Olympic Newsdesk- Kenya NOC Rebranding; Haiti Aid; London 2012 Equestrian

New Branding for Kenyan NOC

(ATR) Kenya’s National Olympic committee (NOC-K) launches a new logo and commercial strategy under efforts to boost its global profile.

NOC chairman Kip Keino, the two-time Olympic gold medalist, said the new emblem, selected after a national design competition, “reflects an inspired, youthful and distinctly Kenyan NOC-K… the new NOC-K”.

Kenyan Minister for Sports, Hellen Sambili, congratulated the NOC-K for taking the initiative on the rebranding. “NOC-K had used the previous logo since 1954, and in that time, the Kenyan Olympic team has been highly successful and quite inspirational,” he said.

“As we approach London 2012, the new logo will give us a new source of inspiration and a new reason to triumph. We were the top African country in Beijing, now we want to be the top African country in London.”

The NOC-K contracted Octagon Worldwide, the leading sports marketing company, to develop its commercial strategy. “We are hopeful that Kenyan corporate firms will join us in promoting the Olympic spirit as we move towards London 2012 and beyond,” Keino said.

Bob Heussner, Octagon Games Marketing Senior Vice President, said: “This project involves more than creating a commercial strategy. It represents an opportunity to re-imagine NOC-K as a contemporary brand, one which will attract sponsorship revenue to fund the development of a new generation of Kenyan Olympic hopefuls.”

Aid for Haiti Athletes

Haitian athletes will receive assistance to help them compete in the next major multi-sport event ahead on the calendar, the Central American and Caribbean Games in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico this July.

The aid to Haiti is being coordinated by a commission of National Olympic Committee leaders from the region formed in the aftermath of the January earthquake.

Following a Feb. 4 meeting in Mayaguez, the committee agreed to cover all the costs for the Haitian team that will attend the games.

The company that supplies uniforms for the Mexican team will be asked to provide kit for the Haitian team.

Haitian Olympic Committee President Jean Edouard Baker told the committee that athletes will compete in athletics, judo, weightlifting, boxing, taekwondo and karate.

Training sites have been identified for the athletes in Mexico, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and the U.S.

2012 Equestrian Protesters Claim Huge Support

A group leading protests against holdingequestrian events for the 2012 London Olympics at historic Greenwich Park claims 2,000 objections have been lodged against LOCOG’s planning application.

No to Greenwich Olympic Equestrian Events (NOGOE) is urging the local council to reject a plan for a 23,000-capacity arena and cross country track for the Games on the World Heritage Site. The group fears environmental damage to the park.

“The risks to a leading World Heritage site are disproportionate," John Hine, NOGOE Coordinator says. "The disruption to the lives of local residents and the inconvenience to the millions who visit the Park every year is unreasonable.

"There are perfectly satisfactory alternative venues where the Games could be hosted without the massive damage and inconvenience that the Olympic authorities would inflict on Greenwich.”

NOGOE also points to a 19 th century decree preventing enclosure of any part of nearby Blackheath, which is to be used for stabling.

LOCOG submitted its plan for the park in December. LOCOG said polling by Nielsen showed that 85 percent of Greenwich residents supported using the Greenwich Park as an Olympic venue.

Last month, the Greenwich Council planning officer Fred Brown admitted to Around The Rings that “around 1,000 letters for and against have been received, with the majority objecting.”

A public meeting will be held in March when the planning board of the Council will decide whether the present venue plan is appropriate. The board can accept the plan, send it back to LOCOG for changes or ask for equestrian to be moved elsewhere.

Internationally-renowned jumping venue Hickstead, 50 miles south of London, would likely be an alternative but LOCOG has gone to great lengths to prepare a case for Greenwich. It believes that a location close to the Olympic Village will be popular with competitors and bring top-class horse action close to an urban audience.

LOCOG also claims that using for equestrian would create a lasting legacy. LOCOG said the park would be returned to its original condition after the Games.

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Written by Adrian Hill in London, Mark Bisson and Ed Hula.