On Campus

Olympic hockey jerseys unveiled at UBC

Design incorporates Canadian icons, including a moose, beaver, killer whale and the fleur-de-lis

On Monday, Hockey Canada unveiled Team Canada’s 2010 hockey jersey that will be worn by the men’s, women’s and sledge hockey teams representing Canada at the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games. While music played over loudspeakers, two huge jersey replicas were hoisted at the UBC Thunderbird Arena, one of the two venues for Olympic hockey.

Canada Olympic hockey jersey unveiling
Elisa Testa, 7 and Cole MacEwen, 11 modelling the sweaters

The jerseys were designed by Nike in collaboration with Musqueam artist Debra Sparrow in order to tell the story of Canada’s rich history. Inside the red maple leaf crest, the central element of the jersey, are design features that incorporate imagery from across Canada including smaller maple leafs representing the Olympic gold medal counts for Canada’s men’s (7), women’s (3), and sledge hockey team (1).

Stuart Iwasaki & Debra Sparrow - Canada Olympic hockey jersey unveiling
Stuart Iwasaki, Nike designer and Debra Sparrow, Musqueam artist

The graphic design features Salish symbols and patterns which are representative of the First Nations across Canada and incorporates Canadian icons: the maple leaf, hockey player, moose, beaver, killer whale, and the fleur-de-lis. The thunderbird and eagle are two powerful First Nations symbols that support and protect the central maple leaf. According to Stuart Iwasaki, a Nike designer, the cultural imagery reflects a desire to inspire the athletes by providing elements of First Nations artwork and sketches in the design.
2010 Team Canada logo
2010 Team Canada logo (courtesy of Hockey Canada)

After using the traditional logo of a hockey player skating through a black and red maple leaf for international competitions over the past 14 years, Hockey Canada had to come up with a new design to comply with International Olympic Committee rules that forbid national sports federations displaying their logo at the games.

A replica 2010 jersey is available commercially at a suggested retail price of $134.95 with proceeds from the sales going to support Salish youth sports.

Canada Olympic hockey jersey unveiling
Bob Nicholson, President/CEO Hockey Canada speaks at press conference

Canada Olympic hockey jersey unveiling
UBC Thunderbird Arena

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