It's announcement time, so where else could we be but Rome's original venue for Games? Welcome to the place where it all began - the Colosseum!

The Colosseum! 

That's more like it. It's time to bring an end to this long, sometimes chaotic contest. The President is here, the Pope is here, and the flame is here:

All we need now is the scowl currently concealed by the cloud of smoke over there - please welcome the Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni!

Mamma mia, e adesso... aspetta, finalmente è fatta? Mi chiedevo perché mi avessi trascinato fino a Roma mentre mi divertivo a giocare a curling... ma non potevi far fare il gesto alla donna con l'accento, la Meloni olimpica, no? E perché quei giocatori di hockey sono qui? Non dovrebbero essere a Milano? Perché il Papa è qui? L'ha organizzato Salvini, è più caotico della rete autostradale romana! Comunque, devo tornare a Cortina e a questa sigaretta, ma non in quest'ordine. Il vincitore del concorso per il logo è... oh, no di nuovo. Un altro affresco?

SIR ROLS!

Y: Grazie Giorgia *cough cough*. Yes, after a wild ride through all the rounds and more, the mosaic has come out on top! The final result of a thrilling final was:

A - 3. B - 4.

And so it's another comp win for the wombat king @Sir Rols, and for CAS, & oh Kirsty's stormed off. Oh well. Commiserations to @Shiruba98 for a very strong debut too. I'll be honest, I was fully expecting a last-minute vote to come in & force me to have to make a decision! And at the end, it's time to thank all the participants and voters once again - especially of course pic-generator/chaos-defuser/comp-winner @Sir Rols. Not forgetting the winter champion on home snow @Nacholympic!

And that's it from the logo comp until the 20th edition, wherever that will be. Until then, well we are at the Colosseum & most of the figure skaters have used it so...shall we dance?

It's time to crown a winner, which means it's time to make our way to the epicentre of the nation's capital - La Moneda, Santiago!

We are outside, in February, during the Winter Olympics, which is why it's so damn...hot?! The good news is, in 2042 the World Cup will probably be in Saudi again so we can come here in June, when it's cold. Either way, we have a job to do - on the request of a wombat, please please please welcome Santiago's very own Sabrina...eh?

Um, yeah there's been a bit of a balls up here. We were expecting Trojena to win so we got His Majesty MBS to book the announcement & apparently he really likes Sabrina Carpenter - apparently it's the female empowerment themes he enjoys. And now we can’t break her contract.  Is there anyone else famous with a link to...oh, is that THE MOST MUY FAMOSO CHILEAN IN THE WORLD! Pedro Pascal?

P: Sipo, is me. Mierda!  Wha’ you wan me to do?

Y: Just announce the winner.

P: Soy un actor, I'm used to being announced, not doing the announcing. Can't the espectacular Sabrina do it?

Y: I don't mind, just someone do it!

P: Claro. Okay, here goes… El campeón es…

NACHOLYMPIC!

Y: Gracias Pedro, and to Sabrina, apologies for the admin. The final result was:

A - 4. B - 2. C - 1.

It was going to a final until 21:59 but the final vote put @Nacholympic over the line - & like Gina Lollobrigida's great-niece, he can celebrate a hometown win! And a first win too, so we get to put a new name on the roll. Commiserations to @Jon Will Chambers & @Scotguy II - but you have come above 4th, which seen from here is a win in itself  Thank you to all participants and voters, especially to @Sir Rols for the grids & general co-hosting (& for helping me out with this ceremony, especially making Pedro sound more, er, Chilean) and to @Nacholympic (& Rols' partner) again for their musical suggestions! Italy will be simpler for that. Talking of Italy, I'm going to give one final day for Rome stragglers ( @Bear? You trailed one months ago) before we start there. THANK YOU  

Oh & since Sabrina is here, she may as well play us out:

The final music choice is brought to you by Google, and the ice hockey DJ. The crowds seem to love it...

Hard to believe now, but there was a time when "Olympics in Italy" didn't mean skiing & skating - which is why Rome's modern amphitheatre is the Stadio Olimpico!

This is a place that's hosted pretty much all there is to host - Olympics, World & European Championships, World Cup & Euro finals, so it's the perfect place for our decider. Here's what happened at the Circus:

A - 4. B - 2. C - 3.

Very close to a total tie, never mind a majority - we have to say goodbye to @Jon Will Chambers who just misses out. And so, our top two go to contest something very rare recently - a proper one on one logo comp final, with the title on the line. Here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Wednesday 18 February. 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

There are only two logos, so this is the final round.

There are only two logos. The one with more votes...wins. It's not hard.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this round. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to decide our winner.

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

Giorgia is waiting angrily at the Colosseum - Andrea is trying to calm her down for one more day, she can finally announce our winner tomorrow. Until then, GOOD LUCK! 

Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday. Except an EasyJet one...

For the benefit of non-Brits wondering what on earth I'm blabbing about, this is the song on EasyJet adverts. I don't know why either - luckily in exchange, the lyrics are complete gibberish so everyone can join in. Anyway, long before Torino, Roma, even Cortina 1, there was the original great Italian stadium - the Circus Maximus!

You have to hand it to Roman builders - there are some former Olympic venues in worse condition. Anyway, following the admin difficulties we experienced last night, we had to hold a tie breaking runoff round yesterday - and here are the results:

A - 3. B - 5. (an extra vote was given to A - @Palette86 vote from the aborted poll. Thanks Rols)

A close but clear result, which means we must say goodbye to @Scotguy II, and move logo B into this round III, alongside the two logos which progressed from round II, following the CAS appeal. At least it means that picture of the Colosseum is ok for the announcement. Beginning round III also means the comp can now resume as normal, and here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Tuesday 17 February. 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

Voting will be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll go to the modern home of Roman sport for round IV - the final! Until then, GOOD LUCK! 

ATTENZIONE

Due to an admin error relating to the round II results, and the ongoing CAS appeal - more below - the previous Round III poll is null and void. This poll is the new current poll, and you should vote here. I will leave a space for our wombat @Sir Rols to explain what is happening at his end with Kirsty - he'll do a separate post actually, and the opening of this vote continues below.

-----------------------------------------------------------

I wasn't going to do any more Eurovision - honest, I wasn't, this is Italy & there's no need - but then there was a little bit of news about the closing ceremony & well, it just had to be done didn't it:

Of course, not Tutta in Rome has to be L'Italia - some of it is Spanish!

Nobody tell Giorgia about that name, she'll be even angrier than usual...here is what happened down at Leo's place - correctly this time:

A - 5. B - 2. C - 2. D - 3.

Oh dear. As you can see, there is still a tie between B & C, and as you can see, D actually got the last minute vote to move out of the tie & straight through to the full Round III. Apologies. As explained above logo A is currently in legal limbo, so this round is between logo B & C only.

So on that bombshell, here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (a little under) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Monday 16 February. 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

The logo which obtains more votes proceeds to the next round.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

Apologies once again for the difficulties this evening. Tomorrow, we move to Round III proper, & hopefully the comp will continue as planned. Until then, GOOD LUCK!  

Statement by IOC President, Ms Kirsty Coventry, double gold medallist, swimming

Did you think Italian music was just opera, classic ballads, & a rapper who didn't rap? Learn:
 

Rock & roll, thrusting guitars, frontal nudity - welcome to the Vatican!

It's in Rome, but it's not Rome, but it is Roman, but it's not Roman...it's odd. Here is what happened in Italy's greatest cathedral:

A - 0. B - 2. C - 1. D - 3. E - 1. F - 2. G - 3.

Nice turnout, but the smoke is clearly black, which is why our lowest scorers must stay in Milan - farewell to our 0, out by default @baron-pierreIV your ancestor will still be proud - & our pair of 1s, @Victorian & @Glacib. For the rest of you, it's time for round II - here's THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Saturday 14 February (). 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

Voting will be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll go to another great Roman cathedral for round three! Until then, GOOD LUCK!  

You know we do resurrections around here? We brought Dolores back in Ireland, & here in Italia? Well, who else:

Take that, Mariah. We'll be running most of the votes in Rome itself, but there's nowhere else we could start but "oop north" in the mighty San Siro!

The Italians gave us a pretty good warmup act, but we are now here for the main event, as we seek out a logo for Rome 2040 that could make even Zlatan moderately pleased. And possibly make Giorgia smile...(which is harder?) We have 7 candidates, one for each hill, and we still have an Olympics! So here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Friday February 13 (). 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

Voting will be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll head to the other end of the country tomorrow for another round of voting! Until then, good luck! 

