Olympic Media Score With Tokyo BINGO!

For athletes, officials and journalists who are Tokyo-bound next month, June included a whirlwind of pre-Olympic prep from final qualifications for Olympians to navigating the reams of pages in the "playbooks" to affirm approved access to Japan. 

For this blogger, who secured a media accreditation but still has more paperwork to complete, it's an anxious time! Will the Games happen at all, and will I remember to cross all "t's" and dot all the "i's" in time? Optimism reigns but we'll see. 

Meanwhile, in step with the buzz of checklists, the Olympic media cycle remains reliably predictable, though tailored to the unique challenges and angles specific to COVID-19. 

As a follow up to our popular Rio 2016 Olympic News BINGO post in which Zika reigned (remember Zika?), fellow International Society of Olympic Historians member Brian Carberry and his wife April helped compile this year's pre-Games media cycle BINGO card. 

Please play along, post suggested additions in the comments and enjoy!

We'll Always Have Paris

Like other five-ringed sports fans in the USA, today I woke up to the International Olympic Committee's news making it official: Tokyo 2020 will exclude overseas fans. 

After hitting snooze and a shower, two quotes came to mind. 

On the more desperate or depressed end of the spectrum, there's the classic lyrics by U2. 

Cue the iconic drum intro:

I can't believe the news today. Oh, I can't close my eyes and make it go away!

More optimistically, Rick Blaine's words on the Moroccan airport tarmac in "Casablanca" also came to mind. 

As of this post, there are just 1,223 days remaining until Paris 2024. 

For this blogger, of course it's a huge bummer that Tokyo 2020 won't be happening for most outside Japan. This Olympiad was to be one that made up for many mishaps -- some real, others perceived -- via Rio 2016. 

At the moment, London 2012 still has my vote for "best Games ever" though my first and hometown Olympics of Atlanta remain a close second and sentimental favorite of nearly 25 years, as detailed in the centerfold spread of the 2017 WHERE Guestbook. 

Amid the pandemic, it will be a remarkable feat for the Tokyo organizing committee to just get the athletes, coaches, officials and other Olympic family members assembled safely. For those who care to read it, the complete IOC statement is online, as are the words of the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee, with each link noting how additional updates for the Games will be shared in the weeks ahead. 

During a member event hosted by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum on Thursday, at least one former Team USA employee stated her Olympic media travel is secured though there will be a "bubble" for reporters akin to the one for athletes -- the thought of corralling journalists in this manner brings to mind notions of herding cats. 

In spite of today's news, I'm optimistic at least a handful of fans will find a backdoor entry to the Games of the XXXIInd Olympiad. For some, maybe they'll score a credential as part of a sponsor delegation or national Olympic committee gig. For others, maybe there's a family connection to Japan to be leveraged.  

For this writer, there's still a potential Olympic berth -- albeit a very long shot plus a vaccine shot -- via the Games media credential front. 

No stone will be left unturned, and I'm not yet ready to cancel my Tokyo accommodations, though it is reassuring they'll be fully refunded via Hotels.com should I eventually surrender to the inevitable. 

The Morohashi Museum of Modern Art -- a.k.a. the Salvador Dali Museum of Japan -- near Fukushima, as well as Nagoya, Mount Fuji and other destinations also remain on my travel wish list for Japan, even if an eventual visit takes place beyond 2021.

Speaking of refunds, designated Olympic ticket broker CoSport was quick to address today's official announcement, which provided some level of reassurance my ticket investment will be returned. As to when is anyone's guess -- paraphrasing another fan quoted by media, it had better be before the Opening Ceremony on July 23. 

I applaud the IOC, Tokyo 2020 and others for persevering over COVID-19 and keeping the Games on track for the athletes. It won't be the same, but then, what else is in this pandemic? Glad also to see the Olympic Torch Relay will resume in five days, which everyone may enjoy virtually.

Heavy doses of determination kept things on track for the athletes, and it will still be inspiring to witness Olympian feats this summer, no matter the room in which we are viewing. 

And don't forget: We'll always have Paris. 

