Gold Medal Intellectual Property: Copyrights and Trademarks at the Olympics

With around 3 billion people tuning in to each Olympic Games, and Paralympic Games viewership on the rise, the Olympics are some of the most widely watched televised events in the world. [1] Athletes are not the only focus of such a large spotlight – brands, fashion designers, companies, and even the Olympics itself promote their branding, logos and symbols, and products. Copyright and trademark protection plays a big – and often, unknown – role in what a viewer sees on TV.

Copyrights typically protect original artistic or literary works, while trademarks protect brand names and logos used on goods and services. [2] Copyrightable works can include anything from video recordings and music to writings and sculptures. [3] For example, director Nick Cammilleri holds a 2024 copyright on an Olympics commercial, while others hold copyrights on Olympics spectator guides, sound bites and songs used by teams and in promotional materials, and books about the Olympics. [4] Most companies featured at the Olympics have likely pursued copyright or trademark protection in some form, for example, on a logo appearing on an athlete’s uniform, in an advertisement, or for a symbol used to represent an aspect of the Games.

Nike® is perhaps one of the most prolific trademark applicants of the brands that viewers see at the Olympics. Nike has filed for 975 total trademarks, 293 of which are currently active. Nike’s trademarks cover its many logos and iconography, such as the branding seen on Team USA’s track and field uniforms. Team USA’s track and field uniforms for the 2024 Paris Olympics featured an optical illusion print of alternating blue and red stripes, giving the uniforms a 3D appearance. The Nike swoosh was featured prominently on each article.

Another popular Olympics designer is TYR Sport, a brand that often vies with Speedo to outfit the best swimmers in the world at the highest levels of competition. TYR designed Team USA’s swimming kits for the 2024 Olympics [5], although individual swimmers can choose to wear different brands for each article of the uniform. Some swimmers choose to wear Speedo, perhaps in part based on the statistics: 61% of the gold medals won at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics were won by swimmers wearing the Speedo Fastskin suit. [6] Irrespective of the designer, each article of a typical swimming uniform, including the swimsuit, cap, and googles, typically features the logo of the designer in a prominent position. TYR has filed for 131 trademarks, holding 45 active registrations. Speedo holds 56 trademark registrations, but has filed for a total of 246.

Gear and equipment are also areas where an Olympic viewer may see a registered trademark. One of the newest Olympic events that caused a stir at the 2024 Paris Olympics was kayak cross – an exciting event where athletes are launched from an elevated ramp and must complete an obstacle course while physically battling with their opponents. [7] Kayak cross, as well as canoeing and other kayak sports, features quite a lot of gear and equipment – kayaks, paddles, helmets, uniforms, goggles and glasses, obstacles such as slalom poles, and more. Many brand logos, denoting designers and even advertisers, such as sponsors, are seen on each of these pieces of gear and equipment. It is likely that many of such logos are protected by trademark registrations.

The Olympics brand boasts a large number of protected logos, designs, and symbols. The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) holds 172 registered trademarks, including wordmarks such as “LA28,” “MAKING TEAM USA,” “ROW TO PARIS 2024,” and designs related to Olympic and Paralympic sports. [8] Outside of the U.S., the International Olympic Committee (IOC) owns a vast set of “Olympic Properties” protected by international intellectual property rights such as registered designs, copyright, trademarks and other rights. [9] The “Olympic Properties” can include symbols such as the rings, flags, mottos, anthems, mascots, posters, pictograms, identifications, such as “Olympic” and “Olympic Games,” and other musical, audio-visual, or creative works created in connection with the Olympics. [10] Perhaps one of the most iconic Olympic symbols is the torch, a great many variations of which have appeared at Olympic Games for almost a century. [11]

The IOC offers a guide to using Olympic Properties and is known to fiercely regulate the Properties’ usage. [12] Despite this regulation, the IOC does strike deals with brands, designers, and other companies to allow usage of the Olympic Properties for the creation of products and merchandise for the public to represent and support the Olympics. The 2024 Paris Olympics marked the third time that Team USA teamed up with apparel company SKIMS to produce a capsule collection featuring Olympics and Paralympics wear. [13] Fans of the Olympics and Paralympics can shop a lineup of underwear, sleepwear, loungewear, and swimwear, including menswear and adaptive styles, featuring signature Team USA branding, the Olympic rings, and the Paralympic Agitos logo. [14] Important and unexpected innovative collaborations, such as the one between Team USA and SKIMS, generate excitement around the Games and allow the public to participate in representing the Olympic Properties and supporting Team USA.

Copyright and trademark protection allows brands, fashion designers, companies, and the IOC to protect creativity and innovation in fashion, gear, and products seen at the Olympics. Without copyright and trademark protection, an Olympics viewer may not see such unique designs or creative concepts and fashion and gear may not be as unique and valuable.

[1] 2024 Summer Olympics could be the most watched televised event in eight years, EMARKETER (July 12, 2024) https://www.emarketer.com/content/2024-summer-olympics-could-be-most-watched-tv-event

[2] Trademark process USPTO https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/trademark-process#step1

[3] Copyright basics USPTO https://www.uspto.gov/ip-policy/copyright-policy/copyright-basics#:~:text=Copyrightable%20works%20include%20literary%2C%20dramatic,%2C%20sound%20recordings%2C%20and%20software

[4] United States Copyright Office https://cocatalog.loc.gov/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?ti=1,0&SAB1=2024&BOOL1=all%20of%20these&FLD1=Keyword%20Anywhere%20%28GKEY%29&GRP1=AND%20with%20next%20set&SAB2=Olympics&BOOL2=as%20a%20phrase&FLD2=Keyword%20Anywhere%20%28GKEY%29&CNT=25&PID=j-Ozj-FBp3PCRmKAJ44VUQir&SEQ=20240819162849&SID=14

[5] USA Swimming and TYR Unveil National Team Kit for the 2024 Olympics USA Swimming (April 10, 2024) https://www.usaswimming.org/news/2024/04/10/usa-swimming-and-tyr-unveil-national-team-kit-for-the-2024-olympics

[6] Speedo unveils new Team USA swimming suit ahead of Paris Olympics The Athletic (June 27, 2024) https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5594789/2024/06/27/team-usa-olympics-swimming-suit-speedo/

[7] Kayak cross set to make big splash on Olympic debut in Paris International Canoe Federation (July 23, 2024) https://www.canoeicf.com/news/kayak-cross-set-make-big-splash-olympic-debut-paris

[8] Trademark Search USPTO https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/search/search-results

[9] Olympic Properties Internation Olympic Committee https://olympics.com/ioc/olympic-properties

[10] Id.

[11] 1936-1992: History Of Olympic Torch Relays The Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/olympics/longterm/torches/history.htm

[12] Olympic Properties International Olympic Committee https://olympics.com/ioc/olympic-properties

[13] SKIMS Reunites With Team USA for Paris 2024 Olympics and Paralympics Capsule Hyperbeast (June 24, 2024)

[14] Id.