*And this time I actually mean it  And stopping off here on her way to the San Siro is Mariah - because if there's one thing we can all agree we need at this time of year, it's to hear that bloody song yet again listen to something seasonal. 

It is Christmas Eve in everywhere that it's not Christmas Day, which means it's time to finally give out the Christmas present we promised you 23 days ago, way back when the nights were lighter & some of us thought England could possibly play cricket (apologies to @Bear, I'm afraid this is what usually happens in Australia. Ashes in England usually resemble competitive sport). Anyway, the big event is here - it's time to reveal our 19th summer and winter logo comp victims cities! And there has been one change - because it'll the first time in god knows how long, we will introduce new years for this edition!

SUMMER 2040: ROME, ITALY

This comp counts down to what will be the fourth Olympics to open with the world's finest national anthem, & what better way to start 2026 than by honouring Italy in the capital city, the Eternal City, Rome. If there's anywhere that truly doesn't need an introduction, it's here. I mean, just follow any road. OK, recently it is literally famous for finding imaginative ways to not host the Olympics, but if you're a designer & you want inspiration, you'll find it here - so how will you brand a second Roman Olympics 80 years after the first?

WINTER 2042: SANTIAGO, CHILE

Last week they had an election, & this week they won a better one. In a moment to make even Kirsty proud, you voted to make history, sending the Winter Games (well the comp) over the Equator to South America & the mighty Andes for the very first time. Let's be honest, the World Cup will probably be in Saudi again so June will be free. It's not often we get to do something completely different, but Latin American Winter fits the bill tbf. How will you brand a truly historic Winter Olympic edition?

--------------------------------------

And now THE RULES, copied and pasted (mostly) from last year. Kirsty doesn't even know what this is yet, so it stays as is:

We are, as ever, after logos that encompass the overall feel of the city and local influences that can be tied into a design concept. How can any of these cities articulate graphically what they could bring to future Olympics hosting? What flavour will they bring to the games? Will you inspire Rome to see a bid through for once?

The logos should be presented as full colour designs on white background. If you like, however, they can also be presented in black and white or utilised in forms like street banners, t-shirts, apps, vehicles, pins etc. For voting purposes, the main (colour) logo will be used on the polls, & extra stuff is not obligatory, but any extra material you produce may help you “sell” your design better to the wider GamesBids voting membership. 

 These logos are for the cities as they HOST the games. So you CAN use the rings, and don't need to include the words “Candidate City, Olympic Games 2040” or whatever the IOC want this week.

While we're on that, the new IOC branding & logo guidelines DO NOT apply, because we don't know how they work in practice yet. And also because they're stupid.

Please post your preliminary submissions on this thread. If you want to hold anything back to be presented as a “surprise” when voting starts you can contact me or Rols via PM and I'll tell you where you can send the extra material. However, it would be nice to see as many on-thread submissions as possible for people to chew over in-thread, & to try & make a worthy Olympic countdown. We can hope, right?

You can submit logos for either or both cities. However, you cannot enter more than one logo for the same city (see below). So entering one logo for each is fine, but two logos for Singapore, say, is not fine. You are able, encouraged even, to enter both 'sides' of the comp.

Feel free to post as many logo designs as you like, & to ask for feedback from our famously discerning electorate. If you really can't decide between your own designs for a city, feel free to start a poll (or to ask for one to be started). When the time comes for voting, however, you will be asked to settle on a maximum of ONLY ONE official logo per city as your official entry. 

The format depends on the numbers. Most likely, it will be the traditional exhausting exhaustive ballot preferred by the IOC, and the winter & summer 'halves' will be entirely separate, there will be two winners in the Olympic comp tradition. 

The competition is open to all members of GamesBids, or to any new legitimate members who join before the end of the submission period. I, with consultation, will rule on the legitimacy of new members.

As you would expect, I will rule on any disputes - always aiming to be as fair as possible in the process. As always, just remember, this is all meant to be fun. Olympic spirit, remember?. 

Hopefully this will spark up some action on the board. I'll be dipping in, keeping a close eye on things, but otherwise will try and keep my green yoshi-paws off until the polling stages.

The deadline for submissions is 1pm London time (that is, midnight in Sydney, as per tradition) on 31 JANUARY 2026. Thus, GB will begin 2026 with this, but the voting will coincide with Milan. Just one extra thing, due to the unusual existence of a massive 5-ringed deadline, there will be NO EXTENSIONS beyond perhaps the odd few hours on the 31st. With time of the essence, I will @ all the voters (yes all of you) in the next post.

And this is just to alert @Rob. Rob to the existence of the new comp in the hope that he'll do his traditional bit of putting up links to various free design programs etc for the benefit of those who want to take part but may not have the facility at the moment - @Bear does that too -, and to alert @GBModerator Rob to the fact the comp is back! In addition, we had a member ask in the election thread about info on programs people use - I don't know that world (those who can't...) but I'd encourage anyone who does to share.

All that is left to say is thank you Rols once again, and to all participants for having the guts to put your logos up for the annual GamesBids dissection, & may the best logos win - GOOD LUCK! 

We've been promoting Spanish language songs long before the Superb Owl caught up:

We're at Chile's most iconic landmark - you know the one, even if you don't know you know - which means...we're not in South America anymore, Toto! 

Welcome to Easter Island, which is also part of Chile because...well for some inexplicable reason it just is. Here is how we got on down (up?) in the desert:

A - 2. B - 2. C- 1. D - 2. E - 1.

And again, we don't have a majority, which means two things - first we say goodbye to our lowest scorers, of which there are two, @Victorian & @Glacib - & for the remaining three, for the first time since Dublin 2024, we need a third round! And here are that round's RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Tuesday 10 February. 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

Voting will be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll head to somewhere I haven't decided yet, but which will be on the correct continent, for another round of voting! Until then, good luck! 

And this suggestion comes from Nacho - gracias!

We've gone to the other end of Chile, as promised:

This is Arica, Chile's northernmost major city - this country is so long that we've gone from fjords, snow & greenery to the edge of the world's driest desert, the Atacama! Here is what went down in the south:

A - 2. B - 0. C - 2. D - 2. E - 1. F - 1.

As you can see, we are very far from a majority for anyone, so we must eliminate the lowest scorer - who was the "grosso vombato" himself, @Sir Rols. Giorgia will be so sad about that, she'll need a couple of Italian golds tomorrow. As for the rest of you, we go again for Round the second! Here's THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Monday 9 February. 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

Voting will be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll head to Chile's other extreme with some very famous friends tomorrow for another round of voting! Until then, good luck! 

Alexa has been unplugged. The replacements are our cultural sensitivity advisors for Latin America, @Sir Rols' partner & @Nacholympic. The first of those is responsible for our opening - let's dance!

So, Buenas Noches! Welcome to South America, welcome to Chile!

This is the superbly named Puerto Williams, the very tip of Chile, the main transport hub for Antarctica, the main settlement at Cape Horn, and what would be the southernmost city in the world if it wasn't clearly a village. As you can see it's also quite wintery, or it would be if it was winter - which makes it a good place to start our journey to Santiago 2042. We have 6 candidates, but we also have a live Olympics, which means the rules are as follows. READ CAREFULLY.

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 24 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Sunday February 8. 24 hours NOT 48, due to the Olympics causing the board to have users on it. Automatic closing will be used on the poll, so VOTE IN TIME.

Voting will be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2026 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll head to the other end of the country tomorrow for another round of voting! Until then, good luck! 

@Bear! You want to learn cricket? That's what not to do...you can't be an English cricket fan & not be able to laugh at yourself, & let's be honest - that is objectively one of the funniest moments in the history of cricket. And it welcomes us to THE 19TH ANNUAL GAMESBIDS OLYMPIC LOGO COMPETITION & to the second Ashes demolition job Test match, here at the home of Queensland cricket - and approximately 8% of Brisbane's Olympic Stadium count - welcome to the Gabba!

We've been allowed on the pitch for a play, so we're doing more practice than England. Last year, we had a first win for @corn_zxl & not-a-first win for @Glacib in SLC & Singapore, & this is where we begin a longer than usual road to finding out who's next. The Winter Olympics is too good a chance to miss to get voters, so this post will not be the launch. Instead, this launches the city election for the winter comp & will also begin to introduce our summer victim for 2025/6. For that reason it's important that you DO NOT SUBMIT LOGOS HERE. Campaigning for your favoured city is encouraged however, as is reaction to the summer choice. Let's say it's fitting. The submission period will begin on Christmas Eve & end on February 1. The voting will happen after that, during the Olympics. So, let's do this. First of all, here are the five candidates for Winter 2038 (we're assuming Switzerland gets referendumed) in alphabetical order in English:

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA

HARBIN, CHINA

QUEBEC CITY, CANADA

SANTIAGO, CHILE

TROJENA, SAUDI ARABIA

As standard, this will run as a British election - one vote per person, most votes wins, simples. It's not the comp, just selecting the cities. The deadline is 2pm London time on December 23. 