Tokyo photos via Associated Press Kuchiro Sato and Clive Rose; Paris image via Olympic.org

Olympedia Enables Encyclopedism of Olympism

An array of surprises, some welcome, others not so much, continue their blitz across 2020.

On the latter front as related to the wide world of sports, the pandemic-inspired postponement of Tokyo 2020 was a tough pill to swallow.

On the former, brighter side, May 27 marked the arrival of an exceedingly thorough online tool certain to assist with countless Olympic research projects, sports journalist citations and fan searches for their favorite athletes or Olympiads.

Now available online, feast your eyes on www.Olympedia.org, a new directory of Games statistics compiled by 21 Olympism-inspired encyclopedists.

This may not be the first comprehensive assemblage of such Olympic detail (see blue and green book images sprinkled into this post), but it very well be the biggest and most accessible in digital format.

Bonus: Olympedia is free!

The group's ringleader, past International Society of Olympic Historians (ISOH) President Bill Mallon, described their efforts in a blog post announcing Olympedia's ready-for-prime-time debut, as well as their team name.

"The Olympedia research site contains the profiles and results of all Olympic athletes and informative descriptions about the Games, events, venues, and much more," stated Mallon. "It is the most comprehensive database about the Olympic Games and is the result of many years of work by a list of Olympic historians and statisticians called the OlyMADmen."

I wrote to Dr. Mallon with three questions inspired by his post:

• For how many years was the OlyMADmen process underway?
• How many combined man hours went into the project (an Olympian feat of research)?
• At what stage did the Olympedia team receive a blessing of IOC approval, and how much time from approval to this week's launch?

Mallon quickly responded stating his own Olympic research journey started at a library in Teaneck, N.J., while on a summer holiday with family during the summer of 1964.

Things started getting serious with the arrival of personal computers (1980s) and during the latter 1990s as he and others forged collaborations with fellow historians both stateside and abroad.

As for the team's combined time investment, "We actually estimated the amount of work in terms of man-years … because it's so hard to estimate," stated Mallon. "We came up with a number: 180."

Mallon added the OlyMADmen began a more formal collaboration with the IOC in early 2016, with permission only recently granted to open Olympedia online for anyone to use, describing the nonprofit's team members as "responsive and good to work with."

So, how may site visitors extract data or Games results they seek from Olympedia?

From the home page, it's easy to select searches by athlete, result or sports discipline and Olympiad. Simply type in a name or other query and press "GO."

Across the header of the home page, Olympedia also offers easy clicks by nation, as well as pulldown menus for IOC-centric data or statistics with subcategories such as medal counts, numerous records or athlete bio data.

Say you want to know how many athletes competed while pregnant. Olympedia not only lists them, but also shares whether the athlete knew of their pregnancy while competing.

Which athletes -- like the one who put Sean Connery out of commission for several days -- appeared in feature films?

Answer: weightlifting silver medalist Harold "Oddjob" Sakata, who is Olympedia athlete No. 57017, just 10 digits away from "Goldfinger" 007.

While on a Hollywood kick, if one wants to know the flagbearers at an Opening Ceremony -- like, say, Stephen Spielberg, Donald Sutherland or Susan Sarandon -- use the Games pulldown menu.

There are also sections for Olympic bid city votes, recipients of the Olympic Order, dozens of types of Olympian lists, torchbearers, medal counts -- many rabbit holes for exploration. I know of at least one ISOH member who will be looking for athletes or teams and team members who achieved a three-peat, four-peat or more-peat on Olympic soil.

Each search result yields not only the information one seeks but also a five-ringed fun fact under the banner "Did You Know?" which appears at the base of the screen. My favorite so far regarded six Dutch archers whose name appeared in Paris 1900 newspaper coverage as competitors in an "unknown" event.

Consider me thoroughly impressed and pleased by the news of Olympedia, the best Games-related surprise of the last three months.

Images via DepositPhotos, Illustration Source, Ottawa Citizen, UltimateActionMovies.com

Future Looks Great Now Through 2028!

Fabrice Coffrini/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

On Monday afternoon (July 31), about five big alerts or texts popped up within a two-minute period, with one potential life-influencing message akin to a day in September 1990 when Atlanta won its Olympic bid for 1996.

