Australia’s Olympic team shows off new uniform for 2024 Paris Games

Australia’s uniform for the Paris Olympics has been revealed ahead of the 2024 Games.

For the first time in the history of the Olympics, Aussie athletes across all sports will wear First Nations artwork as part of their official Olympics wear in a design described by Chef de Mission Anna Meares as an “impressive milestone.”

The uniform for the skateboarding team in Tokyo three years ago featured First Nations patterns and Meares said it had proved so popular that the decision had been made to extend it across the entire range for Paris.

“It’s the oldest living culture in the world and we should be very proud of that,” former champion cyclist Meares told reporters.

“This is the first time the Australian Olympic team will have Indigenous design across its competition and delegation wear uniform, it’s a really impressive milestone.”

The clothes were designed by Japanese manufacturer ASICS and feature artwork created by 2008 Olympic boxer Paul Fleming and Torres Strait Islander David Bosun.

“The centre piece represents a meeting place because the Olympics brings together people of all colours, religions and backgrounds from all over the world who are all competing for the same goal,” Mr Fleming said of his print.

“Everyone essentially becomes ‘one’, we’re all athletes and it doesn’t matter where you come from.”

The uniform also features a nod to ASIC’s Japanese heritage with a traditional Yagasuri arrow pattern.

For the first time, Australian athletes will also have the option of wearing a dress in team colours.

“I know the girls are going to be really excited to be able to wear a dress,” said 2016 Olympic Rugby Sevens champion Charlotte Caslick.

“The conditions in Paris are going to be quite hot and humid and just having something lightweight to chuck on is perfect for when we’re over there.”

In developing the uniform, the ASICS Institute of Sport Science considered the temperature and weather conditions athletes would face in Paris and used an advanced ventilation technology designed for warm weather.

But not all Australians have responded well to the uniform.

A grey soccer jersey set to be used by Matildas goalkeeper Lydia Williams has caused a stir among social media users, who didn’t like the shift away from the bright purple that teammate and fellow goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold wore a few weeks ago during the Olympics qualifier.

Football journalist Samantha Lewis was one such critic.

“The Australian Olympic uniforms have just been released and no offence to the good people at ASICS but have we really gone from an iconic purple #Matildas goalkeeper kit to … grey? really?,” she posted on X.

She wrote in another post: “Look the sleeves I can get around but the … Japanese-inspired arrows? For an Aussie team kit?”

Another person seemed unfazed by the colour changes, saying it’s something the designers get “wrong” every year.

“The Olympic uniforms always either have the wrong shade of green or the wrong shade of gold,” they said.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• milestone: an important event
• delegation wear: what athletes wear to represent their country
• Yagasuri: translating to arrow feathers, a traditional Japanese pattern representing the feathers of an arrow, symbolising good luck in ceremonies
• ventilation: air flow
• kit: uniform
• unfazed: not bothered by

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QUICK QUIZ
1. Which sporting brand designed the Australian athletes’ Olympic uniform?
2. The uniform featured a design from which Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander artists?
3. What did some Aussies not like about the Matildas goalkeeper jersey?
4. What clothing item is new to the range?
5. Why was the uniform described as an “impressive milestone” by Anna Meares?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Design brief
Before commencing the design of the Australian Olympic uniforms, ASICS would have been provided with a design brief that set out the requirements for the design. This is like a set of instructions that lets the designer know what their client wants. Work backwards from the final design and make a list of 8 dot-point requirements that you think were in the design brief.

Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English; Design and Technologies

2. Extension
In the final two lines of the article, an unnamed person makes a statement about the uniforms, but it seems that there is some hidden meaning in their words. Explain what they actually mean and how you know.

Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

VCOP ACTIVITY
Creative vocabulary
Find a bland sentence from the article to up-level. Can you add more detail and description? Can you replace any "said" words with more specific synonyms?

Have you outdone yourself and used some really great vocabulary throughout your writing? First, well done. Second, let’s ensure everyone can understand it by adding a glossary of terms. Pick three of your wow words and create a glossary for each word to explain what it means.