Now, I know most entries come in early January, that's part of why we changed the schedule, but I'm sure you want some brainstorming time first even for summer. And so it's time to sort-of reveal our summer city for 2036 - I'm not going to name it or say anything because it needs no introduction. And also because @Sir Rols had a better idea - to give you clues! Our wombat king's first clue can be found here in the stands at the Gabba, watching us play & thinking we'd beat England - and probably being right. Here it is:

Stay tuned for more clues, unless of course someone gets it right! Happy voting!  

Its been 6 months since anything was posted here and this site has been going down the gurgler for way to long now. Time to get our acts together and make this again the place where we can share our joy of all things Olympics and sporting events.

Shall we have a good old comp to get everyone's spark back? Logo design, Torch Design, full games bid?

http://d2dzjyo4yc2sta.cloudfront.net/?url=images.pitchero.com/ui/539398/1507284203_0.jpg&w=820&t=fit&q=85

Thank you Britney. Perhaps not the most Singaporean song ever but we have got the most Singaporean building. Every great global city needs a building everyone recognises - for Singapore, it's the 22nd century Stonehenge Marina Bay Sands!

The observant among you will have noticed that this is not, as promised, in the sea. This is because we're not here to vote, but to announce. And when you see who's doing the announcing, you'll know why we could only be in the most luxurious place in town - please welcome, for his final act, the man who delivered the fatal snakebite to the Olympic bid process - Herr Olympic Champion in Fencing 1976, the President of the International Olympic Committee, Mr Thomas Bach!

Thomas Bach: Mein liber Gott! ...zis is it? Ze end of mein presidency?

Yoshi: Yes, you're going in March, like you said.

TB: Ach nein! I cannot do zis...once Ich announce, es ist vorbei. Ich have so much still to do.

Y: Okay, you may make one last speech.