In the moments of these inbound missives, I was navigating westbound 53rd Street in Midtown Manhattan with a friend, the two of us urgently searching for a gas station to replenish a near-empty rental car fuel tank (technically, the first in the series of "alerts" arrived as my travel companion pointed out the illuminated "fuel low" light on the dashboard, and the second urgency-inducing element was the then-imminent conclusion to our interesting weekend of Long Island sightseeing and conversation).

Then, in rapid succession ... 

Alert: "The Mooch" out at White House (whew!)

Text: Family member in hospital (recovering, sort of OK, whew!)

Alert Press Release: Los Angeles announces deal creating LA28!

The initial alerts all sort of got blurry after that biggie ... Los Angeles is likely gonna host the 2028 summer Olympics. Amazing! Not entirely surprising given recent news, but an astounding headline that will certainly influence the trajectory of my life and countless others' lives during the next 11 years. 

Congratulations, LA28!

Here's the bid team's refreshed video highlighting so much of what Los Angeles offers as a three-time Olympic host:

Kudos are also due to Paris 2024 -- which will present Les Jeux Magnifique! -- for the city's eminent selection as the Games host on the city's centennial of presenting the 1924 summer Olympiad.

Favorite headline du jour may be from the French Olympic news site FrancJeux.com.

With thanks to the screenwriters for "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" for 21 years ago teaching me the phrase-turned-headline, Les Jeux Sont Fais -- The Game Is Up! (In this case, for Paris' five-tries-for-the-win bidding efforts.)

Here's a peek at Paris 2024's team video showcasing how the City of Lights is, to their bid motto, Made For Sharing:

The International Olympic Committee also deserves a high-five as the organization got creative and rewrote the books to accommodate two outstanding candidate cities found in LA and the French capital. In the words of IOC President Thomas Bach, a "win-win-win" indeed. Now the upcoming IOC Session in Lima, Peru, will be more of a formality to bestow two Games for the world to enjoy during this century's third decade. 

Several friends later wrote to ask my take on the news.

In a word: HAPPY!

The next three Olympic cities starting with Tokyo in 2020 are going to bring some overdue stability to the Olympic Movement not seen since the LA84 to Seoul '88 to Barcelona '92 era. Atlanta '96 delivered many ups and downs, Sydney 2000 was amazing, then the rive-ringed migraines of Athens '04, Beijing '08 and Rio 2016 shook things to the core. Even London 2012 struggled with world economic challenges. 

In three years, I believe Tokyo will deliver the most technically advanced modern Games, with Paris set to celebrate history and potentially restore traditions of the Cultural Olympiad, an element of the Games experience that once rivaled the sports competition.

Los Angeles will innovate things further with more than a decade to prepare. I, for one, can hardly wait to see things take shape over the next 10+ years, not only in the Olympic scene but also personally as I envision relocating professionally at some point, marriage and starting a family, preparing for retirement and other milestone events along the roads and flights to Japan, France and Los Angeles (not to mention future winter Olympic destinations). 

So many surprises occurred in my world in recent months. Who'da thunk Paris and LA would both prove victorious in their bids? Who'da thunk this would be the biggest year in client work for my growing public relations enterprise? Or finding new friends who've proven to be close quality companions? 

I am so optimistic on many fronts, and the creative and unexpected solutions that led to LA28 is inspiring to me. Some very creative and open minds collaborated through flexibility and patience -- the results will be dramatic and fresh.

Now, some have already found ways to poke holes in the future Games sites, like late night TV hosts (all in good fun, LOL). It will be interesting to see how the world's grizzled Olympic reporters rake up crud on which to hang some headlines now that they don't have Rio 2016 to kick around anymore.

As with that September day in 1990, when I returned home from a day of high school senior year classes to learn from my mother "some great news on NBC" that Atlanta won its bid to host the Centennial Games, I will always remember the person I was with and the place at which the LA28 news arrived. Big smiles. Happy. Very happy.

Where will you be in 11 years? Let's all meet in the City of Angels for some fun. Bravo!