Two 2012 Olympic Venues Take Shape

The Telegraph: During the London 2012 Games, the Aquatics Centre will be the venue for Swimming, Paralympic Swimming, Diving, Synchronised Swimming and the aquatic discipline of the Modern Pentathlon.

After the Games the centre - designed by Pritzker Prize winning architect Zaha Hadid - will become a facility for the local community, clubs and schools, as well as elite swimmers.

Meanwhile the distinctive white basketball arena, which at 35 meters high is one of the largest temporary venues used for an Olympics, will be dismantled after the Games.

Officials Set Twitter Rules for 2012 Olympics

BBC: Athletes at the London Olympics will be allowed to blog and post on Twitter but could be thrown out if their musings breach guidelines. Competitors may write only "first-person, diary-type" entries but should not act as reporters, International Olympic Committee (IOC) guidelines say.

All social media activity must respect the Olympic Charter, which bans political demonstrations. Postings deemed to be for commercial purposes will not be permitted. The guidelines, which were highlighted by the Australian Olympic Committee on Monday after initially being published on the IOC website, explain that the IOC "actively encourages and supports athletes... to take part in 'social media' and to post, blog and tweet their experiences".

But the IOC cautioned that the accreditations of "any organisation or person... may be withdrawn without notice" if its guidelines are breached. Athletes will be able to upload still photographs taken at venues - a practice which was mostly banned in Beijing in 2008 - but will not be allowed to sell or distribute them for other purposes.

The broadcast of video and audio taken inside Olympic venues will be banned but athletes may post videos taken elsewhere. Athletes will not be able to use the official Olympics symbol, and any reference to the word "Olympic" must be factual and "not associated with any third party or any third party's products or services".

Internet domain names and URLs including the word "Olympic" or "Olympics" will not be allowed either, unless approved by the IOC.

The perils of Twitter postings made headlines in June when there was a very public disagreement between triple-jump world champion Phillips Idowu and the head of UK Athletics, Charles van Commenee.

Idowu angered Van Commenee by using the micro-blogging site to reveal he was pulling out of the European Team Championships. Van Commenee responded by saying that "these things are done personally, there are certain channels you have to follow".

London 2012 Olympic Torch Design Revealed

MediaBistro: We know you’ve all been chomping at the bit to see photos of the 2012 Olympic torch after we told you back in March that design super group Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby had won the commission to create it.

Well, as the old saying goes around here at UnBeige HQ: Ask and you shall receive…but only after at least five months have passed. Late last week, the mouthful of an organization, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, released images of and information on the first prototype of the torch.

Looking something like a solid gold mesh tank top for an emaciated, long torso’ed and limbless athlete, it features 8,000 circles, which apparently offers “a lasting representation of the Torchbearer stories of personal achievement or contribution to their local community that will be showcased with every step of the Relay.” Said relay will begin next May and if you want a shot at carrying it, or know someone who is good at holding things and running, here’s where you can nominate yourself or others.

And here’s footage from its unveiling:

Utah Mine Strikes Olympic Gold, Silver and Copper

CNN: The latest sponsor announced for the London 2012 Olympic Games is the mining group Rio Tinto, which will provide the metal for all 4,700 medals, organizers announced Wednesday.

London-based Rio Tinto is the 40th domestic sponsor announced for the Games. It will provide all the gold, silver, and copper to produce the medals for the Olympics and Paralympics next year, London 2012 said.

The metal will come from opposite sides of the globe -- from Rio Tinto's Kennecott Utah Copper mine near Salt Lake City and from the Oyu Tolgoi project in Mongolia, the company said.

More than 99% of the metal will come from Kennecott, which has produced more copper than any other mine in history and also produces gold and silver, Rio Tinto said. Oyu Tolgoi, in Mongolia's South Gobi Desert, is expected to be a top copper and gold producer when it reaches full production in 2018, the company said.

Rio Tinto provided the metal for Olympic medals once before, at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

"All of us at Rio Tinto are excited to have the special job once again of digging the ore that will become treasured medals for the world's elite athletes," said Tom Albanese, the company's chief executive. "We are right behind London 2012's commitment to delivering sustainable Games, which aligns with Rio Tinto's passionate commitment to sustainable development wherever we operate around the world."

The London Olympic Games are scheduled to take place between July 27 and August 12, 2012, and will be followed by the Paralympic Games, scheduled for August 29 to September 9.

Demand Soars for 2012 Olympics Tickets

United Kingdom Passport Agency: Demand for Olympics tickets could outstrip supply with one in five adults saying they plan to buy tickets for the London 2012 Games. But while 70% believe the Olympic Games will boost the UK economy, only 39% believe this will outweigh the cost of hosting the spectacle.

Organisers are releasing 6.6 million tickets to spectators in Britain, with a deadline of April 26 for applications to join the ballot. Outdoor advertising agency Kinetic Worldwide said the Games could be "massively over-subscribed", with 10 million Britons saying they plan to apply for tickets.

A further 2.2 million tickets will be available to overseas spectators and organisations sponsoring the Games.

In the capital, 36% of people say they plan to buy tickets, with just 23% saying tickets are too expensive. Organisers say one quarter of tickets will cost less than £25 ($40) and 90% will cost less than £100 ($161). The best seats at the opening ceremony will cost £2,012 ($3,247).

More than half of Londoners say they are now excited about the Olympics, up 10% since October to 51%. Across the UK 40% of those surveyed said they are excited. More than half of those planning to go to the Olympics say they are not sports fans but consider it to be a "once in a lifetime" experience.

James Copley, of Kinetic UK, said: "Our research suggests the level of anticipation and interest in attending the Games is growing and London will see a surge in visitors at the top end of expectations."

Kinetic Worldwide surveys a panel of 500 UK adults every quarter.

Race Underway for London Olympic Tickets

Daily Mirror: The starting gun sounded yesterday as millions of sports fans joined the race for tickets to the London 2012 Olympics.

Everything was off and running – apart from the newly-unveiled Olympic Countdown Clock in Trafalgar Square, which embarrassingly stopped working less than 24 hours after it started. Ticket applications are open for the next six weeks, until April 26, and there are 6.6 million available.

Games chairman Lord Seb Coe described it as a “momentous moment”. He said: “This starts the journey for those who have been dreaming of getting hold of an Olympic ticket since the day we won the bid in 2005 – these really are the greatest tickets on Earth.”

But there is no need to panic – as it is not a first come, first served system. Instead, a ballot will be used to decide who gets seats for the “hot” events such as the 100m final, expected to star Usain Bolt.

Some people were left frustrated yesterday after a hiccup in card transactions. Visa is the only way to reserve tickets online but fans with cards that expire before the end of August 2011 found the website could not process their orders.

Half of the 2.5 million people who signed up for tickets are from outside the South East, with 4% from overseas. The tickets cover 26 sports over 645 sessions at 34 competition venues. They range from £20 to £2,012 – with an average of around £47 per event.

There are already measures in place to deter touts, with the maximum fine up from £5,000 to £20,000. Last night experts were working to get the countdown clock ticking again. A spokesman for Olympic sponsor Omega said: “We’re very disappointed it has stopped. It’s a technical fault.”