NEWSLondon 2012 Olympics Logo: Iran Deems Design Racist
Feb. 28 2011, Published 12:21 p.m. ET
Controversy has ignited surrounding the London 2010 Olympics Logo. The secretary general of Iranian Olympic Committee has deemed the design racist, claiming the figures spells out the word "Zion" and are now threatening to boycott the games.
The secretary general of Iran's National Olympic Committee, Bahram Afsharzadeh, sent a letter to International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge, claiming that the 2012 logo spells out "Zion," a term used to refer to the city of Jerusalem, the Huffington Post reports.
Afsharzadeh said the letter urges other Muslim states to oppose the "racist logo."
"The use of the word Zion by the designer of (the) Olympics logo .... in the emblem of the Olympics Games 2012 is a very revolting act," he wrote in the letter, warning that if Rogge did not act the logo would "affect the participation of several countries, especially like Iran which insists on following principles and values."
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The rift between Iran and Israel is deep-rooted. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for Israel's destruction and questioned historical accounts of the Holocaust, according to HuffPo. Iranian athletes have refused to compete against Israelis.
Zion is a term Iranian officials use to describe Israel and its government, a governing body they do not recognize.
Before now, the logo has been criticized for poor design, but never anything this controversial. The numbers "2012" are displayed in four jagged figures.
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The International Olympic Committee has responded to Iran's complaint, and they're not budging.
"Our response is as follows: The London 2012 logo represents the figure 2012, nothing else," the IOC said.
The design was launched in 2007, after a long design process.
"We are surprised that this complaint has been made now," the committee added.
What do you think of the design? Do you see the word zion?
