London 2012 has been called the first Social Media Games or Socialympics with the use of Facebook, Twitter and other social networks. London 2012 allows athletes to chat directly with their fans for the first time with the restriction that athletes can not use social media to promote personal sponsors. Athletes have enthusiastically shared photos and status updates with their social media followers. Social media has drawn fans around the world closer to London 2012.
Social media has given Olympic fans around the world an insider’s view of the Games as never before. Fans have access to news from different sources such as athletes, London 2012 organizer, as well as major media players through social networks. They have not only shared their comments to show support but also interacted with their favorite athletes on a more personal basis. As London 2012 is coming an end, more and more data and statistics has been released to show the active role of social media in London Olympic 2012.
Twitter has been heavily used to spread the latest news and comments among Olympic fans. According to Mass Relevance, an average of 2000 tweets per minute was sent since the opening of London Olympic 2012. 13,366 tweets were sent on August 6 at 5:16PM EST.
US swimmer Michael Phelps added one million Twitter followers during the first 10 days. Jamaica ‘s gold medalist Usain Bolt added more than 720K followers on Twitter to reach 1.36 million. 16-year-old U.S. gymnast Gabrielle Douglas has more than 610K Twitter followers now. I am the new follower of Gabrielle. Which athlete do you follow on social media? The infographic below gives you an idea of Olympic fans’ favorites for the first 10 days of London 2012.
