Aussie Olympic rowing team choose what could be one of the most cringeworthy nicknames in the country's sporting history
- Team's new name comes after nationwide competition
- Doesn't roll off the tongue like 'Oarsome Foursome'
The Australian rowing team has rebranded itself ahead of this month's Olympics in Paris - and the name they have gone with doesn't appear to be a winner.
Following a nationwide competition to name the team and consultation with stakeholders, athlete leaders and sport design experts, the name they went with is the Rowsellas.
The new title combines the name of the iconic Australian parrot with a pun - a bit like Australia's most famous rowing team, the Oarsome Foursome.
'It's pretty cool [for the team] to be finally named the Rowsellas. It's pretty special to have our Men, Women and Paras all under one name and one branding. That's really united,' rower Kendall Brodie said in a Rowing Australia press release.
'The speed and agility of the Rosella is pretty similar to how I feel in the Men's Eight when we are at peak speed. I've got to hold on tight because it feels like I'm flying, so it's a really fitting name for the team.'
Rowsellas teammate Sarah Hawe said she hopes the new moniker catches on.
'I think it's great the public has something to cheer for,' Hawe said.
'A lot of big sporting teams have mascots… the Dolphins, the Matildas… so for rowing to now come into that space is really exciting.'
The Australian rowing team (pictured at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics) has rebranded itself the Rowsellas - but the new name isn't grabbing sports' fans imaginations
It is the first time the highly successful team has had one name to cover every competitor (pictured, the Aussie women's eights team at this year's World Cup)
However, social media announcements of the new name fell flat on Tuesday.
Despite several posts going up on the Rowing Australia and Australian Olympic Team accounts on X, not one of them had drawn a single comment from Aussie sports fans at the time of writing.
That stands in contrast to the famous Oarsome Foursome name, which was given to the country's men's coxless four from 1990 to 2012, during which time they won two Olympic golds and two world championships.
Australian national teams have a tradition of drawing from our local wildlife for monikers, with names such as the Hockeyroos (women's hockey), Boomers (men's basketball) and Kookaburras (men's hockey).
The Matildas (women's football) is inspired by the nation's cultural heritage, coming from the folk song Waltzing Matilda.
The Australian rowing team, one of the most successful nations in the sport, has never had a team name to race under until now.
Rowing Australia boss Sarah Cook said that the creation of the Rowsellas identity is a big moment for the sport.
'Rowing has a long and distinguished history in Australia, so creating a name, identity and logo from scratch took an enormous amount of input and buy-in from people right across the sport, from administrators, coaches, the athletes and of course the fans, who submitted hundreds of ideas for the team name,' Cook said.
'The enthusiasm was overwhelming, which shows how much the Australian Rowing Team - the Rowsellas - mean to our community. We hope we have rewarded them with a name and icon they can get behind and our athletes can represent with pride and distinction.'
