One year to go to the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games

Technology Lab now fully operational and test events underway

Sochi - Atos, an international IT services company and Worldwide IT Partner for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, today, with one year to go, announces that the Technology Lab is fully operational and that the technology plans for the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games are all on track.

The Technology Lab is a miniature version of the 26 Olympic and Paralympic Winter competition venues and is where the IT systems for every sports event and venue will be put through a series of tests. Its opening marks the launch of more than 100,000 hours of IT testing. This includes 70 sport test events – the largest number of test events for any Olympic Winter Games – as well as two technical rehearsals during which up to 500 different scenarios will be tested to ensure that the Atos Business Technologists, technology and procedures are ready to respond to any situation that could arise during the Games.

The Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games will be the biggest yet with 12 new sports events – the largest number of new events at any Olympic Winter Games. For the first time, there will be for both men and women slopestyle and halfpipe ski; slopestyle and parallel special slalom as well as ski jumping for women, mixed Biathlon relay, figure skating team vent and luge team relay.

For technology, the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games will also mark the first time that myInfo+ – a service used by print and broadcast media to check information including the competition schedule, medal ranking, weather reports and news feeds – will be available on all mobile devices. Broadcasters will also have access both in Sochi and remotely around the world to the Commentator Information System which gives them the latest competition information and scores to help colour their commentary.

Dmitry Chernyshenko, President, Sochi 2014, said, “We are committed to the Sochi 2014 Winter Games being the most digital Games ever and are delighted to be working with Worldwide IT Partner of the IOC – Atos. It is invaluable to be able to draw on the knowledge that Atos brings from its experience of delivering six previous Games”.

Patrick Adiba, CEO Iberia, Major Events and Olympic Games at Atos, said, “With one year to go we are confident that the technology for the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games is on track. The opening of the technology lab and the start of the IT testing marks a major milestone in our project plan and our whole team is committed to delivering our personal best to ensure a successful Games in 2014.”

The Atos team has been in Russia since June 2010, first based in Moscow before moving to Sochi in May 2012. The team now comprises around 70 business technologists and has already delivered the volunteer portal, which is used to manage and process all the applications for the 25,000 volunteer roles.

Between now and the start of the Games, Atos, will test and run the technology infrastructure and systems that will make the Games happen. This includes the solution that will deliver the results to the world’s media in 0.3 of a second and the systems to issue 220,000 accreditations that allow entry to the venues and serve as a visa for athletes, media, sponsor and officials to enter the Russian Federation, as well. By the time the Games arrive, Atos will manage the deployment of 900 servers, 1,000 network and security devices and a staggering 6,500 computers.

Atos has been the Worldwide IT Partner for the Olympic Games since Salt Lake City in 2002 and, over the last 10 years, has been integral to making every Winter and Summer edition of the Olympic Games a success. It is all of this experience and expertise that allows Atos to consistently deliver outstanding results for clients across the Globe.

For more information on what Atos delivers for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games visit: http://atos.net/sochi2014

About Atos

Atos is an international information technology services company with annual 2011 pro forma revenue of EUR 8.5 billion and 74,000 employees in 48 countries. Serving a global client base, it delivers hi-tech transactional services, consulting and technology services, systems integration and managed services. With its deep technology expertise and industry knowledge, it works with clients across the following market sectors: Manufacturing, Retail, Services; Public, Health & Transports; Financial Services; Telecoms, Media & Technology; Energy & Utilities.

Atos is focused on business technology that powers progress and helps organisations to create their firm of the future. It is the Worldwide Information Technology Partner for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and is quoted on the Paris Eurolist Market. Atos operates under the brands Atos, Atos Consulting & Technology Services, Atos Worldline and Atos Worldgrid.