New Olympic Brand "Quite Simply Unique": Sochi 2014 President

On Monday, the organizers of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia face what what they probably feel is a daunting task; they'll unveil their new Olympic brand including a logo, tagline and thematic graphic elements that will be included in an international marketing campaign for the next four years.

While they're well prepared and will likely produce a brand that will be memorable for hundreds of millions of people worldwide - the team is performing under some of the most intense public scrutiny and in the shadow of a series of marketing near-disasters that have plagued similar launches in the past.

Already impacted by images of a possibly leaked logo design that has been spreading throughout the Internet - the element of surprise that surrounds one of the most closely guarded secrets in preparing for the Games may be lost.

"I know there are some rumours and leaks that have appeared in the media, but the true one will be presented on Monday only.  And I can tell you that it will be the start of a nation-wide campaign to engage all the nation and we decided that the major event will happen at the heart of the Capital of the Russian Federation in Moscow", Sochi 2014 President Dmitry Chernyshenko told GamesBids.com from the European Olympic Committees General Assembly in Lisbon, Portugal.

Sochi has promised something new, something different.

"It's a totally new experience and it's our philosophy, our way of thinking - it's quite simply unique", explained Chernyshenko.

While those comments generate excitement - they are also liable to create a defensive populace of Olympic fans who are resistant to change.

Two years ago London 2012 unleashed their new brand to the world - "new" being the operative word because London organizers released a dynamic logo - one that could change depending on the medium and brand it was integrated with.  A simple "2012" written in a bold, hollow, grafitti-like font could take on different colours, themes, and could be animated in a moving medium.

Initially this outraged Olympic die-hards who had become comfortable with their simple, colorful abstract shaped symbols with the city, year and rings directly below.  A trend that began with the Barcelona 1992 logo and then reinforced with Nagano 1998 and Sydney 2000; continuing through Beijing 2008 and Vancouver 2010 - was about to end.  Olympic fans are traditionalists who don't always embrace change.

At the cusp of the Internet's social networking era - online petitions proliferated the Web asking for London 2012 to reconsider and change the logo.  Parodies of the brand became common in popular media.  Online bloggers made minor modifications to the logo to create humourous or vulgar images.  Others complained about the large amount of money that was paid to the design firm that created the concept for something "a child could do".

The logo was even blamed for causing epileptic attacks when victims watched a video that accompanied the brand launch.

This was a monumental disaster that required monumental damage control; but two years later as the logo and brand have become functional - many have grown to embrace the concept.  It has certainly become one of the most recognizable Olympic logos ahead of their associated Games and this is due mostly to the positive impacts of the "disaster".

Even when relying on tradition - things can go wrong.  Initial reviews of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games logo were mixed and aboriginal groups complained that the Inukshuk - a symbol used in the logo - was misrepresented.  Today there are few complaints as the Games approach.

And while the logo for Beijing 2008 was widely accepted - the planned brand launch and accompanying celebrations fell victim to an external disaster - the outbreak of SARS in China.  The launch was delayed until the epidemic passed but trademark processes were already underway and the logo appeared in an online trademark search database to be found by the curious.  On a tip, it was published first on GamesBids.com - spoiling China's surprise.

The probable leak of Sochi's logo isn't nearly as devestating since it has occured just days in advance of the official release and the authenticity of the image cannot be confirmed - however teaser descriptions of the logo seem to fit.

"There is some digital component to our brand and of course the suggestion that this is a national-wide project, but again this is something the world is expecting to be unveiled on Monday", Chernyshenko explained

The leaked logo design contains "sochi.ru", a Russia-based Internet domain name the organizing committee recently registered that embodies both a digital component and recognition that this is Russia's Games.  It also has a dynamic component similar to London's logo.  

If this logo is genuine expect the resistance to begin immediately before Olympic fans once again fall in love with an icon that represents the Olympic Games, proving the old adage - "there is no such thing as bad press".

The Sochi 2014 brand launch will occur Monday at Red Square in Moscow - It will reportedly be streamed live via the Internet.