Editing Tights (section)

=== Athletic use ===

{{See also|Athleisure}}
For horseback riding, "tights" in some equestrian circles can refer to tightly fitting riding pants of light material that extend all the way down to the rider's ankle and worn with a 'paddock' style (ankle height) boot. Such pants are worn in summer or as an undergarment in winter. In warm climates they can be worn all year round. These "riding tights" are cheaper to buy than jodhpurs or [[breeches]] which are a type of riding pant made of heavier material and which extends only to mid calf length and are intended to be worn with tall riding boots.

Tights can also describe the leg coverings worn in [[bicycling]] in cold weather and in other athletic activities, especially by runners. These tights are usually a thicker [[spandex]]-blend, and are usually footless. It has also been advocated by some sport scientists{{Who|date=April 2025}} that the wearing of tights can reduce muscle tissue vibration.

Athletic tights received some publicity during the 2005–2006 [[basketball]] season, when players started wearing the ankle-length tights under their uniform [[shorts]]. A prominent [[National Basketball Association|NBA]] player, [[Kobe Bryant]], was one of the first to wear tights, and the style was subsequently adopted by several other NBA players, as well as some college and high school players. The style sparked controversy, leading to proposals to prohibit wearing tights with basketball uniforms.<ref>{{Cite web| last =Rovell| first =Darren| author2 =Stein, Marc| title =League would amend uniform code to ban tights| work =[[ESPN|ESPN.com]]| date =31 March 2006| url =https://www.espn.com/nba/news/story?id=2390599| access-date =15 April 2008| archive-date =8 January 2009| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20090108025200/http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2390599| url-status =live}}</ref>

In colder temperatures outdoors, American football players sometimes wear spandex tights next to their skin beneath their normal padded stretchy, tightly fitted pants.  In British English such garments are referred to as 'skins'. Athletic tights are considered [[unisex]].