BURSTS OF BRILLIANCE

FOR LVMH WATCH WEEK, ZENITH WANTS TO DAZZLE YOU WITH ITS TECHNICOLOUR PROWESS.

- FARHAN SHAH

WHEN SPORTS WATCHES emerged in the early 1970s, they were greeted with a healthy amount of derision. A stainless-steel timepiece priced the same as a precious metal one, or even more? Absolutely ludicrous. Yet, in a little less than a decade, they soon adorned the wrists of influential men (and women) who appreciated their robustness and versatility.

History, however, has a way of oscillating from one end of the spectrum to the other. Zenith knows this better than anyone else. After all, it was one of the first watchmakers to kick-start the sports watch craze with the Zenith El Primero chronograph in 1969.

In 1994, it introduced the Chronomaster collection of high-end mechanical chronographs that perfectly demonstrated the manufacturer’s mastery of the complication. It would become the main line showcasing Zenith’s crème de la crème: the El Primero movement.

One Amazing Technicolour Proposal

Three decades later, in 2024, Zenith proposed a new kind of sports watch based on the Chronomaster. You can forget about stainless steel. The Chronomaster Sport returned to precious metal, specifically rose gold for the dial and a similar material for the bracelet. Then, it set several gems on the bezel.

This year, Zenith adds even more shine, specifically 50 baguette-cut gemstones – 40 sapphires and 10 diamonds – on the bezel of the new Chronomaster Sport Rainbow. Ten different hues of sapphires are set into sections, each punctuated with a diamond.