News - 04.05.2010

OMEGA to serve as Official Timekeeper for IAAF Diamond League

4 May 2010 - OMEGA, widely known for its role as Official Timekeeper at the Olympic Games, has signed an agreement with the Diamond League AG confirming that it will provide the same services to the new IAAF Diamond League circuit in its 2010 inaugural season.

The IAAF Diamond League is an annual series of one-day meets which intends, as one of its main goals, to enhance the worldwide appeal of athletics. The 14 meetings planned for 2010 replace the Golden League, whose six meetings were contested exclusively in Europe. The IAAF Diamond League will still include the most prestigious events on the European athletics calendar but will also feature meetings in China and the United States and will kick off its ambitious schedule in Doha, Qatar on the 14 May.

Stephen Urquhart, the president of OMEGA, said, “We are looking forward to timing the performances of the talented men and women competing in the international IAAF Diamond League meetings. We already know many of these top athletes through our association with the Olympic Games and we are pleased to be part of this new initiative which will bring world-class athletics to an even wider audience.”

IAAF President Lamine Diack reflected on OMEGA’s history of timing athletic events and expressed his enthusiasm about the partnership. “Athletics as the Olympics’ number one summer sport has had a long standing and historic relationship with OMEGA. Accurate timing and measurement are at the core of an objective sport such as athletics, and the results of the IAAF Diamond League will particularly be in the public’s focus this summer as the best athletes in the world vie for more than US$6 million in prize money.” 
 
In addition to its timekeeping and data handling activities at some of the world’s highest-profile sporting events, OMEGA has been responsible for the development of much of the key technology in sports timing, including the Scan’O’Vision photofinish camera with its ability to “photograph time”. OMEGA has served as Official Timekeeper at 24 Olympic Games since 1932 and recently extended its agreement with the International Olympic Committee through 2020.

OMEGA