Image via Complex Original
This one goes out to all of my fellow glasses wearers out there. If your experience with spectacles started at a young age, then you know the ridicule that came with donning the unfortunate eyewear as a kid. Sure, they helped you with your nearsightedness or farsightedness, but they sure as hell didn't help when it came to the countless amount of "four eyes" jokes that got hurled in your direction from your classmates. The traumatic experience almost made you want to "accidentally leave them at home" for the rest of the school year. True story. *gets up from lying down on couch*
Glasses have come a long way since my childhood, but back in the day, the humor most likely stemmed from the fact that glasses existed to serve one sole purpose and it wasn't to look cool. The same can be said for athletes who sport goggles. Just look at the above picture of former NBA player Kurt Rambis, who celebrates his 56th birthday today, in his eyewear of choice. Does this make you want to pick up a pair to throw 'em on at your next pickup game? Yeah...didn't think so. But, there are some athletes out there who, dare I say, made sporting goggles look...pretty dope. Here they are in Gallery: Athletes Who Made Wearing Goggles Cool.
Horace Grant
Sport: Basketball
Whether he was with the Bulls, Magic, Lakers or SuperSonics, Horace Grant always looked fresh in his prescription goggles, which helped him with his poor vision. And Grant had different goggles to color coordinate with his uniform. Not many dudes were on that wave and that made Horace unique in his own way.
Eric Dickerson
Sport: Football
Similar to Grant, Eric Dickerson opted to wear the prescription goggles over contacts. And like Horace, Dickerson looked cool in his eyewear. Pairing the goggles with those fresh Soul Glo locks probably made plenty of dudes think they could pull off the look. They were sadly mistaken.
Janko Tipsarevic
Sport: Tennis
Like many other tennis players, Janko Tipsarevic was wearing glasses to protect eyes from the sun. Eventually, though, Janko's vision worsened and he needed to start wearing some sort of prescription lenses. At first, Tipsarevic tried contacts but he didn't like the way they felt. So, Oakley supplied him with prescription goggles that aided his vision while making him comfortable out on the courts. Oakley FTW!
Dwyane Wade
Sport: Basketball
In 2011, Dwyane Wade was suffering from migraines. But like any true competitor, Wade wanted to be out there on the court with his teammates. That's when Wade found a solution...or at least, that's what he thought. After a short experiment with tinted goggles, Wade's eyewear was banned by the league because they presented an "unfair advantage." Yeah they did. D-Wade was looking hella fresh!
Edgar Davids
Sport: Soccer
After undergoing surgery on eyes for his glaucoma in 1999, Edgar Davids started wearing goggles. The protective eyewear may look funny, but there's nothing funny about losing your vision!
Ato Boldon
Sport: Track and Field
Maaaaaan, Ato Boldon didn't need to wear goggles. But Boldon wanted to stand out and those seemed to do the trick, no?
Tony Parker
Sport: Basketball
Remember the infamous bottle-throwing incident involving Drake and Chris Brown at W.i.P in 2012 where Tony Parker scratched his retina after a shard of glass from a champagne bottle hit him in the eye. One month later, Parker wanted to represent his country of France in the Olympics, but in order to play, he needed to wear protective goggles. TP went with the hipster-esque dark frames. Not a bad look, especially when you're allegedly involved with Brent Barry's wife.
Hakeem Olajuwon
Sport: Basketball
During a game against the Bulls on Jan. 1, 1993 (what a way to start off the New Year), Hakeem Olajuwon was nailed in the face by an elbow from Bill Cartwright. Hakeem has sustained a fractured right orbit, which is the bone that sits around the eye. After nearly two months away from the game of basketball, Olajuwon returned and was sporting goggles. But that stint was short-lived as The Dream felt uncomfortable wearing them. You can't execute the perfect Dream Shake in goggles, fam!
Michael Phelps
Sport: Swimming
Michael Phelps didn't have a story involving any damage done to his eye or lack of vision. Instead, Phelps wore the goggles because that's what most swimmers do. And, you know what, Phelps made them look cool. That may have a lot to do with the way all that Olympic gold shines off the goggles.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Sport: Basketball
On Jan. 12, 1968, during his UCLA days, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sustained a scratched left cornea after he was hit in the eye by California's Tom Henderson while battling for a rebound. As a result, Kareem missed the next two games, but that wasn't the last time he suffered a scratched cornea. He did it again it again while in NBA and decided wear goggles from there on out.
James Worthy
Sport: Basketball
It may be hard to imagine James Worthy not sporting his goggles at this point. However, it wasn't until his third season in the NBA that Worthy sustained an eye injury that forced him to start wearing the protective eyewear. Eventually, Worthy decided to make the goggles permanent.
Amar'e Stoudemire
Sport: Basketball
On Feb. 19, 2009, Amar'e Stoudemire suffered a detached retina during a game against the Los Angeles Clippers. This injury, coupled with the partially torn iris he sustained in the preseason, compelled Stoudemire to start wearing goggles for the remainder of his career. After only seven games, Amar'e decided to undergo surgery that would repair his retina. Since then, STAT has decided to wear goggles for the rest of his career. And he's been looking pretty fresh. The same can't be said for his choice in his off-the-court choices.