‍‍One of the most amusing moments during the opening week of competition at Paris 2024 occurred in the pool.

2024年巴黎奥运会开幕周最有趣的时刻之一发生在游泳赛场上。

It saw a middle-aged volunteer dressed in colorful trunks dive into the water to receive a lost swimming cap before lapping up applause from the crowd.

一名身穿花色泳裤的中年志愿者跳入水中，捡起丢失的泳帽，此举赢得了观众的掌声。

The cap was believed to have been the property of Team USA swimmer Emma Weber.

这顶帽子被认为属于美国队游泳运动员艾玛·韦伯。

However, when the camera panned to the American, Weber was still wearing a cap.

然而，当镜头转向这名运动员时，她仍然戴着帽子。

This is because Olympic swimmers typically wear multiple caps when competing. But why?

因为奥运会游泳运动员在比赛时通常会戴多顶帽子。但这是为什么呢？

Why do Olympic swimmers wear more than one swimming cap?

为什么奥运会游泳运动员要戴不止一顶泳帽？

You might think that the simple answer is: In case one of them falls off.

你可能会认为答案显而易见：以防其中一顶泳帽掉下来。

That is partly true but not quite the full story.

这个答案算正确，但不完全正确。

There are two main reasons why Olympic swimmers wear two - or sometimes more - caps.

奥运会游泳运动员戴两顶泳帽，有时甚至更多，主要有两个原因。

One is that wearing multiple caps can help to stabilise an athlete's goggles.

其一是戴多顶帽子可以帮助稳定运动员的护目镜。

As well as adding additional tightness, a second swimming cap can help cover up the exposed straps around the goggles, thus making the athlete more streamline and reducing drag.

除了增加额外的紧度外，第二顶泳帽还可以盖住护目镜周围暴露的带子，使运动员的服装更加贴合流线型，从而减少阻力。

Most athletes will sit their goggles on a swimming cap made from latex, before adding a silicone cap on top.

大多数运动员会把护目镜套在乳胶泳帽上，然后再在上面戴一顶硅胶帽。

The friction between the silicone and the latex should, in theory, make it much less likely for the top cap to fall off.

理论上，硅胶和乳胶之间的摩擦应该会大大降低泳帽脱落的可能性。