A TIMELESS PODIUM
Official timekeepers for the Olympic Games since 1932, the brand from Bern has restated its love of sport with a trio of watches inspired by the victory podium made of white, red and yellow gold, symbolising the passion of history’s medal-winners.
It’s true that the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang in South Korea have been over for more than a month. But while the sports event is finished, the victory symbolised by an Olympic medal is eternal. Celebrating history and time, Omega, the official timekeepers for the Olympic Games since 1932, has designed a trio of watches in a fairly traditional style. The Seamaster Olympic Games Gold Collection borrows the colours of the metals used to make the gold, silver and bronze medals. But they have been replaced by three tones of gold – yellow, SednaTM (red gold made exclusively from an alloy for Omega) and CanopusTM (white gold also developed specifically for the brand from Bienne).
This watchmaking podium features a 39.5mm-wide case, a standard size that is both ideal and timeless. It houses the calibre Master Chronometer 8807, a small-sized automatic movement with a co-axial escapement and the METAS certification, and providing 55 hours of autonomy. The mechanism driving the hour, minute and second functions can be seen at work through a screwed caseback equipped with a sapphire crystal window and a ring featuring the names of the cities and dates of the Olympic Games where Omega has been and will be present from 1932 to 2028.
The off-white enamel dial on the Seamaster Olympic Games Gold Collection contains faceted triangular hour markers and leaf-shaped hands, all made of gold. The discreet minute track between the hour markers and the Seamaster name are made of black enamel. And at 12 o’clock is the vintage Omega logo, painted red.
Price: 17,200 CHF (red gold or yellow gold) – 18,800 CHF (white gold) omegawatches.com
By Sharmila Bertin
As for the movement, performance is present and correct with an automatic calibre and a generous power reserve of five days driven by three barrels fitted as standard. The rotor in the calibre 1315 is unveiled through the sapphire back of the robust 45cm-wide titanium case.
The curves of the white-gold case, measuring 38.5×38.8mm, are highlighted by a bezel set with 40 baguette diamonds with a total of 3.05 carats. While the angular shape of the gem has often been reserved for men’s wrists, the dimensions of the L.U.C Heritage Grand Cru mean it can be worn by both men and women. The sapphire caseback on this bejewelled display reveals an automatic movement, the calibre L.U.C 97.01-L, running at 28,800 vibrations an hour and equipped with the Twin (double barrel) technology, providing a power reserve of 65 hours.
Slimmer and smaller than its predecessors, this watch is inspired by the reference 7924, also known as the “Big Crown”, the first diver’s watch that was watertight down to 200m. Launched by Tudor in 1958, it was produced in small numbers, so that today it is highly sought after by collectors (prices range from $40,000 to $60,000). From this famous diver’s watch, the Black Bay Fifty-Eight has taken a few aesthetic features – the geometric shapes of the indices on the black curved dial, the red triangular and luminescent mark on the revolving steel bezel, with an aluminium ring made of anodised matt aluminium, and the gilded touches here and there, especially on the minute scale around the edge of the dial. The “snowflake” hour, minute and second hands are a variation on the square-shaped hands that were first introduced in 1969.
The hours, minutes, day of the week and the date can be seen at 11.30, 1.30, 7.30 and 4.30, respectively, and are displayed with the help of a quartet of discs (two constant and two jumping discs). The watches’ features are powered by the automatic calibre 2460 G4/1, housed in a 40mm-wide white-gold case and providing 40 hours of autonomy.
The Cronometro Tipo CP-2 Flyback watch comes in two versions with a vintage look. While the case still has its original width of 43mm, it now comes in a choice of two materials. Aged bronze or steel are combined respectively with a grained brown or slate grey dial and a brown or green nubuck strap.
Two versions of the Navitimer 8 B01 are available. The first has a sports look and combines a 43mm-wide steel case with a black or blue dial. The second is more refined and blends red gold and bronze. All the time information is easy to read with the large hands and over-sized figures in the purest tradition of the pilot’s watch. Split time is easily measured using the central second hand and two cream-coloured totalisers set at 3 and 6 o’clock. A running second and date counter round off the composition.
The Quantième Complet GMT is driven by an automatic movement with a silicon spiral, the calibre 67A5, providing 72 hours of power reserve.