Olympic mania has swept the nation, and hopefuls from all countries are showing their dedication with patriotic nail art.

This may be the first beauty trend ever to be spearheaded by professional swimmers.

Swimmer Rebecca Adlington showed off Union Jack talons as she took to the water for the 400m freestyle event, later giving fans a closer look as she held up her bronze medal.

And 15-year-old Lithuanian Swimmer Ruta Meilutyte put her country's colours on display as she powered to the 100m breaststroke gold medal.

Other swimmer like Claire Donahue, Dana Vollmer, and Missy Franklin also display their painted nails during competition.

But nail art is not confined to the pool. Archery is a sport where the classic portrait will feature a hand drawn close the cheek. The Briton Amy Oliver and the Australian Elisa Barnard have both noticed this, and taken advantage with patriotic manicures which show up on camera.

However, the boldest manicure belongs to the tennis player Venus Williams, whose red nails feature blue and white stars and a cheeky stripe of gold.

At a salon set up by sponsor P&G in Olympic Village, nail technicians are tackling up to 40 sets of nails a day as athletes catch on to the trend.

Kathryn Davies, P&G’s Head of grooming says the nails have been a surprise success.

“They’re all popular but the nail one seems to be amazing doesn’t it? That’s the one that’s really taken off and I think that’s because athletes really want to express their love of their country and it’s the best way of doing it.”

Essence magazine beauty Director Corynne Corbett said, “What we're seeing with style overall is that the athlete is not sacrificing their individual style for the sake of their sport.”