century. Sporting events, which had been mainly regional or national affairs would soon become global, representing all nations of the world. As the result of social and economic developments, sporting events were about to enter a new era in which official timekeepers would play a major role in not only measuring performances but also competing with one another on the finish line for the split-second record-breaking point. During the twentieth century the watch industry would strive to develop technologies to measure time more precisely.

The modern era of sporting events began with Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games, known as the International Olympic Committee following a ceremony held on June 23, 1894 at the University of Sorbonne in Paris. His ideas went beyond a simple sports competition. De Coubertin’s definition of the Olympic Games involved four principles whereby athletes would "adhere to an ideal of a higher life", "strive for perfection", represent an elite "whose origins are completely egalitarian", and perform on "a four-yearly festival of the springtime of mankind" so as to glorify sports by the "involvement of the philosophic arts in the Games". Two years later, in 1896, the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens.

At the same time, the game of football (known as soccer to Americans!) began to spread outside of Great Britain, mainly due to British influence in its colonies. Football in Great Britain was well organized, with large crowds of spectators attending games of the Football Association, which was founded in 1863 and by the turn of the century had in its ranks 50 club members. Other parts of Europe were not quite as advanced and it was not until May 1904 that the FIFA (Fédération International de Football Association) was founded in Paris with seven original members: France, Belgium, Denmark, The Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. Although it faced difficulties and experienced setbacks, the football community managed to grow steadily prior to the first World Cup in 1930.

With the development of major sporting events throughout the world, it became obvious to official sports committees that accurate timekeepers were both a priority and necessity for both competitors and referees. During the early years of the Olympic Games, the standard of record keeping was variable and sometimes nonexistent. However, the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm soon came to be remembered as the model of efficiency in regards to timekeepers. It was here, for the first time, that Sweden introduced an unofficial electric timing device for the track events, as well as the use of a public address system. In previous years, only the winner’s time had been recorded, and variations in results were found so as to be able to credit a time to second and third place finalist. As a result it is difficult to evaluate the official results of the early years of the modern Olympics.
The conclusion was soon drawn that an official timekeeper was needed to ensure accurate results. Consequently, Heuer launched the "Micrographe" in 1916, a highly precise instrument capable of mea-
suring time to 1/100th of a second. Its introduction marked the birth of modern sporting events, as it became the official chronometer responsible for the control of all individual chronographs in the 1920's for the Olympic Games in Antwerp, Paris and Amsterdam.

In the meantime, Omega gradually imposed itself in stadiums and at sporting events throughout the world. After a successful attempt in the chronometry of the Olympic Jubilee of Lausanne (1984-1919), in 1928 Omega introduced big elapsed-time clocks in the 22 most important football stadiums of Europe and South America. These interesting clocks, called Omega Football Watches, were composed of a detachable movement which was taken off and kept on the premises between football matches. When put back into its original location, it could easily be set up at the push of a button. Its functioning and stopping were made very easy; the referee had only one button to push. This, in fact, is an interesting aspect of sports timekeepers. Although the watch industry produced ever more complicated watches, simplicity of use in sports chronometry was one of the main ingredients in timing efficiency.

After the Great Depression of 1929, Omega reinforced its entrepreneurial spirit, taking over the firm Lemania Lugrin SA in 1932. Benefiting from the experience of Lemania in chronograph construction, Omega developed its range of precision watches. That year also marks a milestone in the history of official sports timekeepers, with Omega being designated the official timekeeper of the Olympic Games held in Los Angeles.

As for Omega, the company still holds the record with 21 selections as Official Chronometer of the Olympic Games. Simply put, the Omega brand had already won the "world’s confidence". In a letter sent August 18, 1932 to J.R. Wood and Sons, general agent for Omega in New York, William M. Henry, technical director of the Olympic Games, writes: “It is impossible to consider the remarkable success of these 10th Olympic Games and the unequaled athletic performances which took place without mentioning the role played by Omega watches in this international event. The thirty split-seconds chronographs you gave us were the only ones given by the organizational Committee to Official Olympic referees in all sports programs of 1932. They gave entire satisfaction under all circumstances, and their indisputable precision was praised by their users”.

Omega reinforced its marketing strategy and leading position in sports chronometry at the Winter and Summer Olympic Games of 1936, held in Germany. In Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Omega brilliantly timed the skiing competitions by means of a simple method of two synchronized chronographs, one at the starting line and the other at the finish. The jury took note of all the starting times and, after the passage of various competitors, carried the times down the slope in order to confirm the time elapsed for each competitor to 1/10th of a second. That same year, Omega delivered 185 chronographs to the organizational committee of the Summer Olympic Games, held in Berlin.

The 1936 Olympics will also be remembered as the first to introduce the torch relay and to be broadcast on large screens set up throughout Berlin, allowing the local population to see the Games free of charge. As it turned out, the most popular hero of the Games was the American sprinter and long jumper Jesse Owens, who won four gold medals in sprints and the long jump. His exceptional performances and records would stand for years.

