Masso Group

A sporting party of sorts for athletes aged between 14 and 18, the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games (Aug. 14-26) was a host of firsts. The overarching goal of the Singapore 2010: to inspire the young athletes, through an integrated sport, culture and education experience, to fully embrace and live the Olympic values of Excellence, Friendship and Respect, and inspire those in their communities to do the same. The 3,500 young athletes competing at the YOG have Jacques Rogges, President of the International Olympic Committee, to thank for this opportunity at Olympic sporting glory. His desire to draw more youths away from their computers

and back to a sporting lifestyle was the impetus behind the creation of the YOG. With Generation Z youths as its core audience, the YOG Organizing Committee has had full license to focus on social media in marketing the event. After all, Generation Zers, or the Internet Generation, have grown up using computers and mobile communications devices and are masters of social media. In addition to the official Singapore 2010 website, there is the WhyOhGee microsite, Singapore 2010 Facebook page, Twitter page, Flickr photo page and even a virtual world called Singapore 2010 Odyssey. So while it may seem ironic to try to reach out to Generation Z via online websites, when the YOG is meant to get youth to engage in more sporting events, it is a case of if you can’t beat them, you’ve got to join them. 

Making sports hip again

Of particular interest is the WhyOhGee microsite, packed with information and updates on the YOG in an accessible and fun way. More than 100 young volunteers produced, published and promoted the content on the site. Even the name of the site, a pun on the acronym “YOG,” was the result of brainstorming sessions involving invited youth. To reach out to as many young people as possible, WhyOhGee content is available on other social media websites including YouTube and a YOG blog.

A YOG ambassador of sorts: the sorely under-publicized Youth Guru, above. A stereotypical caricature of several cultural personas dressed in Chinese kongfu attire, she nonetheless provides great entertainment value. The Youth Guru’s day job as the editor of the WhyOhGee website sees her managing volunteer photojournalists and video production teams that contribute content. As the Youth Guru, she stars in videos posted on the WhyOhGee site and YouTube, explaining events like the Modern Pentathlon and even demonstrating a sport with the help of past Olympians.

In one particularly amusing video, Youth Guru was "wrestled” by Olympic medalist Irina Merlini of Ukraine. The Youth Guru also showcases places of interest in Singapore that the YOG athletes will visit as part of the Cultural & Education Programme (CEP). She also touches on how to save the environment, one of the goals of the YOG. Language purists may decry her put-on accent, poorly spoken English that’s done on purpose, and tongue-in-cheek descriptions, but it was all in good fun, designed to appeal to the young demographic the WhyOhGee producers seek to draw to the site.

Another digital marketing initiative worth noting: Singapore 2010 Odyssey, a web-based interactive platform which sets the Games in 3010. Users can create their own avatars and compete in games, with The Great Odyssey Race on Day One of the YOG offering attractive prizes to winners. The Olympic themes and sports are also showcased on the site and visitors can take virtual tours of competition venues and the Youth Olympic Village in Singapore.

The YOG Facebook page, which attracted more than 70,000 fans at last count, and active presence on Twitter and Flickr, all boosted the YOG Organizing Committee’s digital outreach efforts.

To complement its social media efforts, all YOG athletes and officials also received a smartphone from one of the Worldwide Olympic sponsors, Samsung, pre-loaded with an application that allows them to receive YOG content and services.

Engaging the community

It’s not just about youth, of course. Extensive school-based activities aside, the YOG Learning Centre is a dedicated space for school groups, the general public and YOG athletes to discover the spirit of Olympism and the inaugural YOG. The extensive exhibits also enable visitors to learn about selected Olympic sports at interactive stations, Singapore’s Olympians and other sporting luminaries.

In what is probably the most visible event for the YOG to date, the Youth Olympic Flame traveled through the five continents on a 2-week journey before arriving in Singapore in early August. It was lit in Ancient Olympia in Greece on July 23, then travelling first to Berlin in Germany, then Dakar in Senegal, Mexico City in Mexico, Auckland in New Zealand, and Seoul in the Republic of Korea, before arriving in Singapore.

In each of the five cities, the Flame was brought to iconic sights to enable as many people as possible to welcome it. Representatives from each member National Olympic Committee of that continent were also present at the celebratory events. In the host city of Singapore, the Flame was then carried in a traditional 6-day torch relay run involving 2,400 people, amongst them past Olympians such as retired pole vaulting legend Sergey Bubka, local celebrities and top business people.

In line with the goal of the YOG to engage the community at large, various events were staged across Singapore. The launch of the YOG logo in April 2009 at *SCAPE also helped to showcase the brand new sprawling 1.2-hectare space in the heart of Singapore’s Orchard Road dedicated to young people to explore their sporting and creative passions. The elaborate launch mechanism using the 26 sports to launch the logo went some way to introduce the sporting events of the YOG.

While the YOG’s social media campaign looks to be successful to date, we must return to the original intent of building sporting excellence amongst youth, and more importantly, connecting with people — preferably in person. How Singapore, the participants and the crowds take the YOG spirit forward will prove to be the true test of the impact of this landmark event

 

(Source: Brandchannel)