All over the world, the Olympic Day Run is a great moment of sport, solidarity and celebration to which thousands of people look forward.

This year, on all five continents, men and women, children and older people will once again be celebrating in their own way the creation of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the birth of the modern Olympic Games by taking part in a unique event that is more than just a run.

An ideal platform for highlighting the benefits of physical activity and its contribution to general well-being, this event also focuses on the value of sport, its meaning and the reason for its importance in today’s world.

This year’s run will take place on Sunday, 24 June and will follow the same route as last year in St Julian’s, starting and finishing at Spinola Bay. Participation is free of charge.

Once again, the Maltese Olympic Committee is teaming up with McDonald’s and the Malta Amateur Athletics’ Association to organise this event.

As usual, official Olympic Day Run T-shirts will be given to all participants, as well as an official Olympic Day Run IOC Certificate signed by the IOC president Dr Jacques Rogge.

Applications are available at all McDonald’s restaurants and from the MOC offices (and our website www.nocmalta.org). Registration is also accepted at 8am on the day of the run. Parents are encouraged to join the fun runs with their children.

The fun runs will consist of three distances – 2.5k, 5k and 10k – and the routes will be as follows:

a) Fun run – 2.5k (start time: 8.45am)

Starting line: St Julian’s car park Spinola Bay (near Ryan’s Bar), along the front, turning near the tower near Exiles and returning to start line.

b) Fun run – 5k (start time: 8.30am)

Starting line: St Julian’s car park Spinola Bay (near Ryan’s Bar), along front, turning near Joinwell and returning to start line.

c) Olympic Day Run – 10k (start time: 8.30am)

Starting line: St Julian’s car park Spinola Bay (near Ryan’s Bar), along the front, turning down to Tigné towards Crowne Plaza Holiday Inn Hotel, down towards Sliema front, keeping to the main road towards Gzira, turning round point near Paul & Rocco petrol station and returning to start line.

Organisations are encouraged to form a team and come along. As last year, the MOC and McDonald’s will be presenting prizes for the groups participating in the fun runs that bring along the largest numbers in the following categories: largest school group, largest local council group, largest running club group, largest sport entity/organisation group and largest company group.

To be eligible for these prizes, a group application form must be completed and handed in before the run. A team representative should be nominated to receive the token prize on the day and clearly named on the application form.

This event is also supported by the following Associations: Malta Amateur Athletics Association, who are assisting the MOC in organising the event; the Malta Canoe Federation, who will be encouraging their members to make their way along the seashore with their canoes; the Malta Cycling Federation will also be encouraging their cyclists to do the 10K route ahead of the runners, with the Malta Triathlon Association organising an aquathlon which will consist of a 1.5k run, a 400m swim and a 1.5k run.

More information about the Olympic Day Run is available from the Maltese Olympic Committee on Tel. 2133 2801 or by email to [email protected].

Those who are interested in joining the cyclists can contact the Malta Cycling Federation on 7947-1935 or by email to john.zammit @onvol.net and those interested in participating in the aquathlon should contact the Malta Triathlon Association by email on info@

maltatriathlon.org

MIA Olympic Special – What’s On

Thursday, 14 June on TVM at 5pm, Friday, 15 June on E22 at 9pm (RPT), Sunday, 16 June on E22 at 10am (RPT) and Monday, 17 June on E22 at 2.30pm (RPT) will feature the following:

GSSE Section – Monaco 2007

The Games of the Small States of Europe were held in Monaco between Monday, 4 and Saturday, 9 June. The idea of organising these Games was first expounded by senior officials of the Maltese Olympic Committee during the European National Olympic Committees’ (AENOC) general assembly in Athens in 1981 and again mentioned during the International Olympic Congress held in Baden-Baden, Germany the same year.

Andorra, Cyprus, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, San Marino and Malta took part in this year’s edition. The Sports disciplines were athletics, basketball (men), bowls, gymnastics, judo, sailing, swimming, tennis, table-tennis, target shooting and volleyball. This week’s programme will feature what happened in all the events, with interviews with a number of medal winners.

The schedule is available every week on www.nocmalta.org and in The Malta Independent every Tuesday.

Produced in collaboration with E22.

IOC and Samsung extend partnership to 2016

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd recently announced the extension of their agreement through to the Summer Olympic Games in 2016.

The partnership between the IOC and Samsung, which began in 1997, was extended for a further eight years during a signing ceremony with IOC president Jacques Rogge and Samsung chairman Kun-hee Lee in Beijing.

Samsung will continue to be the official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Wireless Communication Equipment product category, and will have global marketing rights for the Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010 and London 2012 Olympic Games, and for the Games in 2014 and 2016, as well as the 203 individual national Olympic committees and their Olympic teams.

IOC President Jacques Rogge welcomed Samsung’s continued commitment to the Olympic Movement. “The IOC is absolutely delighted to announce the extension of its partnership with Samsung. Their global reach, expertise and cutting-edge wireless communications systems have proved essential over the last decade in the efficient staging of the Olympic Games,” he said. “Samsung’s long-term dedication to the Olympic Movement helps ensure the future of the Games, as well as promoting the Olympic values.”

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd chairman and chief executive officer John Yong Yun said: “Samsung is honoured to continue to support the Olympic Games for another eight years. We strongly believe that the sponsorship will not only enhance our brand image but also help promote our corporate values that celebrate peace, encourage friendly competition and promote unity among people of all cultures.”

IOC Marketing Commission chairman Gerhard Heiberg commented: “Our partnership with Samsung through to the 2016 Summer Games demonstrates the strength of the Olympic marketing programme. The knowledge and expertise our TOP partners offer an organising committee are invaluable, and the Olympic Movement as a whole benefits from their long-term support. Quite simply, staging the Olympic Games would not be possible without our partners across the globe.