Executive Board accepts Paris 2024 proposal for new sports
- IOC
The IOC Executive Board today supported the recommendation of the Olympic Programme Commission to put forward Paris 2024’s proposal for new sports – breaking, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing – to the upcoming IOC Session in June. “All four of these proposed sports are clearly in line with Olympic Agenda 2020. They contribute to making the programme of the Olympic Games more gender balanced, more youthful and more urban. They offer the opportunity to connect with the young generation,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. “Pending the outcome of the IOC Session, it is important to note that the sports would be provisionally included. The final decision should be taken only at the end of 2020".Also in keeping with Olympic Agenda 2020, Paris 2024 proposed sports that could be considered within the Olympic Charter framework of approximately 10,500 athletes. Breaking and sport climbing both appeared as medal events at Buenos Aires 2018, while skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing will make their debuts on the Olympic programme in Tokyo. If the proposal is approved at the IOC Session, and following any necessary observations, including at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, the event programme and athlete quotas will then be finalised at the IOC Executive Board meeting in December 2020. Paris 2024 also presented on its interest in new areas of engagement, such as inviting fans from all over the world to share in the Olympic experience through both mass-participation events and connected events, bringing spectators closer to the action.
Lausanne 2020 reveals its pictograms 300 days before kick-off
- LAUSANNE 2020
Pictograms, graphic representations of sports disciplines, are a core element of the visual expression of the Olympic Games. In line with its ambition to active involve young people in the preparation and organization of the event, Lausanne 2020 has entrusted the development of the pictograms to ERACOM (Ecole romande d’arts et communication de Lausanne), a Lausanne-based arts school. With 300 days to go before the Opening Ceremony, the pictograms were official unveiled today by Lausanne 2020.
ERACOM, whose apprentices have already created Lausanne 2020’s mascot “Yodli”, which was introduced to the public early this year, gathered three classes from its graphics department for this new project. A total of 36 apprentices worked together to produce the 16 pictograms, which represent each of the winter sports included in the Lausanne 2020 programme.
Upon the unveiling of the pictograms, Adrien Jenni, Director of ERACOM, said: “We are very proud of these young first-year apprentices, who showed a lot of ambition and hard work towards this one-year project. From around thirty initial proposals, three were shortlisted, with the winner named by a jury including representatives of ERACOM, Lausanne 2020 and the IOC. Just like the mascot, we are delighted to see these pictograms come to life and contribute to the identity of the 2020 Youth Games.”
Once the final pictograms were chosen, a class of fourth year students from the interactive media design programme worked on their animation. These animated pictograms are visible today and will be used on all Lausanne 2020 digital platforms, before and during the Games.
Reflecting on the project, Viviane Morey, coordinator of the Lausanne 2020 projects at ERACOM, said: “To draw inspiration, we mainly focused on the athletes’ movements while practicing the different disciplines. From painting to drawing, and even some experiments using water in the schoolyard to practice Chinese calligraphy, various creative techniques were used! And we are very happy with the result. For us, it is a great source of pride to be able to contribute to the development of an Olympic event.”
Ian Logan, Director General of Lausanne 2020 also expressed his gratitude towards the project, adding: “The success of Lausanne 2020 will partly be measured by its impact within schools. Today, hundreds of young people are involved in the preparation of Lausanne 2020, developing new skills and knowledge in a variety of areas. The commitment of the youth is part of our project’s DNA and I would like to thank ERACOM for this high-quality work and fruitful collaboration. We look forward to working on more projects together.”
Unveils Olympic Games Sport Pictograms. Designs embody the artistry of athletes in action
- TOKYO 2020
The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020) today unveiled the official sport pictograms of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. In line with the Tokyo 2020 brand promise of “Innovation from Harmony”, the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 sport pictograms are designed to subtly communicate the characteristics and athleticism of each sport, as well as artistically highlights the dynamism of athletes. They will play a key role in enhancing the experience of athletes and spectators alike during the Olympic Games.
