Reaction to the Hudson’s Bay Company’s Team Canada 2012 London uniforms has been generally positive, especially since it was announced that most of the athlete’s kit was made in Canada. The Bay didn’t try to reinvent the wheel like they did with their dragon-themed uniforms for the Beijing Games. This go-around, the designs are simple, straightforward and, most importantly, red and white, like the Team Canada jacket ($100).
The Bay’s loose-fitting tanks are available in red, white and grey and were inspired by the uniforms of the Montreal 1976 Olympic Games.
At a mere $10, HBC hopes these Canada-tagged, Wayfarer-style shades ($160) will be as ubiquitous a symbol of national pride as the 2010 “red mittens.”
Speaking of Wayfarer sunglasses, Ray-Ban, makers of the real deal have come out with a special London series complete with cartoon-y Union Jacks, tourist attractions like Piccadilly and the Millennium Eye and even members of the Queen’s Guard.
Launched in 1948 at the last London Games, Omega’s 1948 Seamaster watch ($6,000) is adorned with the London 2012 logo and is a special limited edition with only 1,948 available worldwide. You’ll find them in Canada at signature Omega Boutiques in Vancouver and Toronto.
Roots hasn’t been Team Canada’s official outfitter since the Salt Lake City games of 2002. That said, they still know a little something about patriotic and stylish togs. The Canada Zip Polo ($74) from the company’s We Love Canada collection is laid-back enough for the cottage but preppy enough for casual Fridays at the office.
The top Olympic stories out of London are all about security failures, traffic snarls and feuding Spice Girls. The Team Great Britain uniform, designed by Stella McCartney for Adidas, is one of the few things garnering positive press in the host country. This streamlined windbreaker with re-imagined Union Jack shows why.
The Spanish Olympic Committee learned you get what you pay for when Russian sportswear label Bosco offered to produce their Olympic kit for free. Many Spanish athletes took to Twitter to voice their displeasure, among them reigning sprint canoe gold medallist Saúl Craviotto: “At home trying on my Olympics clothes. It’s best if I don’t give an opinion, I will leave it up to you …” That said, the garish yellow-collared polo shirt pictured here is flying off the shelves in the UK, fast on its way to becoming the Games’ bestseller. (Coming soon to eBay at a huge markup…)
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Image courtesy of HBC.
