Omega

OMEGA Watches in Space and at the Olympics

OMEGA’s relationship with the Olympics – as Official Timekeeper – goes all the way back to the 1932 summer games in Los Angeles. At those games chronometer-certified mechanical OMEGA stopwatches (operated by humans) captured all race times. As we know humans are not the most precise of creatures, so in 1948 OMEGA developed timers using photoelectric cell technology, the so-called ‘Magic Eye’ (see image above).

This was followed by quartz timing technology at the Helsinki Games (1952), the Time Recorder – accurate to 1/100th of a second. 2010 saw the Electronic Start System replace the starter pistol at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Fast forward to the Rio 2016 Olympics, and the Scan-O-Vision debuted, a photo-finish camera capable of capturing 10,000 images a second. Yes – a second! This year in Toyko, OMEGA hauled 450 tons of equipment to capture the world’s finest competitors – a far cry from the 30 chronographs used in 1932!

They were also the choice of NASA for multiple missions to space – including the now legendary Speedmaster range, the first watch on the moon. Other notable watches from this brand include the OMEGA Seamaster range, Planet Ocean and OMEGA DeVille.