[Online Exclusive Article]
Words by Ngân Dang.
With the 2024 Olympics in Paris commencing next month, many of us are gearing up for an exhilarating and well-anticipated winter filled with sporting competition.
Growing up, I was never a kid who was obsessed with sports—I barely played any, nor did I ever put in much effort to watch it regularly. However, the bubbling excitement around the Olympics has always been a norm for me. Without fail, I would wake up at odd hours in the morning to watch my favourite underdog pick compete against world-renowned athletes, tune into a rivalled football match, or focus on hours of gymnastic routines.
Somewhere between the festivities, I invariably become intrigued patriotic narratives that emerge during the Olympics. Especially in Aotearoa, rarely do we see such a glaring expression of national pride in our daily lives—but the international games have a remarkable way of uniting people and bringing out one’s love for their country. The Olympics will dominate conversations, with our athletes featured on the front pages of every newspaper. For a while, sports will be a constant presence, playing on screens from pubs to living rooms.
The idea of national identity in the age of globalisation is always at the centre of these events. We don’t have to look too far. Tennis player Lulu Sun recently switched her national allegiance from Switzerland to represent New Zealand as an athlete. New Zealand backed her through the deep progression into this year’s Wimbledon, but this support is not always extended to many athletes with diverse upbringings. Sun’s choice sparked robust discussions in our community: on what grounds can an athlete choose to represent a certain nation?
This is a somewhat clear-cut matter on paper. According to the International Olympics Committee (IOC), a competitor can choose to represent the country they were born in, or one they are a citizen of. Some sporting associations also allow athletes to pick the nation of their parents’ and grandparents’ roots. Individual sentiments about national identity in sports are much more nuanced and debated, however. Though most of us are happy to see the best athletes choosing to represent our country, hateful pushbacks about these complicated decisions exist—usually relying on the stereotypes of who would correctly reflect the national identity. Tournaments like the Olympics are therefore as much of a scene for politics and identity exploration, as it is a sporting and entertainment ground.
Sports can excel in rekindling passion and a sense of community. I may not be super patriotic, but my national pride definitely turns up a few notches whenever these international tournaments come around. Unworn sports jerseys resurge from the depths of my closet, match schedules are printed out and stuck on my wall—the whole thing. And it’s not just me, either. You can see the ‘we’ of a nation become tangible among the spectators, and the athletes that represent us as one collective.
We took the All Blacks’ rivalries seriously, scowled at our Aussie neighbours' victories, and cheered when Dame Lisa Carrington won her fifth gold medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Sporting prowess can redefine a nation’s identity on the international stage. At the games, there’s something that every country and territory of the world focuses on and can excel in. Sports aren't an even playing field due to the financial and social advantages of powerhouses like the US, China, and Russia. But it has always been about hope and the unexpected. This creates powerful narratives for smaller countries to take the spotlight.
During international tournaments, the association between athletes and nations is unparalleled. Every athlete who steps out into the arena aims to achieve personal excellence, but they also compete for their nation. My mate mentioned her excitement to see Aotearoa dominating in the usual categories: the rugby sevens and rowing amongst her favourites to tune into. Seeing one’s nation victorious at the pinnacle of sports can feel like a personal triumph in extension—you are seeing your community represented on that big stage.
Sporting competitions can be a force of unity, but they also reveal the divisive sentiments within our communities. With a nation’s hopes and expectations on their shoulders, athletes face intense scrutiny during international tournaments. When our teams lose, the frustration spreads as quickly as the pride that surges in our victories. A sensationalist media environment and tribalistic fan culture only fuels anger, creating space for racist and exclusionary narratives. After missing penalties that led to defeat against Italy in the 2021 Euros, England players Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, and Bukayo Saka were targeted with racist abuse. Tennis star Naomi Osaka also faced immense backlash in Japan due to her mixed heritage, and her decision to represent the nation in her first Olympics.
Athletes of colour have always been forced to go above and beyond to prove their place in the sporting world. As former footballer Mesut Özil commented on the hate he received after Germany’s early exit in the 2018 World Cup: “I am German when we win, but I am an immigrant when we lose.” The rise of white nationalism perpetuates the continuous cycle of racism, which excludes people of colour from the national identity. When athletes of colour win, the media hailed them as national heroes. But when they don’t exceed expectations, the first thing fans see through the lens of privilege and anger is the colour of their skin. The ‘one nation’ narrative exists until athletes fail to prove their worth to the country. In an increasingly interconnected and multicultural society, it is not far-fetched to think about how we can redefine the traditional boundaries of national identity, one that has always left out people of colour, to embrace diversity in our definition of belonging.
Sporting organisations may try their best to pick and choose when to separate sports from politics (I’m looking at you, IOF). But that is a near impossible and unethical task to complete when the two topics have such an intimate connection. Sports can evoke new emotions and an unrivalled sense of belonging and patriotism. The passion rumbling through the community in these tournaments is what made me fall in love with the beautiful games. At the same time, international tournaments visualise globalisation and the way it is shaping our communities today. In this scene, athletes of diverse backgrounds are constantly pushing the boundaries of national identity, traditionally understood as a very exclusive sense of pride.
Maybe it’s about time that we question the rigid boundaries on belonging that have always put the identities of athletes of colour up for debate and judgement. So, wear your New Zealand jersey with pride this Olympics, remember to have fun, and back every single one of our athletes through thick and thin.