Atos Origin retains contract for Olympics IT integration

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has appointed Atos Origin as IT systems integrator for the 2010 Winter and 2012 Summer Games.

The 2012 London Olympics will be the sixth Games at which Atos Origin develops, runs and secures key systems.

The company has so far provided IT systems for the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City and last year's Summer Games in Athens, and is testing networks for the 2006 and 2008 Games.

Patrick Adiba, executive vice president of Olympics and major events at Atos Origin, says the transfer of knowledge and reuse of working systems are vital.

'The long-term relationship between the technology partner and the IOC is an important ingredient of success,' he said.

'Technology is critical in making the Games happen, for planning purposes and for timely distribution of results worldwide.'

Adiba says Atos will perform an analysis of the Games' business requirements based on its experience of previous Olympics.

During the Athens Games, it handled more than 18 million queries on the Olympics intranet.

'The technology systems and operational processes will be adapted to provide technology tailored to the 2010 and 2012 projects,' said Adiba.

He expects requests for remote and mobile information to be the main technology evolutions in 2010 and 2012, and says Atos will concentrate on using proven and cost-effective systems.

'As a technology partner, we work with the IOC, the local organising committees and our Olympic partners to manage the project,' he said.

'We ensure that knowledge is transferred from one event to another, ensuring that future Games can be planned while reducing complexity and costs.'

Atos Origin is responsible for creating a range of systems for the Games, including the management of athletes' accreditation and qualification.

The firm also manages the Technology Operations Centre and help desk services.