Seiko and the IAAF today announced the renewal of their long-standing partnership for a further 10 years, until the end of 2029.
Seiko will provide its state-of-the-art timing and measurement services to all 37 World Athletics Series events during the period, including five World Athletics Championships.
It all started at the 1985 World Indoor Games in Paris when Seiko was chosen to provide the timing and distance measurement services. Over the subsequent 34 years, Seiko has served at 184 IAAF events, including 15 World Championships, and is now finalising its plans for the 2019 edition in Doha this September.
Perhaps more than any other sport, athletics depends on technology systems for its results. The performance of every athlete needs to be measured to the highest levels of precision, given that one thousandth of a second or one millimetre can make the difference between winning and losing, between qualifying for a final or not and between a great performance and a world record. This is the challenge that Seiko’s timing and measurement services are designed to meet, without fail, in every type of environment and weather, anywhere in the world.
The technologies developed by Seiko for athletics have evolved dramatically over the years so that more data of ever greater precision is delivered more quickly and more widely to officials, athletes and audiences alike.
The 10-year term of the new agreement will allow Seiko to continue to develop its services so as to ensure that the IAAF remains at the forefront of sports technology and that spectator understanding and enjoyment of athletics is constantly enhanced.
Shinji Hattori, the Chairman and Group CEO of Seiko Holdings Corporation, commented: “We are delighted that the IAAF has, once again, shown its trust in Seiko. We look forward to helping athletics develop and to providing our timing and measurement services to some of the most exciting and popular sports events in the world over the next ten years.”
“Seiko has been a trusted and valued partner of athletics for over 30 years,” said IAAF President Sebastian Coe. “Timing and measurement has improved substantially in that time and Seiko has always been at the forefront of the evolution. As we look forward to the next decade we know that innovation and technology in sport will change immeasurably and we look forward to continuing to offer our athletes, our fans and our media partners the latest technology and creative thinking in partnership with Seiko’s expertise and world leading sports timing.”
