Canadian rowing team at Amsterdam 1928 (CP Photo/COC)Wearing the maple leaf: Team Canada through the decades
Just as fashion evolves, so too has Olympic fashion.
Sure, styles may come and go, but Canadian pride is ever present in the athletes who represent us on the world’s biggest sports stage.
Here is a look at what Team Canada has worn over the years at the Olympic Summer Games.
1920s
Canada’s women’s athletics team poses at the Amsterdam 1928 Olympic Games. (CP Photo/COC)
Canada’s women’s team at the Amsterdam 1928 Olympic Games. (CP Photo/COC)
Canada’s lacrosse team competes at the Amsterdam 1928 Olympic Games. (CP Photo/COC)
White suits. Cloche hats. Shorter skirts. True to the ’20s, but the maple leaf still holding its prominent place.
1930s
Canada’s Hilda Strike (left) celebrates her silver medal win in the women’s 100m race at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic Games. (CP Photo/COC)
Canada’s John Loaring (right) participates at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, where he won a silver medal in the 400m hurdles event. (CP Photo/COC)
Classic athletic wear with the nation’s name emblazoned front and centre.
1950s / 1960s
Ken Money competes in the high jump at the Melbourne 1956 Olympic Games.. (Canadian Press)
Canada’s Harry Jerome (right) celebrates his bronze medal win in the 100m athletics event at the Tokyo 1964 Olympic Games. (CP Photo/COC)
The Canadian 400-metre freestyle relay team are shown in an Oct. 26, 1968 photo displaying their bronze medals they won Saturday night with a third-place finish in the final of the Qlympic Games’event. From left are: Marion Lay, of Vancouver; Angela Coughlan, of Burlington, Ont.; Elaine Tanner, of Vancouver and Winnipeg; and Marilyn Corson, of Parry Sound, Ont. (CP PICTURE ARCHIVE/STF)
The simple tracksuit never goes out of style.
1970s
Canada’s Olympic swim team participates at the 1972 Munich Olympics. (CP Photo/COC)
Canada’s Edgar Smith and Richard Symsyk participate in a rowing event at the 1972 Munich Olympics. (CP Photo/COC)
Robin Corsiglia on the podium at the Montreal 1976 Olympic Games
Canada’s women relay team (right) celebrates their bronze medal win in the swimming event at the 1976 Olympic games in Montreal. (CP PHOTO/ COC/MB)
Canadian athletes make their entrance at the Opening Ceremony for the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. (CP PHOTO/COC/ RW)
One look at these uniforms and you know you’re in the ’70s. The wide-legged pants. The large-collared shirts. The bucket hats. Even the cut of the t-shirts.
1980s
Alex Baumann leads Canada into the Los Angeles 1984 Opening Ceremony.
Canada’s Carolyn Waldo (left) and Michelle Cameron celebrates their gold medal win in the synchronized swimming duet event at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. (CP PHOTO/ COC/ Ted Grant)
Canada’s Romel Raffin (with flag) and the Canadian Olympic Team attend the flag raising ceremony at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. (CP PHOTO/COC/ T. Grant)
There’s also no mistaking these for anything but the ’80s. The sweater vests. The polo shirts.
1990s
Canada’s athletes participating in the opening ceremony at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. (CP PHOTO/COC/Claus Andersen )
Canada’s athletes celebrate during the opening ceremony at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. (CP PHOTO/ COC/ Claus Andersen)
Charmaine Crooks (flag bearer) leads Canada at Atlanta 1996.
Canada’s Charmaine Crooks carries the flag during the opening ceremony at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games. (CP PHOTO/COC/Mike RIdewood)
Canada’s Charmaine Crooks carries the flag during the opening ceremony at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games. (CP PHOTO/COC/Mike RIdewood)
Two very different vibes from the ’90s. At Barcelona 1992, it was all about splash and colour. At Atlanta 1996, it was a step back in time to celebrate the centennial of the Olympic Games.
2000s
Adam van Koeverden leads Canada into the Bird’s Nest at Beijing 2008 Opening Ceremony.
Adam van Koeverden of Toronto leads the Canadian team into the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, Friday, August 8, 2008. (CP PHOTO)2008(HO-COC-Mike Ridewood)
Canada’s Carol Huynh from Hazelton, B.C., gold medalist in the women’s freestyle 48kg wrestling, fights back tears during the national anthem during victory ceremonies at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Saturday, August 16, 2008. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson
Canada’s Rosannagh MacLennan, right, congratulates teammate Karen Cockburn for her silver medal in the women’s trampoline competition at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Monday, August 18, 2008. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson
Canadian athletes enter the National Stadium for the closing ceremonies at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Sunday, August 24, 2008. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
Beijing 2008 provided a chance to embrace Chinese-inspired icons, colours and font.
2010s
Triathlete Simon Whitfield carries the flag for Team Canada as they enter the stadium during the opening ceremonies for the 2012 Summer Olympics Friday, July 27, 2012 in London. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
Canada’s Mark de Jonge holds up his bronze medal during the victory ceremony for the 200m canoe sprint at the 2012 London Olympics, August 11, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, COC – Jason Ransom
The Canadian team gets ready for the closing ceremony in the Olympic Village at London 2012, Sunday, Aug. 12, 2012. COC – Jackie Skender
Team Canada takes pictures as they arrive during the opening ceremony for the Olympic games at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday August 5, 2016. COC Photo/Mark Blinch
Canada’s Katerine Savard, Taylor Ruck, Brittany Maclean and Penny Oleksiak, from left, hold up their bronze medals during the women’s 4 x 200-meter freestyle relay medals ceremony during the swimming competitions at the 2016 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 11, 2016, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ( Photo/JasonRansom)
Canadian athletes celebrate during the closing ceremony in the Maracana stadium at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Aug. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)
Team Canada at the Rio 2016 closing ceremony (COC/Jason Ransom)
London 2012 was just classically Canadian – including a patch-covered jean jacket for the Closing Ceremony. And for Rio 2016, the maple leaf made Team Canada easy to spot in a crowd.
2020s
Pierce Lepage (Athletics) – Opening Ceremony (Photo: Finn O’Hara/Team Canada) // Pierce Lepage (Athlétisme) – Cérémonie d’ouverture (Photo : Finn O’Hara/Équipe Canada)
Pierce Lepage (Athletics) – Opening Ceremony (Photo: Finn O’Hara/Team Canada) // Pierce Lepage (Athlétisme) – Cérémonie d’ouverture (Photo : Finn O’Hara/Équipe Canada)
Sarah Douglas in victory ceremony outfit. Photo: Finn O’Hara/Team Canada
Kylie Masse in Closing Ceremony uniform. Photo: Finn O’Hara/Team Canada
Kylie Masse in Closing Ceremony uniform. Photo: Finn O’Hara/Team Canada
For Tokyo 2020, the kit blends classic looks and street fashion with a Canadian twist. The little details say a lot, such as the 13 stripes in the maple leaf on the back of the Opening Ceremony jacket representing the unity of our 10 provinces and three territories. You’ll definitely want to take a deeper dive into all the symbolism of the graffiti on the Closing Ceremony jean jacket.
