The University of Northern British Columbia has unveiled new jerseys for their athletics teams the school says are a Canadian first.
The new Timberwolves alternative jerseys feature a logo created by Gitxsan artist Trevor Angus, which UNBC says are the first in any college or university athletic program in the country completely designed by an Indigenous artist.
“The sense of pride that I hope every student athlete feels when they put on this uniform is something that they will remember forever,” UNBC athletics director Loralyn Murdoch said in a media release.
Angus is a former UNBC student, and also designed the logo for the school’s First Nations Centre.
His green, black, yellow and white logo is an interpretation of the Timberwolf logo UNBC has used since 1998, and accompanied by custom Indigenous piping on the sides of versions on soccer and basketball uniforms.
“I loved the whole wolf theme that was already there, and I worked on that. I always thought of the wolf as an animal that works in a pack, or a team, so I thought it was such a good fit,” Angus said.
“I had the vision of what I wanted to do before I ever put pencil to paper. I’m happy with the results. I hope UNBC wins lots of games while wearing these jerseys.”
Along with the new logo, the uniforms feature syllabics that translate to “En Cha Huna,” UNBC’s motto from Dakelh (Carrier) Elders interpreted as “respecting all forms of life.”
The soccer version of the jerseys will get their first run in competition on Saturday while the basketball version will be played in for the first time on Nov. 6, with both games against the TRU WolfPack.