Omega Timing the Olympics

Cool video on timing the Olympics and article.
From
Europa Star WorldWatchWeb, 27 July 2012 中文

As Malcolm Lakin points out in his column in the next issue of Europa Star (click here for a sneak preview), a number of watch brands have been enjoying huge visibility thanks to their different associations with the big events in this year’s summer of sport.

The biggest event of the summer by far, or “the greatest show on earth” if you prefer the hype, is the Olympic Games, which will be ushered in this evening by an opening ceremony in London that promises to show the very best of Great Britain. After that follows two weeks of competition in 26 different sports, in some of which the difference between gold and silver medal will be measured in hundredths or maybe even thousandths of a second.

Omega Timing Chairman Peter Hürzeler, left, explains the swimming timing system to LOCOG Chairman Sebastian Coe, 2nd left, Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek, 3rd left, International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge, 2nd right and Omega President Stephen Urquhart, right at the Aquatics Centre in London's Olympic Park
Omega Timing Chairman Peter Hürzeler, left, explains the swimming timing system to LOCOG Chairman Sebastian Coe, 2nd left, Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek, 3rd left, International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge, 2nd right and Omega President Stephen Urquhart, right at the Aquatics Centre in London’s Olympic Park

Omega returns to London as the official timekeeper of the Olympic Games after acting as the timekeeper the last time the games were held in the city, back in 1948. Over the course of the history of the modern Olympic Games, Omega has provided the timing services on 25 occasions, starting back in Los Angeles in 1932, when the company provided thirty mechanical stopwatches. For London 2012, no less than 450 timekeepers from Omega’s specialist timing unit have descended on England’s capital, bringing with them 400 tonnes of equipment, including new, totally electronic starting blocks for the athletics disciplines.

“It’s a long tradition that has touched billions of people all over the world,” says Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek. “For eighty years, it’s been part of our legacy.”