TB: Wunderbar! Meine Damien und Herren, Mesdames et Monsieurs, Ladies und Gentlemen. Wilkommen, Beinvenue, Welcome to Singapur. „Give Peace a Chance“, „Gebt dem Frieden eine Chance“ – so lautete mein Appell a die politischen Führungen in aller Welt in meiner Eröffnungs- und in meiner Abschlussrede in Peking. Wie sich herausstellte, waren die Olympischen Winterspiele 2022 in Peking nur ein flüchtiger Moment der Hoffnung, dass Frieden und der Olympische Frieden halten würden. Leider konnten wir nur appellieren, weil sich unser Verhältnis zur politischen Führung in Russland in den vergangenen Jahren dramatisch verschlechtert hat. Es verschlechterte sich infolge des Dopingskandals, verschiedener Cyberangriffe und sogar persönlicher Drohungen gegen einzelne Mitglieder des IOC und der Olympischen Bewegung. Da der Appell auf taube Ohren stieß, ergriffen das IOC und die Olympische Bewegung sofortige Maßnahmen, nachdem Russland, mit Unterstützung von Belarus, diesen Krieg begonnen hatte. Die Position der Olympischen Bewegung zum Krieg findet sich in meiner Botschaft „Give Peace a Chance“ – „Gebt dem Frieden eine Chance“, die an8 Regierungen und Organisationen in aller Welt verschickt und von ihnen gewürdigt8mwurde.
Die Olympische Bewegung hat diese Botschaft nachdrücklich unterstützt, indem sie den
Empfehlungen weitgehend gefolgt ist und erst vergangene Woche bei
Konsultationsgesprächen mit Vertretern der Nationalen Olympischen Komitees, der
Internationalen Sportverbände und der Athleten ihre Unterstützung erneut bekräftigt
hat. Für diese Unterstützung möchte ich allen unseren Stakeholdern erneut unseren tief
empfundenen Dank aussprechen.
Wir ergreifen zweierlei Maßnahmen: Sanktionen einerseits und Schutzmaßnahmen
andererseits.
Wir haben die eklatante Verletzung des Olympischen Friedens am Tag der Invasion
verurteilt. Wir haben die Staaten Russland und Belarus und ihre Regierungen, die für
diesen Krieg verantwortlich sind, mit Sanktionen belegt. Wir haben empfohlen, keine
internationalen Sportereignisse in Russland und Belarus mehr zu veranstalten, haben
das Zeigen nationaler Symbole verboten und sogar zum ersten Mal in unserer
Geschichte dem Präsidenten und dem stellvertretenden Premierminister der
Russischen Föderation Olympische Orden entzogen.
Gleichzeitig mussten wir auch Schutzmaßnahmen ergreifen, um die Integrität der
internationalen Wettbewerbe zu gewährleisten. Hierzu mussten wir empfehlen, dass
russische und belarusische Athleten und Funktionäre nicht zu internationalen
Wettkämpfen zugelassen werden oder zumindest jegliche Identifikation ihrer
Nationalität verboten wird.
Lassen Sie mich nochmals betonen, dass es sich hierbei um Schutzmaßnahmen – nicht
um Sanktionen – handelt, d.h. Maßnahmen zum Schutz der Integrität des Wettbewerbs.
Die Sicherheit der russischen und belarusischen Athleten und Funktionäre konnte nicht
gewährleistet werden, da in vielen Ländern nach der Invasion tiefgreifende anti-
russische und anti-belarusische Gefühle herrschten.
Wir mussten dabei schnell handeln, denn es zeigte sich eindeutig, dass die Regierungen
entscheiden wollten, wer an welchen internationalen Wettbewerben teilnehmen darf.
Das gilt nicht nur für die Regierungen der Gastgeberländer solcher Wettbewerbe. Es gibt
Regierungen, die ihren Athleten die Teilnahme an Wettkämpfen mit russischen oder
belarusischen Athleten verbieten. Es gibt Regierungen, die damit drohen, allen Athleten,
die an solchen Wettbewerben teilnehmen, die Förderung zu entziehen. Es gibt
Regierungen, die öffentlichen und politischen Druck auf die Nationalen Olympischen
Komitees und die nationalen Sportverbände ausüben.
Wir mussten und müssen diese Situation vom Ende her betrachten. Heute geht es um
Russland und Belarus, aber wenn wir nicht handeln, dann wird morgen die Regierung
von Land A sagen, dass sie die Teilnahme von Athleten aus Land B ablehnt. Oder
Regierung C verlangt von ihren Athleten, nicht gegen Athleten aus Land D anzutreten
und so weiter und so fort.
Das wäre eine Situation, die allen unseren Grundprinzipien zuwiderlaufen würde. Wenn
die Politik es in der Hand hat, wer an welchem Wettbewerb teilnehmen darf, dann ist das
Fundament der Nicht-Diskriminierung unseres globalen Sportsystems zunichte
gemacht. Das entspräche einer vollständigen Politisierung des Sports. Das würde
bedeuten, dass der Sport und die Athleten zu einem bloßen Instrument des politischen
Sanktionssystems würden.
Das war und ist unser Dilemma. Aufgrund dieses Dilemmas mussten wir – wenn auch
sehr schweren Herzens – diese Schutzmaßnahmen ergreifen.
Auf unsere Sanktionen und Schutzmaßnahmen hin gingen Fragen aus zwei Richtungen
ein.
Die erste Frage lautete: Warum haben wir auf diesen Krieg anders reagiert als auf die
vielen anderen Kriege in der Welt?
Hierauf gibt es zwei Antworten. Erstens ist der Krieg in der Ukraine anders, weil er eine
eklatante Verletzung des Olympischen Friedens darstellt. Zweitens machen die
weitreichenden politischen, sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Folgen diesen Krieg zu einem
Wendepunkt in der Weltgeschichte.
Die zweite Frage war: Warum sind unsere Sanktionen auf die Regierung und die
nationalen Symbole beschränkt, erstrecken sich aber nicht auf alle Mitglieder der
Olympischen Gemeinschaft Russlands?
Die Antwort hierauf lautet: Den internationalen Rechtsgrundsätzen zufolge können und
sollten Sanktionen nur gegen diejenigen verhängt werden, die für eine Sache die
Verantwortung tragen. Dieser Krieg wurde nicht vom russischen Volk, den russischen
Athleten, dem Russischen Olympischen Komitee oder den IOC-Mitgliedern in Russland
begonnen.
Stellen Sie sich vor, wohin der Präzedenzfall einer solchen Verletzung der
Rechtsgrundsätze durch uns führen würde. Jede einzelne Person, jeder Athlet und jede
Athletin, alle Sportfunktionäre, alle Sportorganisationen müssten für jedes
unrechtmäßige politische Handeln ihrer jeweiligen Regierung bestraft werden.
Es gibt keine Gerechtigkeit, wenn man alle über einen Kamm schert. Das wäre sogar
kontraproduktiv, weil es der Propaganda derjenigen in die Hände spielen würde, die
behaupten, die Sanktionen seien nur Teil einer breit angelegten Verschwörung gegen
ihr Land.
Im Übrigen steht unser Ansatz im Einklang mit dem der Regierungen, die bei ihren
Sanktionsmaßnahmen ja ebenfalls an diesen Rechtsgrundsatz gebunden sind. Auch sie
können einzelne Personen nicht nur wegen ihres Passes sanktionieren.
Deshalb beobachten wir genau, wer diesen Krieg mit seinen Äußerungen oder
Handlungen unterstützt. Deshalb haben wir die notwendigen Konsequenzen gezogen
und werden dies auch weiterhin tun. So gehen beispielsweise auch die FINA und die FIG
mit ihren Sanktionen gegen Athleten vor, die den Krieg auf solche Weise unterstützen.
Bei dieser Beurteilung müssen wir auch berücksichtigen, dass es ein russisches Gesetz
gibt, das jeder Person, die sich gegen den Krieg ausspricht, bis zu 15 Jahre Gefängnis
androht. Daher können wir verstehen, dass unter solchen Umständen das Schweigen an
sich eine Botschaft darstellen kann.
Unser Leitprinzip ist der Frieden. Die Olympischen Spiele, die die ganze Welt im
friedlichen Wettbewerb vereinen, sind ein starkes Symbol des Friedens. Um aber die
ganze Welt zu vereinen, braucht der olympische Sport die Wettkampfteilnahme aller
Athleten, die die Regeln akzeptieren – auch und gerade dann, wenn sich ihre Länder in
Konfrontation oder im Krieg befinden. Ein Wettkampf zwischen Athleten aus
ausschließlich gleichgesinnten Nationen ist kein glaubwürdiges Friedenssymbol. Und
steht sicherlich nicht im Einklang mit unserer Mission.
Schon unser Gründer, Pierre de Coubertin, sagte einstmals, ich zitiere: „In Wahrheit
basiert die gesamte Errungenschaft der Olympischen Spiele auf der Eintracht – es geht
darum, die Erinnerungen an alte Schlachten zu löschen und neue zu verhindern.“ Ende
des Zitats.
Unser Handeln hat allen Stakeholdern der Olympischen Bewegung Klarheit verschafft
und uns geholfen, unsere Einheit zu bewahren. Es zeigt aber auch das Dilemma, vor dem
wir stehen: Zum jetzigen Zeitpunkt können wir unserer Mission, die ganze Welt im
friedlichen Wettkampf zu vereinen, nicht vollständig erfüllen.
Deshalb müssen wir auf den Tag vorbereitet sein, an dem – hoffentlich bald – wieder
Frieden herrscht. Es wird eine Zeit kommen, in der die Welt die Brücken wiederaufbauen
muss. Wenn dieser Moment da ist, müssen wir in der Olympischen Bewegung bereit
sein, unser gegenwärtiges Dilemma hinter uns zu lassen und die ganze Welt wieder im
friedlichen Wettbewerb zu vereinen.
Unsere Olympische Mission ist kein politischer Auftrag. Unsere Olympische Mission ist
eine humanitäre Mission.
Und weil es eine humanitären Mission ist, sind wir uns natürlich schmerzlich der allzu
vielen Kriege und Konflikte in der Welt bewusst. In unserer Olympischen Gemeinschaft
sind wir alle gleich, und deshalb verdienen alle vom Krieg Betroffenen unsere
Aufmerksamkeit und unsere Unterstützung. Genau das leisten wir über unsere Olympic
Refuge Foundation und durch die Unterstützung für alle Mitglieder unserer Olympischen
Gemeinschaft, die unter Krieg und Konflikten leiden.
Nehmen Sie Afghanistan als Beispiel. Auch dort mussten wir nach der humanitären
Krise, die sich nach dem politischen Machtwechsel entwickelte, schnell handeln. Dank
einer wahren Demonstration der Solidarität ist es uns mit der aktiven Unterstützung
vieler NOKs und IFs gelungen, rund 300 Mitglieder der Olympischen Gemeinschaft aus
Afghanistan in Sicherheit zu bringen.
Gemeinsam mit dem Flüchtlingshilfswerk der Vereinten Nationen haben wir außerdem
rund 2.000 Mitglieder der afghanischen Olympischen Gemeinschaft, die im Land
geblieben sind, mit einem speziellen Winterhilfsfonds unterstützt, damit sie den harten
Winter überstehen.
Diese humanitäre Mission gilt auch für die Mitglieder der Olympischen Gemeinschaft
der Ukraine. Genau wie bei Afghanistan geht auch unsere humanitäre Unterstützung für
die Ukraine über die rein finanzielle Hilfe hinaus. Wir sind überwältigt von der enormen
Solidarität, die hier bewiesen wird. Ich möchte allen Mitgliedern unserer Olympischen
Gemeinschaft danken, die sich so großzügig an unseren Solidaritätsbemühungen
beteiligen. Über die rein finanzielle Unterstützung hinaus bieten wir auch logistische
Unterstützung an. Wir sorgen dafür, dass ukrainische Athleten weiterhin an
Wettkämpfen teilnehmen können. Wir stellen Reiseunterstützung,
Trainingseinrichtungen, Unterkunft, Ausrüstung und Uniformen zur Verfügung.
Wir werden ukrainische und afghanische Athleten weiterhin unterstützen – so wie wir
auch andere Mitglieder der Olympischen Gemeinschaft aus aller Welt unterstützen, die
von Krieg und Konflikten betroffen sind.
Das Urteil über unsere Maßnahmen wird letzten Endes durch die Mitglieder der
betroffenen Olympischen Gemeinschaften, die unter der jeweiligen Situation zu leiden
haben, gefällt werden. In diesem Fall durch die Olympische Gemeinschaft der Ukraine.