After twelve years of interruption due to World War II, the watch industry, along with others in the field of visual developments, returned its attention to improving sports chronometry. In 1945, Omega patented the first mobile cellular photoelectric, water-resistant and adjusted to resist to wide variations of temperatures. Relying on infrared technology, the photoelectric was sensitive to sunrays and flashes. During the Winter Olympic Games of 1948 in Saint Moritz, Omega used the cellular photoelectric eye for the first time and it proved its efficiency well beyond everyone's expectations. In practical terms, it allowed the jury to record the times of all competitors successively crossing the finish line. On the visual side, the British Race Finish Recording Co. Ltd developed the first photofinish camera, capable of taking continuous images in last area of the track. It was called the "Magic Eye", and was used du-ring the Summer Olympic Games of 1948, held in London. Besides being the first to broadcast the Games on home television, the British also set up the first cinematographic camera at the finish line, which proved to be indispensable for close finishes. The cellular photoelectric eye worked well for the first place finisher, however it could not readjust automatically for the runners that followed. Only the cinematographic camera was able to take into account the exact positions of all the competitors. In the finals of the 100-meter sprint, one of the major events of the Olympic Games, the American Ewell was originally claimed the winner; the use of the camera, however, proved otherwise and the victory was awarded to his compatriot, Dillard. Timekeepers, it now seemed, were useful only to a certain extent and had to be replaced on special occasions by other devices such as the cinematographic camera.

If the influence of chronometry on the Olympics was mainly the work of Omega Sports Timing, the early modern era of sports car racing fell mostly under the influence of Longines. In the middle of the century, numerous competitions were covered efficiently by both of these brands. After the Art Deco period, which was symbolized by prestigious automobile brands such as Bugatti, the post-war era, along with motor car racing adventures, brought technological progress to the Swiss watch industry.

The modern era of sports prototype racing began in 1953 with the implementation of the World Sports Car Championship. It was orga-nized in racing series and governed by the International Automobile Federation, which established rules to control the design and construction of race cars. This competitive environment attracted designers and chassis manufacturers, as well as the world's best drivers and tire companies.

The close collaboration between Longines and motor cars began in 1933 with the first timing of the Brazilian Grand Prix. It continued with the introduction in 1949 of the Chronocamera, designed to record finish line results to 1/100th of a second and to print the results on a film strip. This revolutionary new system was officially certified by the Automobile Association in Paris a year later. Following the world's premier cycling race, the “Tour de France”, proudly timed by Longines in 1951 with its new invention, Photogines, considered at the time to be a satisfactory instrument for timekeeping, the Swiss brand was ready to launch a re-volutionary timekeeper for car racing. In 1955, the Monaco automobile rally was the first car competition to put the Longines Printogines punch clocks to a test.

This system allowed drivers to stamp their race card themselves at each control station, with the Printogines automatically updating the contestant’s time and ranking. All of these innovations would soon be further improved upon by Omega.
In the following years, Omega proved to be an innovator in car racing, introducing the Omegascope for the “24 Hours of Le Mans” of 1961, viewed by over 250 million television spectators. This technology drastically changed the public’s perception of timekee-
pers, being based on the concept of showing time on television screens with a precision of minutes, seconds, tenths, hundreds and even thousands of a second. This revolutionized television sports reports as well. Chronometry, which was still esoteric, soon became accessible to millions of television viewers. This was indeed the birth of modern chronometry in sports events. For the first time in the history of Formula 1 racing, at the Grand Prix of Mexico in 1967, the Omegascope even allowed viewers to see the lap and gap timing between drivers. As Jean-Pierre Bovay, one of the people instrumental to Omega Sports Timing’s technological developments, later remarked, "Between Longines and Omega, it was war". Indeed, Longines and Omega would long continue to be active competitors in developing sports chronometry!

The close collaboration between Longines and motor cars began in 1933 with the first timing of the Brazilian Grand Prix. It continued with the introduction in 1949 of the Chronocamera, designed to record finish line results to 1/100th of a second and to print the results on a film strip. This revolutionary new system was officially certified by the Automobile Association in Paris a year later. Following the world's premier cycling race, the “Tour de France”, proudly timed by Longines in 1951 with its new invention, Photogines, considered at the time to be a satisfactory instrument for timekeeping, the Swiss brand was ready to launch a re-volutionary timekeeper for car racing. In 1955, the Monaco automobile rally was the first car competition to put the Longines Printogines punch clocks to a test. This system allowed drivers to stamp their race card themselves at each control station, with the Printogines automatically updating the contestant’s time and ranking. All of these innovations would soon be further improved upon by Omega.
In the following years, Omega proved to be an innovator in car racing, introducing the Omegascope for the “24 Hours of Le Mans” of 1961, viewed by over 250 million television spectators. This technology drastically changed the public’s perception of timekee-
pers, being based on the concept of showing time on television screens with a precision of minutes, seconds, tenths, hundreds and even thousands of a second. This revolutionized television sports reports as well. Chronometry, which was still esoteric, soon became accessible to millions of television viewers. This was indeed the birth of modern chronometry in sports events. For the first time in the history of Formula 1 racing, at the Grand Prix of Mexico in 1967, the Omegascope even allowed viewers to see the lap and gap timing between drivers. As Jean-Pierre Bovay, one of the people instrumental to Omega Sports Timing’s technological developments, later remarked, "Between Longines and Omega, it was war". Indeed, Longines and Omega would long continue to be active competitors in developing sports chronometry!

