A Gold Medal Roundup Of Online Olympics Resources

The games of the XXX Olympiad have begun in London. For the next two weeks people around the globe will be viewing the games in person, on television and on the web. There will also likely be record numbers of posts, tweets, pins, etc. from viewers, media and athletes and other participants in the games. […]

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London 2012 LOGO The games of the XXX Olympiad have begun in London. For the next two weeks people around the globe will be viewing the games in person, on television and on the web. There will also likely be record numbers of posts, tweets, pins, etc. from viewers, media and athletes and other participants in the games.

There are tons of Internet information resources that can help enhance your knowledge and enjoyment of the games. Hopefully these resources will also provide you with some interesting facts (with links to discover even more) that will help you “wow” your  friends, colleagues and others about what’s taking place in London. By the way, all of the resources listed are free.

News Sources

Fact Sheets From the International Olympics Committee

Here are direct links to several resources (all PDF) from the International Olympics Committee. You can find even more resource here.

See Also: News Releases From the IOC

London 2012 “Fact Pack”

Source: London Organizing Committee

Facts about many topics including sustainability, transport, the Olympic Park and more.

See Also: London 2012 News Releases

Team USA Fast Facts

Source: USOC

Team Canada Fast Facts

Source: Canadian Olympic Committee

Media Coverage

NBC Summer Olympics Media Guide
The guide includes:

  • FAQ About NBC Coverage
  • Olympics By the Numbers (2500 Color Monitors, 30,480 miles of fiber optic cable, etc.)
  • Nations Participating in the Games
  • History of the Olympics on NBC
  • Cost and Ratings of Olympics on U.S. Television
  • Executive and Analyst Profiles

A 180 page (PDF) version of the guide is also available.

For updates and other NBC Olympics news visit the NBC Sports Pressbox.

Canadian viewers can access background material, schedules, etc. about CTV coverage here.

Apps

Reuters Olympics London 2012 App (iOS)
Gorgeous images, news reports, and more.

Olympic Medal Alerts (iOS, Android, and Desktop Widget)
Source: International Olympic Committee
The app will alert you when medals in the sports you select are awarded.

Countries

Here are a few sources that can provide some fast facts about the nations participating in the Olympics

Organizations


Association of Summer Olympics International Federations

Directory info and direct links to all member web sites. (i.e. International Tennis Federation, Federation Internationale de Gymnastique, etc.)

Country-by-Country Directory (and Links) to All National Olympic Committees
204 countries are included.

Search

Official International Olympics Committee Medalist Database
All medalists since 1896. Data fields include:

  • Name
  • Gender
  • Countries/Continent
  • Medal (Gold, Silver, Bronze)
  • Records (World, Olympic)

Database of All Athletes
Each entry includes pictures and statistics. Here’s an example. Data back to 1896.

Wolfram|Alpha For Olympics Information
Here are some examples of how you can query Wolfram|Alpha for Olympics information.

Security

A roundup of reports and documents prepared by the Homeland Security Digital Library.

Video

Science of the Summer Olympics
10 videos produced by NBC.

RINGS LOGO


Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.


About the author

Gary Price
Contributor
Gary Price is a librarian, author, and an online information analyst based in suburban Washington, DC. He is the co-founder and co-editor of INFOdocket and FullTextReports.com and prior to that was founder/editor of ResourceShelf and DocuTicker for 10 years. He has worked for Blekko, Ask.com, and at Search Engine Watch where he was news editor. In 2001, Price was the co-author (with Chris Sherman) of the best-selling book The Invisible Web.

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