Posted On: February 22, 2010
Team Australia Allowed to Fly Boxing Kangaroo in Olympic Village
The race for gold is not the only contest taking place in Vancouver during the 2010 Winter Olympics. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) requested the Australian Team to stop displaying a boxing kangaroo flag, which they had hung across several balconies in the Olympic Village. The Australians refused. The IOC requested the removal because the flag was said to have violated the IOC's rules against commercialism in the games. The golden kangaroo wearing red boxing gloves is a trademark registered to the Australian Olympic Committee and is used in Australia to encourage sport and sportsmanship in school children.Eventually, the matter was resolved amicably. The IOC allowed the Australians to keep the unofficial mascot banner flying after a local Vancouver political leader offered to display the flag from a flagpole in the city. Australian proponents argued that the boxing kangaroo flag has become an Olympic tradition with the team as it has been displayed at each Olympics beginning with the Sydney 2000 Summer Games. Furthermore, although the image is a trademark, it should not be interpreted as violating the IOC's non-commercial display rules because it is not associated with a product or service for sale in Canada. Afterall, it is not as if the team claimed and displayed the Nike Swoosh as their mascot.
