With the world still recovering from the fashion goals and pink soccer boots at the World Cup, Commonwealth Games teams are being coy about their opening ceremony uniforms.
So far, only Scotland, Australia and New Zealand have been brave enough to reveal their formal attire, with Bermuda offering substantial hints.
So, here is the podium placement for the current finalists.
Bronze for Team Scotland: Thistle do
Unveiled with enough smoke to stage a reenactment of a Bonnie Tyler music video, Team Scotland’s ceremonial uniforms could have benefited from an even deeper haze.
While the men are decked out in Braveheart black tie, with traditional sporrans, fly plaids and kilts designed by Siobhan Mackenzie, the women are given nightclub-ready black heels, skirts that can be hemmed to your personal highlands and sporran-shaped purses.
Tennis legend Martina Navratilova summed up the criticisms on social media, commenting beneath a photo of the uniforms: “It’s crazy … sexist AF.”
Mackenzie, who designed the women’s uniform for the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, and the tartan outfits at Birmingham 2022, focused on traditional rather than contemporary values.
“The outfits are classic and timeless, with the tartan very much the focus,” Mackenzie said. “It’s also really important to me that everything is made in Scotland, from the woven cloth to the finished garments and accessories, supporting local textiles and craftsmanship.”
Billie Eder, sports writer, in Glasgow: First up, athletes in high heels? No, thanks. If they want to choose to wear them in their free time, then go for it. But to mandate it as uniform? Uncool. If I can look past the sexism (it’s kind of hard), I think the blue tartan is really cool.
Silver for Team Australia: Top of the class
From the ankles down, Team Australia’s uniforms are the envy of the world – or at least the female Commonwealth Games athletes from Scotland.
The covetable Craftsman boots with matching belts from R.M. Williams are quite rightly a source of national pride.
The rest of the uniform respectfully touches on private school blazers, in a pleasing hunter green with a promising touch of gold thanks to the team insignia. There’s a playful whiff of the Dubbo Regional Livestock Markets, thanks to chinos and skirts.
First Nations design touches peek out of the jacket lining, breast pockets on the mens’ blazers and on hair ties, worn with crisp white shirts ready for Rotarian speech nights.
“Designing for Team Australia goes beyond appearance,” said R.M. Williams designer Charles Kennedy. “It’s about capturing pride, identity, and belonging, and creating pieces worthy of the moment athletes represent their country.”
Billie Eder, sports writer: Sigh. Am I really going to take down another Australian team uniform (see my previous work)? You bet. For a country known for its exotic wildlife and stunning landscapes, we sure as hell do fall short in the creativity department when it comes to fashion. It would be a different story if we were putting the First Nations designs on the outer – then people could really see a piece of our nation.
Gold for Team New Zealand: Sweet as
Sustainability without sacrificing style is at the throbbing heart of New Zealand’s official uniforms, provided by Kathmandu.
The theme is “future nostalgia” with jackets crafted using merino wool, featuring QR codes on the inside pocket that connect competitors to messages of support from home. Wide leg pants and baseball caps have a welcome skater vibe. Unfortunately, skateboarding is not an official event at the Commonwealth Games.
The wool weave in the blazer was developed with Woolmark and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) for maximum wind and water resistance without the use of synthetic coating.
Some of the uniform pieces have been made using recycled plastic waste, including car tyres, with those burnouts in Palmerston North finally paying off.
Billie Eder, sports writer: Yeah, NZ is cool, and they know it. The mix between formal and casual hits the nail on the head, and is so refreshing compared with the rigid uniforms from Australia and Scotland. This is kit you can actually see the athletes wearing again. It’s giving streetwear that will cost a pretty penny at a vintage store one day.
Ones to Watch, Team Bermuda
Only three of the seven athletes representing Bermuda will take part in the opening ceremony, wearing outfits inspired by the calypso band The Talbot Brothers of Bermuda.
The three female athletes will wear carnival shirts, trousers and straw hats inspired by the all-male band.
The look is a deliberate move away from Bermuda shorts.
“I’ve chosen a uniform depicting The Talbot Brothers,” chef de mission Donna Raynor told Bernews.
“That’s how we will be dressed. I’m sure people will say, ‘Oh, no Bermuda shorts’. We’re excited about that.”
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