Opinion BY Armin

The Name is Athletics, British Athletics

Established in 1999, UK Athletics (UKA) “oversees the development and management of the nation’s favourite Olympic and Paralympic sport, from grassroots right through to podium.” With the attention gained during the London Summer Olympic Games, UKA decided to launch a new brand, British Athletics, that sort of replaces the UK Athletics name and brand, except it does not. For confusion purposes, “British Athletics will be used in all external communications,” while UK Athletics will be “reflecting the governance and NGB duties of the organisation.” This article explains much better what that means. The new British Athletics logo was introduced earlier this year.

Update: The identity has been created by London-based SomeOne. More images and quotes have been added to this post.

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In Brief BY Armin

In Brief: 2014 Winter Olympic Games Pictograms

Last month the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee unveiled the pictograms of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games. The pictograms are based on those of the 1980 Summer Olympic Games in Moscow and, as the press release states, “taking into account modern views.” The release does not mention if elementary school children were used as models for each pictogram, removing their lunchbox and backpack in post-production but it does continue, “The understated quality and visual simplicity, the combination of smooth and straight lines, the lack of sharp corners, all of this helped to give a sense of purpose and dynamism to the Sochi 2014 pictograms.” The pictograms come in two flavors: (1) the usual single-color application and (2) a quilted version based on the Look of the Sochi 2014 Games, the patchwork quilt of Russia (which we reviewed here). I wish the pictograms hadn’t turned out so “cute” and toddlerish because the versions with the patchwork look great. A few samples below (or after the jump) and you can see all pictograms here.

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Opinion BY Armin

US Speedskating Shields Itself

US Speedskating is a non-profit organization that serves as the governing body for the sport of speedskating in the United States and responsible for getting athletes to the Winter Olympic Games. The US Speedskating team has won an impressive 85 Olympic medals. Last year they introduced a new identity and uniforms designed by Salk Lake City, UT-based Struck.

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Opinion BY Armin

USA Hoops’ New Looks

Established in 1974 as the Amateur Basketball Association of the United States of America, USA Basketball — renamed as such in 1989 when FIBA modified its rules to allow professional basketball players to participate in international competitions — is a non-profit organization that acts as the governing body for men’s and women’s basketball in the U.S., responsible for selecting and training the teams that participate in events like the Olympics and FIBA World Championships. This week USA Basketball introduced a new logo that replaces the current version, in use since 1989 and made world famous by the original Dream Team at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Rio 2016 Paralympic Games

The emblem for the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio was unveiled this Saturday. It was designed by Tátil, the same firm that designed the Olympics logo. Press release here. Detail of the logo and video presentation below (or after the jump).

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Opinion BY Christian Palino

Olympic Maple

The Canadian Olympic Team needs little introduction: Over 100 years of competition in the modern Olympic Games and undoubtedly one of the powerhouses of the winter events over recent years (not to mention some impressive summer showings). After contributing to the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver as Design Manager, Art Director Ben Hulse worked with Greg Durrell, Adam Bognar and Andrew Simpson through the entire process in rebranding the Canadian Olympic Team for the Canadian Olympic Committee. A summary page with the new identity can be found here.

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Opinion BY Armin

Follow-Up: XXII Olympic Winter Games

In December of 2009 we reported on the logo and look, created by the Moscow office of Interbrand, of the XXII Olympic Winter Games that will take place in 2014 in Sochi, Russia. This week the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee unveiled the concept of the Look of the Games which was designed by BOSCO Sports, a sponsor of the Olympics, as well as the official uniform provider for the Russian Olympic team since 2002. They donated the work to the committee. The look revolves around “the principle of the ‘patchwork quilt’ — a combination of 16 designs representing the most famous traditional Russian arts and crafts, ranging from Gzhel to Khokhloma.”

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