LAUSANNE, March 26, 2019 – Five rings, linked together to connect the world. The symbol has become one of the most well-known brands worldwide with nine out of 10 people being able to identify it. The Olympic rings are that of an icon.

After every Olympic games, summer and winter, a survey is conducted in regard to the Olympic brand. A major global study conducted by Publicis Sport & Entertainment took place in March 2018 after the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games, which surveyed 36,000 people from 16 different countries. They ranged in age from 13-65.

Recognition While the individuals were shown many brand logos to identify and compare, not just in sport such as Nike and Apple, the study showed a positive confirmation for the recognition of the Olympic brand. 90% of people identified the Olympic rings and 93% were aware of the Olympic Games—which was more than any other major sporting or entertainment event.

“We are more than pleased, positively surprised,” said Christophe De Kepper, Director General of the IOC. “Not that we had any doubt about the strength of our brand and the recognition, but certainly after a difficult games in Sochi and Rio we have the confirmation that the brand is strong, the recognition of the institution is strong.”

Values The Olympic rings are also being recognized not only as a symbol, but for values that the IOC has adopted as an organization such as, “Global”, “Diversity”, “Heritage and Tradition”, “Inspirational”, “Optimistic” and “Inclusive”.

“The most important thing from an IOC perspective beyond the appeal of the games is that the values associated with the games are really the values that the IOC is standing for in terms of universality and in terms of credibility of the organization on all of the accounts. We are progressing,” ” said De Kepper.

Digital coverage Another way in which the Olympic Games are progressing is in terms of implementing digital coverage and embracing new ways to reach the younger generation.

Increased digital coverage at the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games made for a total of 3.2 billion video views, which doubled the number of digital views from Sochi in 2014. The advancements in digital coverage made the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games the most digitally viewed Olympic Winter Games ever.

Olympic spirit “By embracing the digital age, we have been able to offer Olympic fans around the world new ways to experience the Olympic Games while also reaching out the younger generation more than ever before,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. “As this research shows, we are not only successfully communicating the sports excellence and the athletes’ achievements, but also the Olympic spirit and what it means.