Fratello’s Top 5 Omega Olympic Games Special Editions

Another Friday, another list! This week, we decided to skip our best-of-2024 lists and focus on watches commemorating the Olympic Games. With the Paris Olympics in full swing, it’s a good moment to look at some of Omega’s best Olympic releases. But while Omega has been the Official Timekeeper of the Olympic Games since 1932, we selected five celebratory watches from 2000 onward to make life a little easier.

Compiling a list like this gives you a good impression of just how many special editions Omega has created to celebrate the Olympics. It also becomes clear that quite a few are playful celebrations of the Olympic colors integrated into familiar Omega designs. The biggest challenge when creating watches like these is finding a proper balance between celebrating the occasion and maintaining a seriousness that Omega fans recognize from the regular models. Over the last 24 years, we have seen many different Olympic special editions. Some were very gimmicky, and some were beautiful, classy celebrations of the Olympic spirit. It should be no surprise, then, that we prefer watches of the latter variety. So, without any further ado, let’s find out what five watches we picked for this list.

Omega Seamaster Professional Diver 300M Paris 2024 Edition

Let’s start with a watch celebrating the current Olympic Games in Paris. When Omega unveiled the Seamaster Diver 300M Paris 2024 Edition last summer, the watch immediately stood out. The combination of stainless steel and Moonshine Gold with a white dial was and is truly special. But there is a huge difference between seeing the watch in images and real life.

While we all loved the combination of materials, it wasn’t until Robert-Jan returned from the European Masters in Crans Montana that he mentioned how special the watch is in the metal. Not long after, it landed in our office for a review, and it was clear that Omega hit it out of the park with this one.

The watch is a regular Seamaster Professional Diver 300M in almost all its specs, but the execution is far from normal. The watch has a 42mm stainless steel case that is 13.7mm thick and 49mm from lug to lug with a 300m depth rating. The stainless steel bezel has a Moonshine Gold insert that matches the gold hands and contrasts brilliantly against the white ceramic dial. While the color combination is visually striking, the watch’s many details give it more depth. From the laser-engraved wave pattern on the dial to the textured finish and relief-engraved numerals on the bezel, this watch is a joy to witness up close.

A watch full of great details

But that is not where it ends. The seconds hand features the Paris 2024 emblem in the form of the Olympic flame, and the numerals on the date disc are printed in the typeface developed for the Paris Olympics. This font is also present on the case back, where you will find the “Paris 2024” text between the Moonshine Gold flame emblem and the five Olympic rings.

Hidden behind the case back is Omega’s in-house-developed automatic caliber 8800. The Master Chronometer movement guarantees an average accuracy of 0/+5 seconds per day and protection against magnetic fields of up to 15,000 gauss.

The watch looks amazing on the stainless steel bracelet, but, as Robert-Jan also mentioned, it looks brilliant on a matching NATO strap. We feel this model might be one of the best current Seamasters out there, and it can be yours for €9,900.

Omega Speedmaster Professional “Rising Sun” Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Our next pick is the Omega Speedmaster Professional “Rising Sun,” part of the brilliant series of Speedmasters released for the most recent Tokyo Olympic Games. Omega announced the series in 2018, two years before the games were supposed to take place. As we all know, though, the worldwide pandemic caused them to be postponed until 2021.

But that doesn’t take away from the brilliance of the Speedmaster series released for the Japanese market. Omega created 55 box sets containing all five models. Additionally, the brand created 2,020 pieces of each version and released them in waves leading up to the Olympic Games.

Three of the five models were fully stainless steel, and two included gold details. The one that stood out immediately was the stainless steel version with a grayish-silver dial and burgundy bezel. Mike and Robert-Jan dubbed this the “Rising Sun” because of its color similarities to the Japanese flag.

It’s a combination of colors that works very well. Completing the look are the silver hands, the red tip of the chronograph seconds hand, and the red “Speedmaster” printing. These last two elements contrast the silver background well and match the bezel perfectly.

Finding one of these Toyko special editions is possible

Inside the 42mm case, you will find the manual-winding Omega caliber 1861 that most Speedmaster fans know well. The predecessor of the current caliber 3861 operates at 21,600vph and offers 48 hours of power reserve. It’s the usual engine for a Speedmaster, though this watch is far from a regular Speedy.

While Speedmasters from the past inspired these special editions, the box set was a nice way to celebrate the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Getting your hands on one of the five models is possible, and some go for reasonable prices. If you are looking to add the Rising Sun to your collection, though, expect to see prices on the higher end, likely in the €7.5K–10K range.

Image: Belmont Watches

Omega Seamaster 1948 Co-Axial “London 2012” Limited Edition

The next watch links the 1948 and 2012 Olympic Games, which both took place in London. Omega released the Seamaster in 1948, so it only made sense that the brand celebrated the 2012 Olympics with a modern reissue of the first Seamaster. Fittingly, the brand created 1,948 pieces of this limited edition that celebrated the look of the first Seamster in style.

