Omega Watches are the Official Timekeepers of the 2016 Olympics, which are underway in Rio this year. They released a new line of watches honouring the prestigious Olympic Games. This is the 28th time that Omega has been appointed the vital and prestigious role. Omega are using new state-of-the-art timing technology developed for exact timing and photography systems that capture winners with complete precision.
To achieve this Omega use a hundred of camera and multitude of sensors. The timing can be counted to a 1/10,000th of a second, which is vital in determining winners of competitive races. The Olympics requires 500 trained Omega professionals to operate 450 tons of equipment, 355 scoreboards and run the miles of cable and fibre optics required for timing.
Omega Watches were first appointed the role in 1932 when the Olympics were held in Los Angeles. The pocket watches for men who timed the games are still remembered fondly today. Raynald Aeschlimann, Omega’s CEO and President, talked in a recent interview about Omega’s established history with early sports timing.
Talking about the antique pocket watches Aeschlimman said,
“We have such a history of early sports timing and some of the images of those early races and the pocket watch timing are really inspiring. So with this history, people do remember this white dial, the red accents. We are known for that and some customers still see the white dial of the Olympic chronograph as being the face of Omega.”
The decision for Omega to be the Official timekeepers of the Olympics in 1932 was made by the International Olympic Committee; a decision that was made because of the brand’s reputation for accuracy. It marked the first time in history that one brand was given sole responsibility for timing all of the Olympic events.
The pocket watch is considered one of Omega’s most talked about products. The classic pocket watch has now been revived by Omega. Movement kits were found in the Biel headquarters and have been used to recreate the Omega Olympic pocket watch in 18K white gold. The pocket watch features the classic design with the recognisable white dial and small second dial, with a split seconds hand. They are beautiful but can these replace the sentiment and wonder of a real, antique Olympic Omega pocket watch? Antique pocket watches are a perfect gift for men who love history and classic design.
