The Olympic Collection
Rewind to 1968 when a simple, but timeless, gesture defied the "rules" and caused a fallout of Olympic proportion...
Tommie Smith & John Carlos peacefully protested against racial injustice and in support of human rights movements after winning the Men's 200m race at the 1968 Mexico Olympics. This caused both men, including ally Norman Smith, to be ostracised, removed from the IOC or black-listed from future Athletic events.
"As the athletes waited to go to the podium, Carlos and Smith told Norman that they planned to use their win as an opportunity to protest. Smith and Carlos decided to appear on the podium bearing symbols of protest and strength: black-socked feet without shoes to bring attention to Black poverty, beads to protest lynchings, and raised, black-gloved fists to represent their solidarity and support with Black people and oppressed people around the world." - (History)
Fast Forward to 2020 where the same human rights issues were front and centre for all to see while the world stood still at the height of the pandemic. A year later than planned, organisers of the Tokyo 2020 announced limited forms of protest would be allowed from the athletes.
The infamous image of all three podium athletes came to mind with this year's current climate and the IOC banning certain forms of protest.
Months before this announcement, athletes in the NBA bubble were using their platform for change. Starting with the Milwaukee Bucks, NBA teams walked off the court to boycott playoff games and send a powerful message to the world that change was necessary.
Merging the forward-thinking NBA league logo and the iconic image of Tommie Smith to create this one of a kind design was a no-brainer for me.
Personalise the name on the chest, flag inside the box or any other customisations you can think of!
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