Olympic Games sport pictograms were first introduced at the Tokyo 1964 Games, which arose from a need to communicate visually to an increasingly international group of athletes and spectators. Since then, pictograms have been created for every edition of the Games.
While paying great respect to the predecessors and inheriting the Tokyo 1964 pictograms by innovating them, the Tokyo 2020 pictograms not only adhere to the objective of communicating information, but also are designed to display athletes’ vibrant movement in the most attractive way.
There are 33 sports that will feature in the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 programme, and some sports use more than one pictogram. There are two sets of 50 designs – “Free Type” and “Frame Type”. Colour variations will be developed mainly using the blue of the Tokyo 2020 Emblems and five other traditional Japanese colours—kurenai, ai, sakura, fuji and matsuba— as sub-colours to create points of difference. The Free Type unframed pictograms will be used on posters, tickets and licensed products, and the Frame Type pictograms will be used for more functional purposes on maps, signage at competition venues, guidebooks, and on websites.
A team led by renowned Japanese designer Masaaki Hiromura designed the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 sport pictograms.
Hiromura said, “It is a real honour to have participated in the design of the Tokyo 2020 sport pictograms. I have tried to express the dynamic beauty of the athletes through these pictograms, while respecting the legacy bequeathed by the pioneers of the Japanese design industry in their designs for the Tokyo 1964 Games. The 2020 designs took us almost two years to complete and they embody the thoughtful input of the many people involved. I hope that these pictograms will inspire everyone and help generate excitement for the different sports at Tokyo 2020, and that they will colourfully decorate the Tokyo 2020 Games.”
Decoration on the fences surrounding the Olympic athletes’ village construction site
This project by Tokyo 2020 Gold Partner Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd will be the first in which decorations are installed around the city. The sports pictograms will decorate the exterior of the Olympic athletes’ village site, where construction is scheduled to be completed in December 2019, to help build excitement for the Games.
President Mattarella: "Full support for Milano Cortina 2026"
- OLYMPIC AND PARALYMPIC GAMES
President Sergio Mattarella on Tuesday vowed the "utmost support" for Milano and Cortina's bid to host the 2026 Winter Olympics. He said the Winter Games "have great importance, not only for the two protagonist cities but also for the while of Italy". Mattarella said "I assure all the support and backing possible".
Design your way to the olympic capital!
- LAUSANNE 2020
Alling all talented designers and creatives across the globe: you could be the creator of the medals for the youth olympic games lausanne 2020. do you have what it takes? submit your design and you could win a trip to lausanne, the olympic capital, in january 2020 for the winter youth olympic games!
Entering is the easy part: go to www.medal-design-competition.com, then find your inspiration and submit your very own design. The competition opens today 14 February 2019 and runs until 8 April 2019.
The winning design and two runners-up will be selected by a judging panel made up of the Young Change-Makers+ and Young Reporters who have been involved in in previous editions of the Games. Also joining the panel will be the Chair of the IOC Coordination Commission for Lausanne 2020, Olympian Danka Bartekova; Virginie Faivre, Lausanne 2020 President and ski freestyle legend; and Viviane Morey, dean at Eracom, Lausanne's professional school of applied arts and communication, whose students created the 2020 Youth Olympic Games mascot.
The winning design will be selected at the end of April 2019, and this will then feature on the gold, silver and bronze medals awarded to athletes from 9 to 22 January 2020. The reverse of the medal will be designed by the Lausanne 2020 Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee after this contest, in order to have a look that works well with the winning design of this year’s competition.
In addition to the prestige of creating Olympic history, the winning designer will win a trip to Lausanne to enjoy the Opening Ceremony and witness the awarding of their medals at the sports competitions, as well as a full set of medals featuring their design for them to cherish.
So, what are you waiting for? Create a piece of Olympic history and enter your medal design!
Lillehammer '94, the first 'White Green Games'
- 25 YEARS AGO
The Lillehammer Olympic Winter Games took place from 12 to 27 February 1994. They were the first Winter Games to be held in a different year from the Summer Games of the same Olympic cycle.
