Olympic Games: Beautiful jersey means nothing if we don't win gold - Hamidin

KUALA LUMPUR - The beautiful design of the official jersey for Malaysia's contingent to the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will hold no significance if they fail to achieve the nation's first gold medal in Paris.

Chef de Mission (CDM) Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin said that the main theme of the official attire, including the use of gold instead of the previous orange, aims to evoke the relentless pursue of medals for the nation at the prestigious global sporting event.

"We have agreed with Yonex (the official attire manufacturer) to showcase the colour gold. The orange colour has been around since 2004, and many athletes before this have requested the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) to change to another colour.

"OCM has agreed with Yonex to change to gold because we are aiming for gold, that's actually the theme, and Yonex also believes that the gold hue complements the black. However, even if the colour is beautiful but we do not get gold or medals, it is of no use," he said to reporters after observing the training session of professional women's singles player Goh Jin Wei here today.

He also clarified that the use of the Malaysian flag on the left part of the official attire, which was questioned by social media users, actually represents the official OCM logo.

"The colours of orange, gold and blue are all acceptable; this is the logo of the Olympic Council of Malaysia, not the Malaysian flag, so there is no issue," he said.

Hamidin, who is also OCM deputy president, said that the majority of the country's athletes who will compete in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games have agreed with the design of the national contingent's official attire.

With less than a month remaining before the official opening of Paris 2024 on July 26, Hamidin advised everyone, including the public, to continue to provide strong support to the national contingent for this Olympic Games.

Acknowledging criticisms on social media regarding the design of the official attire, he said that OCM may open opportunities for the public to contribute their designs for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.

"I have contacted OCM president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria and he has essentially agreed that next time we will open up to fans for designing the contingent's official attire for the next cycle, and we may even provide incentives," he said.

Meanwhile, he admitted the mistake of using mannequins to showcase the national contingent's official attire for the 2024 Olympic Games, consisting of collared shirts, T-shirts and jackets introduced during the Olympic Day celebration at a shopping centre in the capital city last Sunday.

Recently, sports enthusiasts on social media have expressed dissatisfaction with the design, claiming it to be somewhat outdated and lacked inspiration compared to previous national contingent's official attire. - BERNAMA