Niemand kann das besser erklären als unser lieber Kollege und Freund Sergii Bubka, der
Präsident des NOKs der Ukraine, der die Koordination all unserer humanitären
Bemühungen für die Ukraine leitet. Aus diesem Grund möchte ich nun das Wort an Sergii
Bubka übergeben.
Vielen Dank, Sergii, und wir danken dir von ganzem Herzen für alles, was du tust, um
unsere Bemühungen insgesamt zu koordinieren. Es ist schwer vorstellbar, was das für
dich bedeutet, tagtäglich unter solch stressigen Bedingungen und in einem stressigen
Umfeld zu arbeiten. Du bist mit all deinen Gefühlen und Emotionen, mit deinem ganzen
Herzen, bei deinen Landsleuten in der Ukraine. Und trotzdem musst du sich auf deine
Arbeit konzentrieren und schauen, wie wir alle zusammen ihnen am besten helfen
können. Du zeigst echte menschliche Größe und wir stehen hierbei an deiner Seite.
Liebe Freundinnen und Freunde,
Eine der Lehren, die wir aus der erfolgreichen und sicheren Organisation von zwei
Ausgaben der Olympischen Spiele während einer weltweiten Pandemie gezogen haben,
lautet, dass wir gemeinsam stärker sind.
Sowohl in Peking als auch in Tokio haben die Athleten dieses Miteinander in
herausragender Weise gelebt. Sie zeigten ihre Dankbarkeit dafür, dass sie ihre
Olympischen Träume verwirklichen konnten, nachdem sie so viele Hindernisse und
Herausforderungen dafür überwinden mussten.
Die Olympischen Winterspiele Peking 2022 wie auch die Olympischen Spiele in Tokio
2020 fanden unter Umständen statt, die es so noch nie gegeben hatte. Jedes Mal haben
uns die Athleten mit ihrer Reaktion auf alle Herausforderungen und Widrigkeiten in
Erstaunen versetzt und uns allen ein Anschauungsbeispiel davon vor Augen geführt, wie
die Menschheit in ihrer besten Form aussehen kann, wenn wir in Frieden und Solidarität
zusammenkommen. Diese Reaktion berührte die Herzen von Milliarden von Menschen
auf der ganzen Welt – und natürlich auch unsere Herzen.
Vor dem Hintergrund der unruhigen Zeiten, die wir aktuell durchleben, sehnten sich
Menschen aus aller Welt noch mehr nach Inspiration durch unsere Olympischen Werte.
Milliarden von Menschen haben beide Ausgaben der Spiele verfolgt.
In Tokio haben über drei Milliarden Menschen die Olympiaübertragungen im Fernsehen
und auf digitalen Plattformen gesehen. 28 Milliarden Videoaufrufe auf digitalen
Plattformen machten diese Spiele zu den ersten Streaming-Spielen und den
meistgesehenen Olympischen Spielen aller Zeiten auf digitalen Plattformen.
Für Peking liegen derzeit nur vorläufige Zahlen vor, aber wir können jetzt schon sagen,
dass die Olympischen Winterspiele Peking 2022 mehr Sendestunden hatten als jede
andere Ausgabe der Olympischen Winterspiele davor.
Diese Wertschätzung für die Olympischen Spiele und das, wofür sie stehen, spiegelt sich
auch in der überwältigenden Resonanz wieder, die wir von Menschen aus der ganzen
Welt und aus allen Gesellschaftsschichten erfahren haben. Ob von Staatsoberhäuptern,
führenden Vertretern aus Wirtschaft und Kultur, der Wissenschaft, unseren
Fernsehpartnern und TOP-Partnern, von Jugendlichen und Kindern – wir haben
unzählige Briefe und Nachrichten erhalten, in denen es heißt: Danke, dass ihr das
geschafft habt.
Diese weltweite Reaktion stimmt uns alle zuversichtlich, wenn wir in die Zukunft der
Olympischen Bewegung blicken. Glücklicherweise können wir dies aus einer Position
der Stärke heraus tun. In unseren ungewissen Zeiten war diese Position nie eine
ausgemachte Sache. Die Grundlage dafür mussten wir mit den Ergebnissen unserer
Reformen der Olympischen Agenda 2020 und der Olympischen Agenda 2020+5 legen,
die bereits Schwung aufgenommen hat.
Das solide Ansehen, das die Olympische Bewegung in der Gesellschaft allgemein
genießt, zeigt sich darin, dass wir trotz der extrem schwierigen Umstände und
Herausforderungen keinen einzigen TOP-Partner oder Fernsehpartner verloren haben.
Ganz im Gegenteil. Gerade erst vergangenen Monat konnten wir Deloitte als neuen TOP-
Partner bis 2032 bekannt geben. Die Tatsache, dass eine der so genannten „Big-Four“-
Firmen sich unserem TOP-Programm anschließt, ist ein Beleg für die Attraktivität der
Olympischen Spiele und ein Vertrauensbeweis für die Governance des IOC. Sie wären
diese Verpflichtung nicht eingegangen, wenn sie nicht absolut von der Integrität und
Solidität unserer Olympischen Bewegung überzeugt wären. Sie werden einen großen
Teil ihres Sponsorings der Unterstützung von Athleten weltweit und der Good
Governance der Olympischen Bewegung widmen.
Im Rahmen der Olympischen Agenda 2020 haben wir unser Verfahren zur Auswahl der
Ausrichter für Olympische Spiele revolutioniert. Auch dies hat wesentlich zu unserer
Position der Stärke beigetragen. Heute haben wir Interessenten aus allen drei
Kontinenten, die über die geografischen und klimatischen Voraussetzungen für die
Ausrichtung der Olympischen Winterspiele 2030 verfügen.
In Bezug auf die Spiele der Olympiade (Sommerspiele) liegt bereits jetzt eine
beträchtliche Anzahl Interessensbekundungen aus der ganzen Welt für die Olympischen
Spiele 2036 und einige sogar für 2040 vor. Ein derartiges Interesse an der Ausrichtung
der Spiele der Olympiade ist einzigartig. Ich kann mich nicht erinnern, dass es jemals
ganze 14 und sogar 18 Jahre im Voraus eine so große Zahl von Interessenten für die
Ausrichtung von Olympischen Spielen gegeben hat.
Mit der Olympischen Agenda 2020+5 stärken wir die Rolle des Sports als wichtigem
Ermöglicher für die nachhaltigen Entwicklungsziele der Vereinten Nationen. Eine
unserer wichtigsten Maßnahmen in diesem Zusammenhang ist unser Beitrag zur
Bewältigung der globalen Klimakrise.
Erst gestern hat die Exekutive unseren ehrgeizigen CO2-Reduktionsplan gebilligt, mit
dem das IOC seine CO2-Emissionen bis 2024 um 30 Prozent und bis 2030 um 50
Prozent senken will.
Das IOC wird schon 2024 eine klimapositive Organisation sein. Wir setzen uns engagiert
dafür ein, dass die Olympischen Spiele spätestens 2030 klimapositiv sind, wenn dies für
die Gastgeber dann zur Pflicht wird. Paris ist auf dem besten Weg, unser Ziel zu
übertreffen, denn es wird dies bereits 2024 erreichen.
Wir arbeiten mit den Vereinten Nationen zusammen, um in Afrika südlich der Sahara
einen Olympischen Wald zu pflanzen und damit unsere verbleibenden Emissionen zu
kompensieren. Das Olympic House, unser neuer IOC-Hauptsitz, ist international als
eines der nachhaltigsten Gebäude der Welt zertifiziert.
Das sind nur einige wenige Beispiele für unser umfassendes Engagement im Kampf
gegen den Klimawandel.
Mit der Olympischen Agenda 2020+5 werden wir weiterhin mit gutem Beispiel
vorangehen: Stärkung der Good Governance in der gesamten Olympischen Bewegung,
Förderung der Geschlechtergleichstellung und der Inklusion sowohl auf dem Spielfeld
als auch außerhalb davon.
Mit der Olympischen Agenda 2020+5 haben wir uns verpflichtet, den
Menschenrechtsansatz des IOC zu stärken. Dies tun wir durch die Weiterentwicklung
unseres strategischen Rahmenwerks. Dies tun wir, indem wir uns bei seiner Umsetzung
an den UN-Leitprinzipien für Wirtschaft und Menschenrechte orientieren. Wir sind fest
entschlossen, noch darüber hinaus zu gehen und die Sorgfaltspflicht im Bereich der
Menschenrechte in unseren Aufgabenbereich aufzunehmen.
Das sind nur einige wenige von vielen Initiativen zur Stärkung unserer Glaubwürdigkeit
und unserer Integrität.
Mit der Olympischen Agenda 2020+5 wird die Digitalisierung der Olympischen
Bewegung vorangetrieben. Eine der vielen Maßnahmen in diesem Zusammenhang wird
die zweite Ausgabe der Olympic Virtual Series sein – einem einzigartigen digitalen
Erlebnis-Event, das neue Zielgruppen für virtuelle Sportarten erschließen soll. Und wir
werden sogar noch einen Schritt weiter gehen. Im Jahr 2023 veranstalten wir ein echtes
Festival rund um die Olympic Virtual Series, bei dem wir alle Stakeholder
zusammenbringen, um den Olympischen Geist auch in dieser virtuellen Welt zu feiern.
Mit der Olympischen Agenda 2020+5 bewirken wir auch Verbesserungen für den Weg
hin zu den Olympischen Spielen für die Athletinnen und Athleten. Dies tun wir, indem wir
für vier urbane Sportarten eine Olympia-Qualifikationsserie für Paris 2024 ins Leben
rufen. Mit diesem völlig neuen Format werden Sport und Kultur in einer Festival-
Atmosphäre in großen Städten miteinander verschmolzen und der Sport dorthin
gebracht, wo die Menschen sind. Wir sind nicht mehr in einer Position, dass wir einfach
irgendwo in einem Stadion eine Sportveranstaltung anbieten und dann warten können,
dass die Leute kommen. Wir müssen dorthin gehen, wo die Menschen sind – sei es in
der virtuellen Welt, sei es in den urbanen Zentren.
Das sind nur einige Beispiele dafür, dass die Umsetzung der Olympischen Agenda
2020+5 bereits in vollem Gange ist. Wir mussten sofort loslegen, denn die globale
Pandemie hat die ganze Welt und uns in der Olympischen Bewegung vor noch nie
dagewesene Herausforderungen gestellt.
Was die Olympischen Spiele Paris 2024 anbelangt, so werden wir das
Organisationskomitee später noch zum Stand der Vorbereitungen hören. Ich freue mich
jedoch, jetzt schon sagen zu können, dass die Vision von Paris 2024 voll und ganz mit
der Olympischen Agenda 2020 und der Olympischen Agenda 2020+5 für innovative,
inklusive, gleichberechtigte und nachhaltige Spiele im Einklang steht. Die Olympischen
Spiele Paris 2024 markieren den Beginn einer neuen Ära: einer Ära Olympischer Spiele,
die von Anfang bis Ende von der Olympischen Agenda inspiriert sind.
Paris hat somit die einmalige Gelegenheit, den Ton für diese neue Ära der Olympischen
Spiele vorzugeben. Wir können uns schon jetzt auf eine außergewöhnliche
Eröffnungsfeier freuen, bei der Hunderttausende Menschen entlang der Seine und vor
dem Hintergrund von symbolträchtigen Denkmälern wie dem Eiffelturm oder der
Kathedrale Notre-Dame die besten Athleten der Welt feiern werden – ein perfektes
Anschauungsbeispiel für unsere Vision von innovativen, spektakulären und inklusiven
Olympischen Spielen.
Ganz im Sinne des Olympischen Gedankens – schneller vorankommen, höhere Ziele
anstreben und stärker werden – stehen mit Milano Cortina, Los Angeles und Brisbane
bereits die nächsten Olympia-Gastgeber in den Startlöchern, um auf diesem Schwung
aufzubauen und diese neue Ära der Olympischen Spiele auf ihre eigene Art und Weise
zu gestalten.
Unsere Werte. Unsere Solidarität. Unser Miteinander – das macht unsere Olympische
Bewegung so besonders. Und auch wenn wir für diesen letzten Teil unserer Session
immer noch physisch getrennt sein mögen, so spüre ich doch deutlich, dass unser
Miteinander, unser Zusammengehörigkeitsgefühl stärker ist als je zuvor. Lassen Sie uns
auf unsere Stärke und unsere Tradition des Miteinanders bauen.
Unser Gründer Pierre de Coubertin sagte einstmals: „Durchbrechen Sie kühn die Wolken
und haben Sie keine Furcht. Die Zukunft gehört Ihnen.“
Liebe Freundinnen und Freunde, werte Kolleginnen und Kollegen,
Reichen wir uns die Hände und gestalten wir unsere Zukunf!

