At tonight’s Winter Olympics opening ceremony, the men and women of the U.S. team will enter Vancouver's B.C. Place Stadium looking very much like they just stepped out of Lake Placid circa 1932. And that's just how the folks at Ralph Lauren want it to be.

Once again, they've designed the outfits U.S. athletes will wear during the opening and closing ceremonies. Much like they did two years ago at the Beijing summer games, they've drawn heavily from the past, but with a modern, fashionable twist on things. It's something MTV News learned firsthand, when Lauren head of marketing David Lauren gave us an exclusive preview of the line at the official Team U.S.A. store.

"We are always trying to find inspiration from some of the past Olympic games," Lauren said. "So these outfits take inspiration from the '30s and '40s — the heyday of the American teams — and add it a modern sensibility. We're always rooted in the classics, but with a modern twist."Which means ultra-warm, retro-leaning vests, well-worn knit caps and chunky black boots in tonight's events, while the closing ceremony will feature a classic, contemporary and clean look with sweaters, plaids and berets. It's forward-thinking (yet backward-looking) high fashion that is sure to be talked about in the coming days.

As is the case with everything Ralph Lauren does, it's high-concept, too. "We worked closely with the athletes and the U.S. Olympic Committee on the designs," Lauren explained. "They always wanted to do something classic — the idea of Americans as ambassadors on the world stage. The athletes taking on a bigger meaning than just being sports people."