MUMBAI: Swiss watchmakers Longines and Tissot from the Swatch Group will be the official timekeepers of the 14th Asian Games, which will take place from 29 September to 4 October in Busan, Korea.

During the games, Longines will handle time and score keeping in rhythmic and artistic gymnastics, swimming, synchronised swimming, diving, soccer, volleyball, baseball and horse show jumping. Longines will, in addition, award the Longines Prize for Elegance to the most elegant athlete in rhythmic gymnastics and the Longines Trophy for the best performing female and male athletes in artistic gymnastics. Tissot will be the official timekeeper and datahandler for track and field athletics, track cycling, soccer, field hockey, weightlifting and basketball.

These disciplines are in keeping with Tissot's other sporting partnerships around the world, including athletics in the UK, basketball in Eastern Europe, exclusive timekeeping for all the UCI official cycling championships worldwide, as well as favouring the sport of the Tissot global football ambassador, Michael Owen. To underline its timekeeping capabilities, Tissot has chosen to launch the V8 chronometer as its official watch for the Asian Games.

In Busan, Longines and Tissot's activities will entail the coordination of a vast array of equipment and instrumentation, developed for specific sporting disciplines, ranging from touch pads used in the swimming pool through rotating score boards used in all gymnastics events. After being processed for display on the spot, the information is passed on for data handlers and television companies who broadcast it worldwide. Around 40 technicians, 35 tons of material and 30 kilometers of cable will be involved in the Asian Games.

The last Asian Games, held in 1998 in Thailand was also sponsored jointly by Tissot and Longines and attracted a cumulative television audience of over three billion viewers worldwide. 7000 athletes from 42 nations are expected to participate this time round. Competitions will take place in 38 different sporting disciplines and 43 competition venues have been specially prepared.

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