                  *Yoshi wakes up*

Y: Are we finished now?

TB: Ein letze thing… Give Mein Kirsty ein chance! Not ziss Dumkopf Seb. Fur meine legacy. As I was saying at the IOC session letzte jahr, es ist eine grosse …

                 *Sir Rols rushes on stage*

SR. Oy! Mate! We found this envelope in your room just now. Says it's urgent, you'd better open it now. And take this snake off my hands.

T: OK, what is...Mein Gott! Ze Nobel Peace Prize!!!! JAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! JAAAAAAAAAA! Ich have done it! Ich can leave happy!

Y: You mean you can announce now?

T: Ja! Ze vinner of ze Singapore 2036 logo comp ist:

GLACIB!

Auf Wiedersehen! *whistles*

Y: Danke one last time Tom. We’re going to miss those speeches. Anyway, the results were:

A: 2 B: 1 C: 2 D: 6

I could paste the SLC sumup, a narrow but clear majority in Round 2 - you don't like voting do you, as soon as we start the exhaustive ballot you end the whole election! It means that we must congratulate @Glacib on taking a third place on the honour roll...which sadly can't be animated! Congratulations Glacib, & thank you to all the participants & voters, especially guru @Sir Rols (who may or may not have been responsible for some of the more Germanic sections of tonight's show) & cultural advisor @Palette86 for their help  

And that is it for the Cultural Olympiad of 2024/5! If you would like Thomas’ speech translated, ask @StefanMUC or @Olympian2004 nicely. Or click HERE for translations in English, French, Spanish or Mandarin. Thank you again to everyone involved. Time to get back to your studies @Bear and @Glacib. I hope you weren’t sulking AF. And I hope @Michelle isn’t planning on getting the next comp cancelled. And speaking of the next comp, just a heads up, assuming we do the comp the same again next year, it will be starting later, launching on December 24 rather than 1. That's partly because we tend to get many of our entries in January anyway, and partly because a little thing is happening in Milan in February. Until then, thank you & goodbye!  

Uh oh. Thomas is taking the microphone again! Oh, he’s talking to the band. I think he wants to do one last song. Take it away Tom!

Kung Hei Fat Choi! That’s Happy New Year in Singapore Chinese. To celebrate the New Year, traditionally the biggest festive time in much of East Asia, we’ve decided the openingssssss for the resssssssst of the roundssssssss will sssssalute the upcoming Year of the Ssssssnake.

To kick off, here’s Nicki Minaj with her own ssssserenade to ssserpents!

Our Year of the Ssssnake tribute was suggested by our East Asan cultural advisor @Palette86, and finessed by our other cultural advisor - you know the guy, he's the wombat correspondent.

Anyway, I promised unique to Singapore & how many other countries take intense national pride in their airport?

Welcome to Changi, the airport where the catchy-plane bit of the process seems to be the least important thing. Talking of catching planes, some of you are, some others are staying in Singapore to try to win a logo comp! Let's see who's who...

A: 2 B: 2 C: 3 D: 4 E: 0 F: 4 G: 6

Again, just like in SLC, there's a clear cut line to leave 4 in & 3 out. So we must say goodbye to @Sir Rols, @Victorian & @thatsnotmypuppy - I promise the GB electorate don't have a thing against Australia, or against comp organisers!  For the remaining 4, it's welcome to the exhausting ballot rounds - here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 48 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Friday January 17.

Voting will now be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2025 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll head into the sea (it makes sense, honest) for Round 3 on Friday! Until then, good luck! 

Don't say we don't pick the big names - but since @Taylor Swift is on GB already it would've been rude not to. It's announcement time, so it's time to head to the biggest landmark in Downtown Salt Lake - the Mormon motherlode, the Salt Lake Temple!

I say to the temple, we're actually outside in Temple Square because apparently the Mormons don't let anyone else in...with doesn't feel very charitable in this weather. I guess that's a reason to get on with it - so here we go, please welcome the President of the United States of...wait what?

Y: Er we asked for the President.

E: You got him!

Y: But you're not the President, Elect or otherwise...

E: I GOT THE POWER!

Y: Oh look, it's freezing, just get on with it.

E: Thank you. Hey, before we start, you know [CENSORED] [CENSORED] I did [CENSORED] Nigel Farage [CENSORED] [CENSORED] [CENSORED] Greenland [CENSORED] [CENSORED] Canal [CENSORED] [CENSORED] [CENSORED] invading [CENSORED] Zuckerberg [CENSORED] [CENSORED] to space [CENSORED] wait, space! I need to go, I got a rocket I need to disassemble. 

Y: Er Elon? Elon? Right, is Taylor still here?

Y: Phew. Right, all you need to do is announce the winner within a minute without threatening to annex any countries. It shouldn't be hard...

T: Ok, let's shake that off! The filler of our blank space is...

CORN_ZXL!

Y: Thank you. Also where did Tom spring from? I'm sure we'll see him again in Singapore...anyway the result was:

A: 3 B: 2 C: 6 D: 0

I must admit to being quite surprised we've got a winner so early, but 6/11 means a small majority but a majority even so - and it means a new champion! Congratulations to @corn_zxl on a worthy first logo comp win - it's always nice to see new faces on our honour roll  Thank you to all the participants & voters, and special thanks to @Sir Rols of course for the grids & sounding board. 

I will give a day free for final Singapore submissions, then begin the voting on Monday. Until then...hold on, he's back:

E: Let that wombat have his music choice or I turn the Internet off.

Y: But it's...

E: 

Y: Well he hasn't told me what it is, so strap in everyone, this could be anything. For now, see you on Monday, in Singapore! THANK YOU  

Our opening song is brought to you by our Tokyo correspondent & cultural sensitivity advisor @Palette86 & her fleet of yoshis:

It welcomes us, for the first time since 2019, to Asia! And specifically the only city to host both an Olympic Games & an IOC session & still be better known for the session - welcome to Singapore!

And welcome to the place where all that happened, the Raffles Hotel, which has waited 20 years to host a vote as significant as this again. Way back in summer, while Paris was finally enjoying its much-deserved Olympic moment (& what a Games it was), the GB electorate decided that this city/country at the tip of the Asian mainland would be our 18th Summer victim, & now in the first days of 2025, we complete the journey by electing the winner. Again, we have 7 candidates, so again we have a cut round to begin, & here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 48 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Wednesday January 15.

