Sydney Olympics and on: A look back on Australian Boomers and Opals jerseys

With Aussie basketball apparel making waves, albeit for all the wrong reasons, what better time to look back on the kits that our Boomers and Opals have worn on the big stage?

When Australia got their first look at the uniforms that the Boomers will wear at this year’s Olympics, the fallout was impossible to miss.

Everywhere you looked online, fans and pundits alike were lining up to take their best shot. Heck, even some Boomers weren’t too impressed.

Credit: @agentmoldovan on Instagram (original post has since been removed)

With that feedback came plenty of questions: who approved them? Who let ASICS make basketball jerseys? Why must our basketballers look like they’re about to run a marathon?

A spokesperson from the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) shared in a statement via journalist Matt Logue, that the image doing the rounds was of a replica. While the general design would remain the same, the high-performance version will have a different cut and material.

Extra images subsequently released on the ASICS Australia website showed off more details, most notably the striking design of the side panels that have earned praise.

Source: ASICS website

The “Walking Together” artwork by Indigenous Australian Olympic boxer Paul Fleming, as well as “Ngalmun Danalaig (Our Way of Life)” artwork by Torres Strait Artist David Bosun at centre back, are visually stunning and clearly meaningful (more information) as part of the AOC’s second ‘Innovate’ Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), leaving many to wonder why they wouldn’t be featured even more prominently on the jersey.

On “Walking Together”:

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

On “Ngalmun Danalaig (Our Way of Life)”:

David’s piece captures the main elements of the traditional and modern ways of life in Zendath Kes. “The winds in this artwork flow diagonally through the Dhari, our traditional head dress, in the middle. The islands sit within the horizon line and the currents move from top to bottom, bottom to top,” Bosun explained.

“All the lines converge in the centre, through the Dhari. The Dhari is a key ceremonial piece for us. It is worn during ritual celebrations, specifically in dance ceremonies. It is a powerful and important cultural item.”

It’s also worth noting that the Olympics bring certain constraints, with all teams falling under the same apparel partnership with Asics and the AOC likely seeking some level of uniformity between sports.

With our national team’s basketball apparel making waves, albeit mostly for all the wrong reasons, what better time to look back on the kits that our Boomers and Opals have worn on the big stage at major tournaments? Join us for a walk down memory lane, as we reflect on every Olympic and World Cup jersey since the turn of the century.