The Games organisers set out with the aims of protecting the environment, promoting business development and increasing tourism. Although not all the objectives were fully achieved, the Lillehammer Games became an example of sustainable best practices in mega event organisation.
The Olympic Games Lillehammer 1994 are widely seen as the first ‘White Green Games’: they were the first Olympic Games to showcase environmental and sustainability practices. They laid the foundations for the development of Olympic environmental standards and further strengthened Norway’s commitment to sustainability.
All 10 sporting venues that were purpose-built for the 1994 Games remain in use today. During the Games, they attracted up to 200,000 people daily – an impressive result considering Lillehammer’s population of 23,000 at the time.
The Olympic Games Lillehammer 1994 created an opportunity for local companies to expand their activities and triggered the development of new ideas. New competencies were developed in the areas of new technologies applied for the design and construction of sports facilities, data systems, marketing, sponsorship and project management.
Lillehammer 1994 inspired a ‘golden’ generation of athletes in the country and triggered the country’s dominance in winter sports which continues to this day.
Photo: copyright 1994 /Allsport - IOC
Once the Olympic tripod has been lit, the first medals are awarded
- OPEN THE EYOF OFSARAJEVO
With the lighting of the tripod by the Bosnian judoka Larisa Cerić, the curtain was raised on the 14th edition of the Winter EYOFs, scheduled until 16 February in Sarajevo and East Sarajevo. "We create together" was the slogan of the ceremony that took place at the "Asim Ferhatović Hase" Olympic Stadium , in a country that after the Balkan War retied its five circle bond that was waved over three decades ago on that same stage on the occasion of the 1984 Winter Olympic Games in Sarajevo. Amongst the 46 countries present, to captain the Italian delegation - comprising 37 Italian athletes (18 men and 19 women) - was the standard-bearer Elisa Confortola, bronze medalist in the short-track relay at 2018 Tomaszow Mazowiecki and 2019 Montreal Junior World Championships.
The first medals in the eight disciplines scheduled for the event dedicated to athletes between 14 and 18 have already been awarded today.
One year ago PyeongChang's opening ceremony
- OLYMPIC GAMES
The Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 were a resounding success both on and off the field of play, achieving a number of significant milestones. In the words of IOC President Thomas Bach, these were the Games of New Horizons. The Games enjoyed unprecedented geographical reach, in terms of both participation and coverage; offered a more diverse sporting programme than ever before; and, perhaps most significantly, served as a bridgehead for peace and cooperation.
With gender parity one of the IOC’s overarching goals, PyeongChang 2018 took a significant step forward in this regard, with a record female participation of 41.3 per cent of the total of 2,833 athletes. There was also a record number of events – 102, four more than the previous record of 98 set at Sochi 2014. The number of NOCs participating was also a new record for the Olympic Winter Games. Athletes from a total of 91 countries (as well as an Olympic Athlete from Russia delegation) competed, which was up from 88 at Sochi 2014. Underlining the IOC’s continued commitment to expanding the global reach of winter sports, six new NOCs from four continents took part (Ecuador, Eritrea, Kosovo, Malaysia, Nigeria and Singapore).
Peace and unity
Perhaps most notable of all was the fact that the Games served as a bridgehead for unity between the host nation and its neighbours from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. In a celebration of unity and the Olympic spirit at the Opening Ceremony, athletes from the two countries marched side by side. Further epitomising the spirit of friendship, a unified Korean women’s ice hockey team brought together 35 players from both sides of the border to compete as one for the first time in Olympic history, in what the IOC President Thomas Bach hailed as “a very important powerful message that transcends sport”.
