Measure Of Greatness

Omega ascends the podium as official timekeeper in Tokyo for the 29th time in its long-standing partnership with the Olympic Games.

- ​​​​​​​TAN SIOK HOON

It cannot be denied that Omega is the pre-eminent authority of modern timekeeping and precision in the sporting world as the Official Timekeeper of the Olympic Games for the 29th time in history come Tokyo 2020. In fact, it has extended its global partnership with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) through to 2032—a deal that was sealed on May 15, 2017.

Since making its debut at the Los Angeles Summer Olympics in 1932 as the sole watch company selected as official timekeeper, the Swiss watchmaker has counted many innovative and memorable moments in the history of sports measurement such as the beginning of the “electronic era” in London 1948 with the first photo-finish camera and the first Photoelectric Cell, followed by the quartz-driven OMEGA Time Recorder in Helsinki 1952, when it was also awarded with the IOC Cross of Merit for “exceptional services to the world of sport.”

In Melbourne – Stockholm 1956, Omega introduced the Swim Eight-O-Matic—the world’s first semi-automatic swimming timer, and subsequently, “real time” sports reporting in Innsbruck 1964. Mexico City 1968 saw the arrival of Omega’s swimming touchpads, one of the most important milestones in timekeeping history, while the new Video Matrix Board was unveiled in Montreal 1976 to showtimes, points and scores, as well as black-and-white video recordings in paving the way for future scoreboard updates and technical innovations.