Though "war" raged between these two Swiss watch companies, hard times and increased competition would soon come from the Japanese watch industry in the mid 1960's. Although Omega and Longines remained the Official timekeepers of the Winter and Summer Olympics during that period, Seiko was appointed Official Timer for the Tokyo Olympic Games in 1964. Seiko introduced the quartz timer for the very first time in the history of Olympic timing, after which it became the standard for most sports events. The Tokyo Games developed Seiko’s brand awareness throughout the world. Five years later, in 1969, Seiko marketed the world's first quartz watch, thanks to the Olympic Games. The technological revolution in quartz movements would re-volutionize the watch industry in the years to come. This challenge had to be faced by the Swiss watch industry, including its leaders in the sports chronometry field, Omega and Longines.

Omega struck back in 1968 by completely organizing the chronometry for the 1968 Mexico Summer Olympic Games. They will be remembered as the biggest enterprise ever attempted by Omega. It involved the use of 500 instruments, 7 tons of materials, including electronic boards, and 45 technicians, at a total cost of 40 million SFr! With a display of 52 electronic scoreboards, Omega confirmed its image as the leading brand in sports. During these games, eleven world records were broken, one of them by the American long jumper Bob Beamon, in what will always be remembered as one of the most extraordinary performances in Olympics history. Without a doubt, Omega had regained its position as the leader in sports chronometry.

A few years later, Longines and Omega surprised everyone by announcing they had joined forces for the official timing of the Olympic Games. With the increasing cost of sports chronometry, especially at the Olympic Games of Mexico in 1968, Omega and Longines united in order to conform to the more stringent requirements of official committees. On July 3, 1972, under the aegis of the Swiss Federation of Watch Industry, the first Swiss company in charge of sports chronometry, known as Swiss Timing, was created. For all subsequent sports events the two companies would remain competitors.

The Winter and Summer Olympic Games held successively in Innsbruck and Montreal in 1976 were the first ones to be officially timed by Swiss Timing.
Interestingly enough, these games were used to launch the Chrono-Quartz model by Omega, a chronograph quartz wristwatch combining both analogical and digital time. In 1977, Omega introduced the Swim-O-Matic, the first chronometer briefcase for swimming trials. It weighed only 1.5 kilos as opposed to the 150 kilos of its predecessor used at the 1976 Olympics. Chronometry would soon enter a new era of miniaturization.

In the early 1980's, the Swiss watch industry went through a complete restructuration of its two largest groups, ASSUAG and SSIH, to which Longines and Omega both belonged. They were united in 1983, henceforth maintaining Swiss Timing. Under the banner of Swiss Timing, the 1984 Olympic Games held in Los Angeles were marked by two great innovations involving the media and athletic trainers. A few minutes after each competition all official time records and color films were delivered to the press.
For trainers, a network of video cameras was placed at their disposal, including individual statistics on competitors in all athletic race competitions. Swiss Timing brought about the beginning of a new era in sports events with a greater influence of the media.

In 1985, with the birth of the SMH Group under the guidance of Nicolas Hayek, Swiss Timing joined the recently renamed Swatch Group. As a result, the Olympic Games of 1988 in Seoul were again officially timed by Omega, with both the research and development departments of old rivals in only one company renamed by SMH, Omega Electronics. The official chronometry name was preserved as Swiss Timing. The 1988 Olympic Games would be the last Olympic round for Omega watches.

Faced with the return of Seiko as the official timer of the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, SMH decided that it would be a good initiative to introduce the Swatch as the new official timekeeper of the Olympics as a way of representing the creativity and initiative present in the Swiss Watch Industry in the 1990’s. For the first time therefore, Swatch watches were appointed official timekeepers of the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games held in Atlanta and Sydney.

Looking back at the evolution in sports timekee-
pers, the results achieved went far beyond anyone’s expectations. Photofinish results were communicated first in 8mm, then in 2mm, in 1,2 mm, and finally, instantaneously. However, even if technology serves timekeepers, there will always be a human being to pass judgement on a particular image. After all, nobody's perfect.

On your mark! Get set! Go!