The watches that athletes wore at the Tokyo Olympics

The worldwide #watchfam is a curious bunch. The group’s dedication to wristwatches is such that when the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics lastly received underway, their focus remained on watches. This time round, on watches worn by athletes. And, over the 17 days of the Video games, the watch group was rewarded with glimpses of some spectacular timepieces.

Now, I’m extra accustomed to staff sports activities like soccer, the place athletes are usually not allowed to put on something extraneous (since staff sports activities are additionally typically contact sports activities). So I did do just a few double takes whereas watching observe and subject athletes competing with items of excessive horology strapped to their wrists. However after the preliminary shock had worn off, it appeared solely pure. In any case, a sports activities watch would look greatest on a sportsman, I imply it’s within the title proper? And the eagle-eyed watch group had their eyes peeled to establish the watches right down to the precise fashions. So I typically went again and watched re-runs, as god-like athletes did god-like issues with god-like watches that your common watch collector would child.

Also Read: Six great sports watches for every budget

One manufacture that appeared to be all around the Olympics was Richard Mille. Sure, there have been loads of Omegas on view too, as you’d anticipate from the official Olympics timekeeper, however extra on that later. Within the 20 years since genius watch designer Richard Mille based his personal luxurious model, the model’s distinctive skeletonised watches in tonneau-shaped circumstances have turn out to be one thing of a celeb flex. You’ll be able to see them on the wrists of the likes of David Beckham, Rafael Nadal, Jay Z, Drake, Ed Sheeran, and by now Richard Mille and canny advertising are synomymous.

However I hadn’t realised the sheer variety of athletes which are model ambassadors for the model. Ukrainian high-jumper Yulia Levchenko, golf gold medallist Nelly Korda, heptathletes Maria Vicente of Spain and Nafissatou Thiam of Belgium, and that’s simply scratching the floor. Practically all of them have been sporting the RM 007, largely in titanium. Now Richard Mille watches aren’t low cost (the worth of an RM 007 in titanium would begin from ₹8 lakh), however on this proof, they’re extraordinarily hardy as nicely. And eventually, an RM was featured in probably the most iconic pictures of the Video games, when Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim and Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi joyfully embraced after deciding to share the excessive bounce gold. On Barshim’s left wrist, very prominently, was an RM67-02 accomplished up within the colors of the Qatari flag.

Mutaz Essa Barshim sporting his Richard Mille RM 67-02.
(Getty Photographs)

Omega has been the official timekeeper on the Olympics for the reason that Los Angeles Video games in 1932. The model unveils a slate of Olympic specials at each Video games, and this yr was no totally different, with Omega releasing a Seamaster Skilled and a Seamaster Planet Ocean, together with Seamaster Aqua Terras in 38mm and 41mm. It additionally launched the Omega Seamaster Olympic Official Timekeeper, a limited-edition field set. Whereas the latter was noticed on the wrist of Worldwide Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, the one gracing the wrists of athletes was a distinct Aqua Terra. This was the gorgeous inexperienced dial Aqua Terra Extremely-Mild, constituted of titanium and meant particularly for athletes. Launched in 2019, it was noticed on the appropriate wrist of sprinter Noah Lyles of the USA, as he steamed to a 200m bronze. You might need additionally observed it on the wrist of American athlete Dalilah Muhammad as she helped USA win the gold within the 4x400m relay. Irish golf star Rory McIlroy, who helped design the Extremely-Mild, additionally wore it for his matches. The timepiece regarded completely superb on Sweden’s Armand Duplantis as he soared to a pole vault gold and likewise smashed the world file within the course of.

Also Read: Rolex, Mt Everest and the rise of GADA watches

Olympics wristchecks can be incomplete with out recognizing the final word sport watch line: the G-Shock. And sure, there have been these, most memorably the clear plastic DW-5600SKE-7 on the wrist of windsurfer Kiran Badloe of the Netherlands, as he hugged the Dutch flag after successful gold. In any respect of $110, this can be a G-Shock icon. You may additionally spot the G-Shock GA-1100-2A on the wrist of the winner of males’s gold in archery, Mete Gazoz of Turkey. Some eager watch-spotters even positioned a way more costly G-Shock, the MR-G, on the wrist of the Serbian girls’s volleyball staff coach Zoran Terzic.

Kiran Badloe sporting the G-Shock DW-5600SKE-7.
(Getty Photographs)

After which there was Rolex. Golfer Lydia Ko of New Zealand was sporting a surprising Rolex Yacht-Grasp ref. 126655 whereas being offered along with her bronze medal. Devin Brooker of the US males’s basketball staff bit on his gold medal whereas flexing a GMT-Grasp II ‘Pepsi’. In the meantime, Brooker’s teammate Draymond Inexperienced was noticed sporting each the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Idea Black Panther Flying Tourbillon in addition to a white ceramic Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar throughout the medal presentation. Swiss tennis star Belinda Bencic, a Rolex ambassador, wore a two-tone Rolex Daytona whereas celebrating the ladies’s doubles silver along with her teammate Viktorija Golubic. In the meantime, American shooter Kayla Browning regarded badass with a diamond-set Rolex Datejust on her wrist and a cocked rifle on her shoulder.

There have been Tag Heuers a a lot too, not shocking given the model’s affiliation with sports activities. Sandro Sunko of Croatia’s males’s water polo staff was sporting a TAG Heuer Carrera Calibre 01, whereas golfer Tommy Fleetwood of Nice Britain wore a TAG Heuer Linked Golf Version. US sprinter Sydney McLaughlin (pictured above) grew to become the primary lady to run the 400m hurdles beneath 52 seconds whereas rocking a incredible trying black TAG Heuer Hyperlink. The good of the lot, although, was the US sprinter Cravon Gillespie, who competed whereas sporting an affordable, however traditional, Casio calculator watch.

So there you could have it. After Tokyo 2020, “watching” sports activities has now taken on a very totally different which means for me. So right here’s to extra spectacular sporting achievements and moments of sportsmanship, and nice watches!

Handwound is a fortnightly column on watches and watchmaking.