The Olympian speaks to L'OFFICIEL about how he turned his athletic passions into a brand.

Photography by Ricardo Gomes
Styled by Rita Melssen and Jordan Beckett

British-born, American-raised foil fencer Miles Chamley-Watson is a two-time world champion, two-time <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/photo-history-team-usa-olympic-uniforms-ralph-lauren-halston-levi-strauss" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Olympian</a>, and 2016 team Olympic bronze medalist, and has been sponsored by Richard Mille, Nike, and Coach. After conquering the sports world, Chamley-Watson is embracing his other passions. He speaks with L'OFFICIEL about his love of fashion and how he plans to use it to put fencing on the map.

L'OFFICIEL: How did your passion for fencing translate into a brand?
MILES CHAMLEY-WATSON: I&rsquo;ve had a lot of success early in my sport: winning a lot, being a world champion, <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/travel-living/rising-olympic-athletes-to-watch-tokyo-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Olympic</a> medals, but I think the biggest thing I could ever do is inspire kids. And now also becoming a brand&mdash;having top sponsors and top brands want to work with me because I&rsquo;ve always done it my own way and they see my vision. I love inspiring kids, I love being an example, and my goal is to knock down all the doors so that someone coming up doesn&rsquo;t have to go through the things I went through. That made me strong, but on the other side, it&rsquo;s also why I love fashion, because it gives me another audience. With fashion you can be free. I think sports and fashion go hand-in-hand.

"My goal is to knock down all the doors so that someone coming up doesn't have to go through the things I went through."&nbsp;

L'O: Why do you think that?
MCW: Because not everyone is gonna like you. With fashion, not everyone is gonna like what you&rsquo;re wearing, not everybody&rsquo;s gonna like what you do, but fashion has the ability to grasp all kinds of people by giving them the opportunity to feel good when they put something on. When I put my <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop-culture/jackson-wang-k-pop-age-olympics-fencing-got7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fencing</a> outfit on, I feel powerful, like a superhero. I love fashion, and it&rsquo;s one of the first industries to accept me, so I owe them a lot of respect. With fencing, my goal is to change the sport and put it on the map. It&rsquo;s a beautiful sport and people need to see it more often, not just during the <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop-culture/celebrities-that-trained-for-the-olympics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Olympics</a>. 
L'O:&nbsp;How do you plan to put fencing on the map?
MCW: I created a slogan called, &ldquo;Create a legacy, not a moment.&rdquo; I want to be the best fencer that ever was, but I also want to leave a mark&mdash;that I was the first person to do it my way, I brought a new audience in, I grew the sport, and ultimately I want kids to feel safe and accepted in the sport. So I think you have to: one, be the best, results don&rsquo;t lie; two, use your platform for the better; and three, you must give others opportunities. I think I&rsquo;m doing all three of those, and I think it&rsquo;s the difference between me and everyone else in the sport. I want to grow the sport and show kids that even if you&rsquo;re in a small sport, you can still be globally recognized. That&rsquo;s what people respect about me, is that I did it my way and didn't listen to anybody else.&nbsp;

HAIR Andy Lecompte MAKEUP Wendi Miyake TAILOR Shirlee Idzakovich PHOTO ASSISTANT Brandon Minton STYLIST ASSISTANT Elliott Soriano HAIR AND MAKEUP ASSISTANTS Axel Rojas, Jordann Aguon, and Ty Sanderson

Olympic Fencer Miles Chamley-Watson is Paving the Way

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