London 2012 Olympic Games: A Logo Controversy

Our editor reexamines a controversial issue in the history of identity design.

Lost amongst the buzz of gold medals, world records, and outstanding athleticism at the  2012 Olympic Games was a spirited controversy over the London Olympics logo.

Design firm Wolff Olins was chosen many years in advance to create the logo. When the logo was revealed in 2007, a petition signed by more than 48,000 UK citizens clamored to have the £400,000 logo scrapped and redesigned. A colorful depiction of the year 2012, the jagged and modern design received more confusion and distaste than acceptance.

2012 London Olympic Games logo via DavidAirey.com

Lord Sebastian Coe, the London Olympics chairman at the time, defended the design at launch in 2007, saying “It won’t be everybody’s taste immediately, but it’s a brand that we genuinely believe can be a hard working brand which builds on pretty much everything we said in Singapore about reaching out and engaging young people.”

In spite of all the protests, the London Olympic committee stuck to the original design and built a complete brand around it using the 2012 font nearly everywhere in the Olympic Park, including the running track.

Aside from this controversy, we thought it would be interesting to look back at the Olympic logos from the past to see the evolution. All of them are colorful and show a bit of the host country’s personality. You can see a few of them below.

Image via Designer Daily

The evolution of the Olympic Games logos really picked up steam with the creation of the Olympic flag. These 5 colored rings on a white background that we are so familiar with today was created by Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games, in 1914.

Although the London Olympic logo is not embraced by all who see it, we still come together as citizens of the world to take part in a centuries old tradition of competition and athleticism. What do you think of the logo for the 2016 Rio de Janiero Olympic Games, whihc followed four years later? It was a much less controversial design.

Image via Design Boom.