The Olympic Games celebrate feats of agility, speed, strength and endurance, while watch brand OMEGA showcases its mastery over the measurement of time with its new editions
Timekeeping is a major responsibility at the Games and it is not surprising that OMEGA has been handling this herculean task with a rare grace for the past 26 editions of the Games.
It all began in 1932 – a defining year in the history of sports measurement. For the very first time, a single private company was entrusted with keeping time across all events at the Olympic Games. OMEGA, which supplied one timekeeper and 30 high precision chronographs that had all been certified as chronometers, was able to capture results to the nearest tenth of a second.
Historic inventions
Subsequent editions of the Games saw the unveiling of groundbreaking technologies in sports timekeeping, such as the photofinish camera, dubbed the Magic Eye; automatic touchpads in the pool; Photosprint, which captured the moment that every contestant crossed the finish line on one single photograph; the false start detection device that detected the slightest false start; the Swimming Show, high-precision Quantum Timer, and the OMEGA Scan’O’Vision MYRIA that captures 10,000 frames per second in a photofinish.
For the 2016 Games, OMEGA is sending approximately 480 tonnes of equipment, miles and miles of cabling and 450 timekeepers.
Olympics 2016 editions: OMEGA Seamaster Diver 300M Rio 2016 Limited Edition
The watch draws on the city’s famous beaches as inspiration for a similar style on the watch’s lacquered black dial. The uni-directional rotating diving bezel is of black polished ceramic, with lacquered numbers in red, green, yellow and blue representing the exuberance of Rio and the famous Olympic rings.
The screw-in caseback has been stamped with the Rio 2016 logo and an engraved Limited Edition number. Only 3016 of these pieces have been produced.
Other typical OMEGA Seamaster 300M features include a date window at 3 o’clock, a helium escape valve at 10 o’clock, and polished faceted skeleton rhodium-plated hands coated in white Super-LumiNova. Presented on a stainless steel bracelet with the exclusive OMEGA calibre 2500, the watch is water-resistant up to 30 bar (300 metres/1000 feet).
SeamasterBullhead Rio 2016 Limited Edition
The Bullhead Rio is instantly recognisable for its individual style and design. The blue leather strap features subtle stitching along each side, in yellow, green, red and black, representing the Olympic rings, with the rotating inner-bezel also coloured similarly.
The case of this particular style, first released in 1969, was used by rally drivers to time their laps. Like its predecessors, the Bullhead Rio also features a white dial, as well as a central chronograph seconds hand, and a 30-minute recorder at 12H. Built with OMEGA's exclusive Co-Axial calibre 3113, the timepiece is stamped with the Rio 2016 logo on the caseback.
Speedmaster Mark II Rio 2016
Inspired by the 1969 original Speedmaster Mark II, the polished and brushed stainless steel case is barrel-shaped and has a polished crown and pushers. Beneath a flat scratch-resistant sapphire crystal is a matt black dial featuring a 30-minute recorder at 3 o’clock, a 12-hour recorder at 6 o’clock and a small seconds sub-dial at 9 o’clock. The sub-dials are decorated with a bronze ring, 18K yellow gold ring and 925 silver ring respectively – an allusion to the medals awarded at the Games.
The transparent tachymeter scale on the sapphire crystal is illuminated from beneath by an aluminium ring filled with Super-LumiNova. The varnished white and black hour and minute hands, chronograph seconds hand and hour markers are also coated with Super-LumiNova, making it possible to read the time in a variety of lighting conditions. The Speedmaster Mark II is the first watch in OMEGA’s collection that makes it possible for the wearer to see the tachymeter scale in the dark.
The screw-in caseback is stamped with the logo of the Rio 2016 logo and is engraved with “Si14”, “Column Wheel” and the limited edition number of the wristwatch – only 2,016 pieces of this model will be produced.
The polished and brushed stainless steel bracelet is complete with OMEGA’s patented screw-and-pin design and a foldover rack-and-pusher clasp. The length of the bracelet can be adjusted by releasing the outer clasp and sliding the inner clasp.
The Speedmaster Mark II Rio 2016 is powered by the OMEGA calibre 3330 equipped with an Si14 silicon balance spring and a Co-Axial escapement with three levels, has a four-year warranty, is water-resistant to 10 bar (100 metres/330 feet) and is offered in a special presentation box with a certificate of authenticity.