Behind the Scenes at the Olympic Games
John Paul Giancarlo
Internationl Olyumpic Committee
Technology Leader
Patrice Bouquniaux
Operation partner ETC
Technical Director
Shaun Heng
Panasonic System Solutions Asia Pacific
Installation Manager
High resolution large screens to show close-ups of powerful scenes are essential equipment for spectators at sports stadiums and event venues. For the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, Panasonic provided 42 Large-Screen Display Systems (1,640 m2) in 17 venues, the largest-ever number of screens to the Olympic Winter Games. Crystal-clear pictures from the outdoor and indoor venues as well as the Olympic Village spread the wonder of the Games, playing a key role in their communication.
Streamlining installation in outdoor and mountainous venues amid bitter cold
At the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, Panasonic provided a total of 42 Large-Screen Display Systems, the biggest number for Panasonic so far. Panasonic's Shaun Heng talks about the special methods used to install large amounts of screens in a short time despite the bitter cold outdoors and mountainous nature of some of the venues, as typical of the Winter Games.
"The die-cast model developed for the Rio 2016 Games is lightweight and rugged. This makes them easy to set up and lowers transportation costs."
Installing Panasonic's Large-Screen Display Systems in both outdoor and indoor venues, as well as the Olympic stadium for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, live sites and the Olympic Village helped achieve stunningly real pictures of the Games in crystal-clear quality, while also keeping information updated minute-to-minute.
John Paul Giancarlo, technology leader of the IOC, talks about Panasonic's contribution. "One of the key roles we expect of Panasonic's solutions is to provide the Large-Screen Display Systems to display information at the venues. This is an effective way to communicate information, and Panasonic's help in bringing these messages to the spectators is amazing."
Sponsor cooperation using an upgraded combination board
The combination board was first fully introduced at the Rio 2016 Games as a solution using Panasonic's Large-Screen Display Systems. The large screen shows times, scores and other data together with competition footage. Much bigger than previous scoreboards, it is easier to see and allows spectators a better sports experience. Between events it can show panoramic pictures to help build the atmosphere at the venues.
"At the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018, we were able to meet the requests of the organizing committee for a bigger, higher resolution combination board. We received highly positive feedback about the clarity of the pictures and the detailed information the screens communicated," says Panasonic's Shaun Heng in regard to the outcomes.
Panasonic's mission is to help work with the sponsors, the organizing committee, and other organizations that maintain the Olympic Games to make sure they are a success. Patrice Bouquniaux, technical director of the ETC Company, a partner of Panasonic's operations, saw many such scenes.
"I saw before my very eyes Panasonic building up experience while working with the organizing committee and the sponsors. This included sports presentations, OBS, and other areas of cooperation. I believe that Panasonic will continue to use its experience to help support future Olympic Games with its audiovisual equipment solutions. Communication with Panasonic is excellent, they're so reliable in flexibly handling onsite arrangements."
