking about their LOOK. The metallic leotard, strong eye and piles of Swarovski crystals sent as much of a message as a woman wearing a Roland Mouret dress and five inch Louboutins: Don’t eff with me.

These powerhouses are so compelling because of the superhuman things they do with their bodies, but we’re also fascinated by their fashion code. To that end, we decided to take a look back at the skinniest catwalk of them all–the balance beam.

From Nadia Comaneci in 1976 to our 2012 US Fab Five, come take a tumble with us through the history of gymnastics style.

Read more on Fashionista.