Official Press Release From The Ioc

[Fiona]

Preserving The Purity Of The Games

The Olympic Games is one of the world’s greatest visual events. To preserve the purity of the Games, the IOC does not allow advertising hoardings on the field of play, resulting in a clean venue and broadcast. To ensure the continuity and the quality of the Olympic experience for spectators and viewers alike, the elements of image and identity — notably the Look of the Games core graphic — are of the utmost importance in communicating the message and the emotion of each edition.

The Elements
The image and identity of each Olympic Games are made up of several design elements. These elements are the Olympic symbol of five interlocking rings; the Host City emblem, which in Turin is represented by the silhouette of the “Mole Antonelliana” taking on the shape of a mountain and reaching up to where the snow meets the blue sky; the Look of the Games core graphic, which in Turin represents the Italian “Piazza”; the Games theme, “Passion Lives Here” in the case of Torino 2006; the Olympic mascots, Neve and Gliz at these Winter Games; and finally, the sports pictograms, which in Turin, for the first time in Olympic Games history, have been created following a common graphic design.

The Olympic Rings
The Olympic symbol is one of the most recognisable icons in the world. The Olympic rings provide a common thread that links one Olympic Games to all the others. The five rings, which represent the five continents, are interlaced to show the universality of Olympism and the meeting of athletes from the whole world at the Games. Each of the five rings appears in a different colour — red, blue, black, green, yellow — at least one of which can be found in every national flag.

Creativity
While the image and identity elements bring continuity to the Games, each Host City imbues the Olympic Games design programme with its own culture and heritage. Indeed, the IOC encourages each Organising Committee to create a concept that links the universal values of Olympism to the specific cultural values and traditions of the Host City and country. While the image and identity of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games was inspired by typical Greek symbols, the Turin Games will be dominated by the “Piazza”.

A Critical Component
Commenting on the importance of the Look of the Games, IOC President Jacques Rogge said, “As broadcast technology and coverage of the Olympic Games and the Olympic Winter Games become increasingly more sophisticated, attracting an unprecedented global television audience, the Look of the Games has become a critical component of a successful Olympic broadcast experience. Of equal importance is the impact that the Look has in the Host City — on its citizens and guests — the athletes, media and the spectators. This is a key element in creating the magical experience that is the Olympic Games.”

olympics.org