Voting will now be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

IMPORTANT - As I say, this is a cut round - so the (around) THREE logos that receive the fewest votes will be eliminated. The four remaining will go to the exhaustive ballot. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are more than three. What exactly happens will depend on the exact numbers that we get, it might not be exactly three that go out.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logos. You will notice this is a multiple-choice poll - you may give up to THREE votes, so make them count.

More than THREE votes will invalidate all your votes. Sir Rols and I will monitor votes cast, but feel free to alert us if you notice anyone voting more than thrice.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2025 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

Unless we get a winner here, we will reconvene for the first exhaustive ballot on Wednesday in the kind of place that might be unique to Singapore. Until then, Good luck!  

One of the very few Christmas songs that can be described as accurate, capturing the true meaning of the season. Namely queuing for an hour at Tesco on a Wednesday afternoon in November because everyone is panic buying a month early. That & realising you forgot something vital at 23:59 on the 24th. 

Anyway, we all know Christmas is not even the biggest event in December - not when we have THE 18TH ANNUAL GAMESBIDS OLYMPIC LOGO COMPETITION! A year ago, we saw the wombat himself Sir Rols design what is still the closest thing that exists to a France 2030 logo, and we saw Scotguy II finally take his first victory in the summer comp in Dublin. Now, as December begins it's time to determine who will follow them. The format is our traditional one - one winter city, one summer city. You know who they are, because you voted for one & worked the other one out, but let's reveal them anyway!

SUMMER 2036: SINGAPORE, er...SINGAPORE!

You voted, and here it is - one of the last remaining true city-states, & now our first Asian logo comp subject since 2019. It's about time, you must say. Famous for originating the Youth Olympics, hosting the South East Asian Games several times, somehow forgetting that it could host the Commonwealth Games, & having one of very few airports people actually want to visit, there's no shortage of sporting history or design inspiration. In 2005 the late Jacques Rogge awarded the Olympics to London in a hotel here. In 2010, the same Belgian gave birth to the Youth Olympics in the sea here. In 2024, how will you brand the biggest event of them all?

WINTER 2034: SALT LAKE CITY, USA!

You didn't vote, but you worked it out, right? The last remaining future Olympics not to have a GB logo for it is getting one right here. SLC is famous for being the city of Mormons, for being where Rhona curled that stone, & for being possibly the only city in the Western world where launching a Winter Olympic bid will win you votes. That was most important for the IOC anyway, which is why it'll welcome its second Games in 2034. As such, there's even more Olympic history here than in Singapore - & lots of design inspiration to work with too. 2034 will mark 28 years since 2002, but how will you brand the Olympics' return to Utah?

------------------------------------------------

And now THE RULES, copied and pasted (mostly) from last year. We don't have to ask John Coates what we can do, so it stays as is:

We are, as ever, after logos that encompass the overall feel of the city and local influences that can be tied into a design concept. How can any of these cities articulate graphically what they could bring to future Olympics hosting? What flavour will they bring to the games? Will you end up in Google image searches for 2034 for the next 5 years?

The logos should be presented as full colour designs on white background. If you like, however, they can also be presented in black and white or utilised in forms like street banners, t-shirts, apps, vehicles, pins etc. For voting purposes, the main (colour) logo will be used on the polls, & extra stuff is not obligatory, but any extra material you produce may help you “sell” your design better to the wider GamesBids voting membership. 

 These logos are for the cities as they HOST the games. So you CAN use the rings, and don't need to include the words “Candidate City, Olympic Games 2036” or whatever the IOC want this week.

Please post your preliminary submissions on this thread. If you want to hold anything back to be presented as a “surprise” when voting starts you can contact me or Rols via PM and I'll tell you where you can send the extra material. However, it would be nice to see as many on-thread submissions as possible for people to chew over in-thread, & to try & get the old buzz back. We can hope, right?

You can submit logos for either or both cities. However, you cannot enter more than one logo for the same city (see below). So entering one logo for each is fine, but two logos for Singapore, say, is not fine. You are able, encouraged even, to enter both 'sides' of the comp.

Feel free to post as many logo designs as you like, & to ask for feedback from our famously discerning electorate. If you really can't decide between your own designs for a city, feel free to start a poll (or to ask for one to be started). When the time comes for voting, however, you will be asked to settle on a maximum of ONLY ONE official logo per city as your official entry. 

The format depends on the numbers. Most likely, it will be the traditional exhausting exhaustive ballot preferred by the IOC, and the winter & summer 'halves' will be entirely separate, there will be two winners in the Olympic comp tradition. 

The competition is open to all members of GamesBids, or to any new legitimate members who join before the end of the submission period. I, with consultation, will rule on the legitimacy of new members.

As you would expect, I will rule on any disputes - always aiming to be as fair as possible in the process. As always, just remember, this is all meant to be fun. Olympic spirit, remember?. 

Hopefully this will spark up some action on the board. I'll be dipping in, keeping a close eye on things, but otherwise will try and keep my green yoshi-paws off until the polling stages.

The deadline for submissions is 1pm London time (that is, midnight in Sydney, as per tradition) on NEW YEAR'S EVE, 31 DECEMBER 2024. Thus, GB will begin 2025, or as Olympic fans call it, the boring one, with the voting. Just one extra thing, there is something of a tradition of that being extended, but I'm hoping not to have to do that this year as we already had 21 members sufficiently interested to vote in the city election back during Paris, and hopefully at least some of you will submit logos within the month. I will @ all those voters (yes all of you) in the next post.

And this is just to alert @Rob. Rob to the existence of the new comp in the hope that he'll do his traditional bit of putting up links to various free design programs etc for the benefit of those who want to take part but may not have the facility at the moment, and to alert @GBModerator Rob to the fact the comp is back! In addition, we had a member ask in the election thread about info on programs people use - I don't know that world (those who can't...) but I'd encourage anyone who does to share.

All that is left to say is thank you Rols once again, and to all participants for having the guts to put your logos up for the annual GamesBids dissection, & may the best logos win - GOOD LUCK! 

Alexa, I need Mormons people have heard of...

They'll do - and that song tells us that the mechanical horse jetski-thing from Paris has travelled down the Seine, along the Channel, across the Atlantic, & over the plains of America (it hitchhiked) to find a home here, on the Great Salt Lake in Utah!

To be precise, it found its way into whatever that is, became very confused & has been stuck there for several days. Which gives us a reason to come here, wrapped up warm, to continue a journey to 2034 that will be considerably more democratic than FIFA's journey to 2034. How? Because as we're not "Inspired by FIFA President Gianni Infantino", we're actually voting! We have already voted once, over in Ogden, and here's what went down on Rhona's ice rink:

A: 0 B: 4 C: 1 D: 1 E: 2 F: 6 G: 2

A clear cut leaves 4 in & 3 out, as promised, so we say goodbye to @Sir Rols, who's already admitted he hoped this would happen, @Victorian, & @Bear, who'll have to console himself with the the fact he's the first member ever to make a website for his logo - enjoy 5 years of confusing Google  We now move to the traditional exhausting ballot voting, so read carefully, here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 48 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Saturday January 11.

Voting will now be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

In this and following rounds, the logo with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated at the close of the poll. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are multiple.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logo. You have ONE vote, so make it count.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2025 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

If we don't get a majority here, we'll head to another mystery Utah location on Saturday for another round of voting! Until then, good luck! 

Alexa! I need Mormons, and I need them fast:
 

The Mormons are on the streets with their badges, books & ties, it can only mean one thing - it's Saturday lunchtime in a major British city centre! Or maybe it means another thing...the Olympic Games are back in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA!
 

Welcome to the Ogden Ice Sheet (I love American descriptive names), which was to this part of the world easily the most iconic location of the Games of 2002. Those were so successful that Salt Lake became one of approximately one major cities in the democratic world where the Winter Olympics are still a guaranteed vote winner, which is why, in 2034, the flame will return. And this is where it begins, where we begin a journey to 2034 that will be considerably more democratic than FIFA's. How? Because as we're not "Inspired by FIFA President Gianni Infantino", we will actually vote! We have 7 candidates, which means we have a shortlist round. So read carefully, here are THE RULES:

This voting round will be open for (approximately) 48 hours - it will close at 10pm UK time, Thursday January 9.

Voting will now be conducted in rounds until one entry has an absolute majority and is declared the winner. 

IMPORTANT - As I say, this is a cut round - so the (around) THREE logos that receive the fewest votes will be eliminated. The four remaining will go to the exhaustive ballot. All logos that get 0 votes will be eliminated, even if there are more than three. What exactly happens will depend on the exact numbers that we get, it might not be exactly three that go out.

Vote in the poll for your favourite logos. You will notice this is a multiple-choice poll - you may give up to THREE votes, so make them count.