Records tumble
In terms of sporting success, no fewer than 25 new Olympic records were set, along with three world records. Among the notable sporting highlights and individual achievements, the Czech Republic’s Ester Ledecká became the first athlete to win gold in both Alpine skiing and snowboarding at the same Olympic Winter Games. Meanwhile, Norway’s cross-country skier Marit Bjørgen won five medals in PyeongChang to take her career total to 15 – more than any other athlete in history. These were also Games that saw the emergence of a dazzling generation of new stars, not least an array of former Youth Olympic Games (YOG) athletes, who won 29 medals between them. In total, there were more than 230 YOG “graduates” competing in PyeongChang, including the USA’s Chloe Kim, who became the youngest female snowboarder gold medallist in Olympic history, and German ski jumper Andreas Wellinger, who soared his way to a gold and two silver medals.
Lausanne 2020 Mascot Yodli Unveiled At “One Year To Go” Celebration
- YOUTH OLYMPIC GAMES
In just one year, the 3rd Winter Youth Olympic Games will kick off in Lausanne, Switzerland. to celebrate the milestone, the Lausanne 2020 Youth Olympic Organising Committee (yogoc) unveiled its mascot, “Yodli”, designed by students from a local art school.
How Yodli came to life is a perfect example of how Lausanne 2020 will truly be Games by young people for young people: 140 students from Eracom, a local art and communication school, contributed to the design of the mascot. The various drafts were shown to school children from Lausanne and surrounding areas, to collect feedback and adapt the mascot, and the final choice was then given to 500 young Swiss athletes aged 12 to 18, who voted on the final design.
Yodli is a hybrid animal, composed of several emblematically Swiss animals that live in the Swiss mountains: a cow, a goat and of course a St Bernard dog. Their different characteristics and relationships with the environment are embodied in Yodli, who signifies the diversity of the participants of the Winter Youth Olympic Games Lausanne 2020.
In addition to the unveiling of the mascot, the Lausanne 2020 YOGOC will hold a short ceremony in the Flon neighborhood, in the centre of Lausanne, which will serve as the Medals Plaza during Games time. Emotions will certainly be high when the OMEGA countdown clock shows exactly 365 days to go.
In just one year, Yodli will be joined in Switzerland by 1,800 athletes aged 15 to 18 who will compete in eight sports. They will compete across the whole of Switzerland, and neighbouring France, enabling many regions to be part of the Olympic spirit.
IOC President Thomas Bach confirmed that this will be the first gender equal Winter Youth Olympic Games, following on from the successful summer edition in Buenos Aires last year.
President Bach said: “Gender equity is one of the pillars of Olympic Agenda 2020 and we are very happy that within three years we have managed to have full gender equity for the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires and now for the first time for a winter event with Lausanne 2020 and we will also have gender equity in Tokyo 2020 so this is important and we are happy and proud that we’ve achieved this in such a short period of time.”
Not only will equal numbers of men and women be competing for medals; some exciting new disciplines, such as Ski mountaineering, have also been added to the programme to reflect the increased female participation.For the first time, a Winter Games edition will include mixed-nationality 3×3 ice hockey (with each team made up of three boys and three girls), a women’s doubles competition in luge, and a women’s Nordic combined event.
Arianna Fontana awarded as best female athlete of PyeongChang 2018
- ANOC AWARDS IN TOKYO
Arianna Fontana achieves increasingly legendary status in Olympic circles. The Italian Olympian was awarded as best female athlete of the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic Games. The endowment arrived during the XXIII General Assembly of the Association of National Olympic Committees, held in Tokyo. The ANOC recalled the short track champion’s great success, highlighting her merits and emphasising the fantastic support provided by the Italian National Olympic Committee.
Arianna arrived in PyeongChang as a standard-bearer and ended up as an Olympic legend. She made history: thanks to 3 podiums won in South Korea, she reached a total of 8 medals earned in the last 4 editions of the Olympics. Now she is not only the youngest Italian athlete ever to have climbed Mt. Olympus thanks to her bronze in the relay at the 2006 Turin games, but these most recent three “gems” have consecrated her second-place position among the most decorated Italian athletes in the winter Olympics and fifth place all-time, also taking the summer editions into consideration.
(Foto ANOC)
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