Image: Belmont Watches

The Olympic connection is evident on the case back, which has a special 2012 Olympic Games medallion stamped in 18K yellow gold. We love the super clean overall look of this special watch, which is a great testament to the first Seamasters.

Image: Belmont Watches

The watch features a 39mm stainless steel case that is 11.2mm thick with a 120m water resistance rating. Within that case sits a silver dial with a sub-seconds register at 6 o’clock. On the upper half, you will find the “Co-Axial Chronometer” text referring to the modern movement that powers the watch. And hidden behind the commemorative case back, you will find the ETA 2895-based Omega caliber 2202. This automatic chronometer movement operates at 25,200vph and offers 48 hours of power reserve.

Image: Belmont Watches

This truly is a wonderful celebration of the classic Seamaster that we love. It also connects the first Olympic Games after WWII with the modern Olympics held in London. This led to a stylish special edition that you can typically find for roughly €4.5K–6K.

Omega Seamaster Olympic Official Timekeeper

An often-overlooked series of Olympic special editions is the Omega Seamaster Olympic Games Collection from 2018. The colors of the Olympic rings inspired the watches’ colorways. In addition, the design was based on the Omega stopwatches used during the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal and Innsbruck. The result is a series of watches that look completely different from any Seamaster.

However, we love that the design is linked directly to the main timekeeping tool used during the Olympics. This sporty series of watches is defined by black-and-white dials, each featuring a hint of color matching the leather straps.

If we zoom in on the dial, you will see that the black center section features hour numerals in the style of the stopwatch from the ’70s. The white outer portion almost makes it seem like the hour and minute markers radiate from the center. At 6 o’clock, you will find a contrasting date window and, under it, the Olympic rings in the same color as the Seamaster name, seconds hand, and ring on the periphery of the dial.

The black-and-white syringe-style hands complement the watches’ style perfectly. While they differ from the hands of the Olympic stopwatch, these Seamasters still brilliantly mimic the look of that timekeeping tool.

An affordable Olympic special edition

Visible through the sapphire window of the case back is the Omega caliber 8800. This automatic Master Chronometer movement is widely used for different Seamaster models. It operates at 25,200vph and offers 55 hours of power reserve. As you can see, the movement is encircled by a ring in the same color as the top of the strap. This ring lists all the Olympic Games for which Omega was the Official Timekeeper.

Overall, this group of sporty watches looks great and offers incredible value for money. The watches in this series start at roughly €3.5K and move up to around €6K for a new-in-box one. With unexpected bargains at the lower end of the spectrum, these Seamasters could be great and stylish daily wearers.

Omega Specialities Paris 2024 Bronze Gold Edition

The last watch on this list is the Omega Specialities Paris 2024 Bronze Gold Edition. Omega released it less than two weeks ago, just before the start of the Olympic Games in Paris. As Lex explained in the introduction, this watch takes inspiration from a 1939 Omega wristwatch powered by the 30T2 manual-winding small-seconds caliber in the CK 859 case. The letters and numbers referred to the case shape and material. On the case back of the new version, you will find “BG 859” engraved. This refers to Omega’s use of the same historical shape and its execution in Bronze Gold.

The 39mm Bronze Gold case houses a sterling silver dial with a stamped Clous de Paris pattern. The pattern is combined with circular brushing on the minute track and the outer ring of the sub-seconds register. The center of this sub-dial also features a Clous de Paris pattern that results in a super classy dial. The dark gray vintage-style Omega logo and indexes give the dial its character along with the 18K Sedna Gold hands. These hands received a PVD Bronze Gold coating to match the case as well.

A hand-wound Master Chronometer caliber inside

Hidden behind the closed case back, which features the Paris 2024 logo and the Olympic rings, is the manual-winding Omega caliber 8926. The Co-Axial Master Chronometer movement operates at 25,200vph and offers 72 hours of power reserve. Omega even finished the movement beautifully despite it being hidden behind the case back. Overall, this watch is a glorious way to celebrate this year’s Olympic Games and the style of the historical CK 859.

Omega released a stainless steel version of the modern CK 859 two years ago. Back then, Nacho described it lovingly as a brilliantly boring watch. This new Olympic version in Bronze Gold (€13,300) is far from boring, though. As a result, it earned a spot on the list of our favorite modern Omega Olympic special editions. Alongside the Seamaster Diver 300M featured at the start of this article, the Specialities Paris 2024 Bronze Gold is proof that Omega created great special editions for this year’s Olympics.

Final thoughts on the best modern Omega Olympic special editions

As I said in the intro, these are just five of many Olympic special editions out there. But what made choosing them easier was that these five watches are far from gimmicky in their appearance. That’s always a lurking danger with commemorative watches like these. Then again, some people enjoy the more “gimmicky” editions, which is why there’s an Olympic watch for everyone. We love these five, but we’d also love to hear your favorites. Let us know in the comments section, and we’ll see you next week for another list!

For more information, visit the dedicated Omega Paris Olympics 2024 page.