More than THREE votes will invalidate all your votes. Sir Rols and I will monitor votes cast, but feel free to alert us if you notice anyone voting more than thrice.

Your vote is public and can be seen by all.

Entrants MAY NOT vote for their own logo. For transparency, I will not vote unless required to break a tie.

Votes are valid if cast by members of GamesBids as of January 1 2025 with a bona fide posting record.

I will rule on the validity of any suspicious or disputed votes, or who constitutes a bona fide voting member. 

I will not vote in this, or any subsequent rounds. However, if a tie-breaker vote is needed, I will reserve my right to vote in order to break it. 

Be fair and sportsmanlike, this is meant to be fun and the entrants all deserve RESPECT.

Unless we get a winner here, we will reconvene for the first exhaustive ballot on Thursday in a mystery location in Utah. So mysterious, even I don't know. Until then, Good luck!  

Merci Edith!

Welcome everyone, as we gather on the penultimate day of Paris 2024 to crown our latest Champion of Champions.

Phew! What a close vote… err, who am I kidding. Paul made the final to defend his crown, but in the end, in a 18-2 blowout, the clear winner was…

@Victorian!

Thomas Jolly's not the only one who can feature drag queens in his ceremonies.

Anyway, how deserved was that! In my view, it was one of the best logo winners ever here, so very fitting Victorian inherited the crown. And that you’re in Paris to receive it. Congratulations, you’re now in the space of glory on Honour Roll in Gold!

And that’s it. We may have a vote off between Paul and Victorian later this year, but I wanna take a break after Paris and before I hand the banner back to Yoshi.

Speaking of Yoshi, our other poll was a bit closer, but in the end another clear win to Singapore! Much to mine and Yoshi’s surprise, I may add (he predicted Seoul, and I predicted Shanghai). So you all have four months to book your suite at Raffles and think of designs for the island national before we come together in December for our traditional Christmas logo feast. Keep your logos secret till then, but be ready to post them come Christmas month.

Finally, a big shout out to all who voted in the polls over the past month. Great to see so many of you back on the board for Games time and giving us a bumper vote crop. Hope you all return to vote come early 2025. 

 @Guilga, @Olympian1010, @Palette86, @cfm Jeremie, @Australian Kiwi, @BTHarner, @antiperspirant, @krow, @AustralianFan, @Daze, @Scotguy, @cfm Jeremie, @venuedesignlover, @Citius Altius Fortius, @Citizen-Seth, @thatsnotmypuppy, @Guilga, @Nacre, @Nacholympic, @PikyoK, @KRATK, @krow, @Palette86, @sebastien1214, @Cyriln, @intoronto, @StefanMUC, @Faster, @baron-pierreIV, @cfm Jeremie, @hiroamorim, @rio2016man, @Ikarus360, @TorchbearerSydney, @TorchbearerAA, @FYI, @Australian Kiwi, @AustralianFan, @Durban Sandshark, @Quaker2001, @Alexjc, @arwebb, @Olympian2004, @Brekkie Boy, @Karenina, @corn_zxl, @panamfan, @Anthony, @Olympian1010, @GBModerator, @DamC, @JMarkSnow2012, @AmaniS, @Tatsh, @WD96, @mr.bernham, @mattygs, @kevzz, @olympiaki-agones, @fatixxx, @zigzag, @Athensfan, @Olympic Fan Darcy, @Shiruba98, @Olympian2005, @BigVic, @Dave, @SkiFreak, @Iceman, @stryker, @Tony E Loves Architecture, @Hansfromdenmark, @Lee, @Kenadian, @venuedesignlover, @Hightowerio86, @BTHarner, @gotosy, @Roger87, @Cape Town 2020, @HenryOaks, @Athensfan, @Michelle

Also, a shout out again to the winners of all our past comps: @Rob2012, @DannyelBrazil, @demetrius, @paul, @barrack, @Aussie bum? or is it @Mr Tickle? (Davey Podmore), @aismanggo, @woohooitsme83, @VIK, @JDCLauron, @Jon Will Chambers, @Victorian, @Glacib, @Bear, @Scotguy II

Thanks again and bye for now!

And then there were two!

Welcome to the Frand Finale, the Final of the GamesBids Champion of Champions Logo tournament as we kick-off to choose our ultimate winner!

Congratulations to the final two contenders that have made it through. And farewell to those who fell short - @JDCLauron and @Bear. Sorry to see you go. You’re already champs, so don’t take it too hard

Both Semi Finals had clear winners, sparing me from having to take the penalty kick.

The entrants in this thread are:

Brisbane 2032 v Mumbai 2032

The rules are as follows:

1) It's ONE vote per person
2) You have a week to vote - voting in this stage is open until Sunday, August 11 (Paris closing day ).
3) If there is a tie, I’ll take the penalty kick duties and cast the deciding vote. I’ll refrain from voting in regular time.
5) Voting is open to all bona fide members of GamesBids as of July 1 this year. I will rule on any disputed votes.
6) Competitors still in contention CANNOT vote for your own logo - a previous winner is still in the comp has still so far not made it here to vote, so it’s only fair they not be penalised by missing a chance to vote for themselves.
7) At the end of this round, the winner will be declared and be included in the Honour Roll.

May the best logo win!!!

I’m blowing the whistle for kickoff! *peeep*

And now it starts to get serious!

Welcome to the Semi Final stages of the GamesBids Champion of Champions Logo tournament as we kick-off to chose our final two contenders!

Congratulations to the final four that have made it through. And farewell to those who fell short - remember, you’re already champions of your year already so don’t take it too hard.

All of the Quarter Finals had clear winners. QF4 was actually tied just when I locked it, and I was preparing to take the penalty kick. But when I checked back to write this, it appeared a final second vote had come in to decide it.

The entrants in this thread are:

Semi Final 1: Glasgow 2034 v Brisbane 2032

Quarter Final 2: Reykjavik 2034 v Mumbai 2032

The rules are as follows:

1) From now on to the Final, it's ONE vote per person, per match. You can vote in as many or as few matches as you wish.
2) You have a week to vote - voting in this stage is open until Sunday, August 4.
3) The top logos at full time in each match will progress to the Final.
4) If there is a tie in either match, as I’ll take the penalty kick duties and cast the deciding vote(S). I’ll refrain from voting in regular time.
5) Voting is open to all bona fide members of GamesBids as of July 1 this year. I will rule on any disputed votes.
6) competitors still in contention CANNOT vote for your own logo - some previous winners still in the comp have not made it here to vote, so it’s only fair they not be penalised by missing a chance to vote for themselves.
7) At the end of this round, the Final will be arranged according to the draw diagram.

May the best logos win!!!

I’m blowing the whistle for kickoff! *peeep*

Welcome to the knockout stages of the GamesBids Champion of Champions Logo tournament as we kick-off for the Quarter Finals!

Congratulations to those eight that have made it through. And farewell to those who fell short - remember, you’re already champions of your year already so don’t take it too hard.

No groups required penalty shot outs to determine rankings, to the relief of @yoshi.

Because we have eight quarter-finalists and four matches, we require two threads. In this thread we have Quarter Finals 1 & 2. Go HERE to vote in Quarter Finals 3 & 4. The entrants in this thread are:

Quarter Final 1: Glasgow 2034 v St Petersburg 2030

Quarter Final 2: Reykjavik 2034 v Milano-Cortina 2026

The rules are as follows:

1) From now on to the Final, it's ONE vote per person, per match. You can vote in as many or as few matches as you wish.
2) You have a week to vote - voting in this stage is open until Sunday, July 28 (yes, Day 3 of Paris 2024!).
3) The top logos at full time in each match will progress to the next round - the Semi-Finals.
4) If there is a tie in any match, as I am no longer one of the competitors, I’ll relieve Yoshi of penalty kick duties and cast the deciding vote(S). I’ll refrain from voting in regular time therefore. @yoshi is free, and encouraged, to vote from now on. Thanks for your patience mate!
5) Voting is open to all bona fide members of GamesBids as of July 1 this year. I will rule on any disputed votes.
6) competitors still in contention CANNOT vote for your own logo - some previous winners still in the comp have not made it here to vote, so it’s only fair they not be penalised by missing a chance to vote for themselves.
7) At the end of this round, the Semi-Finals will be arranged according to the draw diagram.

Anyway, I hope we get lots (more) votes in coming rounds - the more the merrier and the more we get the more fun and suspense.

All the logos still in contention are great - good luck, and may the best logo win!!!

I’m blowing the whistle for kickoff! *peeep*

And don‘t forget to go HERE to vote in other quarter finals!