You might call it "jersey gate."
A photo that surfaced online allegedly revealing all three Team Canada hockey jerseys for the 2014 Sochi Olympics is being blamed on a Vancouver retailer.
The designs, shown only from the front, are red, white and black, and each bears Nike’s signature swoosh on the chest. One appears almost identical to a jersey Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews was seen wearing in a leaked photo earlier this month.
Hockey Canada isn’t commenting on the picture, and isn’t scheduled to officially unveil its jerseys until Oct. 8.
But CTV News has learned a store in Vancouver received its shipment and put the jerseys on display early by accident.
John Czvelka of Van City Sports said the leak didn’t come from his store, but he did get a call from Nike.
“It was delivered to some stores and they didn’t read the instructions,” Czvelka said. “They put it out and somebody snapped pictures of it.”
The storeowner said he’s been shown a mock-up of Team Canada’s jersey, and believes the designs circulating online are the real deal.
“Yes they are,” Czvelka said.
The jerseys have been torn apart on social media, where some blasted the designs as boring and others compared them to the Petro Canada logo.
With a report from CTV British Columbia’s St. John Alexander
Have your say: Do you like the jerseys in the photo?
