Omega Launch Seamaster Diver 300m “Paris 2024” Special Edition for Olympics

Omega has been the official timekeeper for the Olympics since 1932, providing precise and reliable timing across every sport in the prestigious event. As part of their partnership with the Olympics they also produce special edition watches to commemorate each edition of the Olympiad. For Tokyo 2020 they launched a pair of Aqua Terras and the Aqua Terra starred again for the Beijing 2022 Winter Games. With the next instalment of the Olympics exactly one year away, Omega have unveiled the new Seamaster Diver 300m “Paris 2024” Special Edition.

Structurally, the piece is a fairly conventional bi-metallic Seamaster Diver 300m. It has a 42mm stainless steel case and a Moonshine gold bezel with laser etched diving scale in positive relief. Moonshine gold is Omega’s proprietary yellow gold alloy, known for its subtler colour and fade resistance – the material recently made an appearance on the latest MoonSwatch. While there’s often a debate about whether dive watches should be bi-metallic (gold being a soft metal means it’s ill suited for use underwater) virtually every Omega Olympics watch has used gold in some capacity in honour of the games’ highest achievement, the gold medal.

Similar to the case, the dial is pretty normal for a Seamaster too. Unless you look in a few specific places you wouldn’t necessarily realise that it’s a special edition. In fact, that subtlety in special edition and collaborative watches is something I’ve come to really appreciate in recent months, it just feels classier. The main dial is made from white ceramic with the signature wave motif of the Diver 300m and the hands and indices are large, legible and coated with lume. The Olympic specific elements are the small Paris 2024 logo on the seconds hand and the typography of the date function at 6 o’clock.

While the Olympic references are subtle on the front of the watch, they’re displayed in full force on the steel caseback. A golden medallion of the Paris 2024 logo dominates the back atop a laser ablated background. Additionally, the Olympic rings and name of the games are present in polished relief. Beneath the solid caseback is housed the Calibre Omega 8800, a co-axial, master chronometer movement with 55-hour power reserve.

To my mind, this is the first bit of news regarding the Paris 2024 Olympics that actually starts to generate some excitement. So far most of the news about the games has been fraught with warnings about civil unrest interrupting preparations and funding issues. Although the latter has recently been alleviated at least partially by the LMVH group stepping in as an official sponsor to the tune of an estimated €150 Million – the first time the group itself has been a high stakes sponsor rather than any of their individual brands.

For Omega and the Seamaster Diver 300m “Paris 2024” though, all eyes are on the gold, reminding us what the Olympics is all about and why it’s the best sporting event in existence. As a final note the watch comes on a stainless steel bracelet with the new quick change system and Omega are producing a special Paris 2024 NATO strap. In terms of price it’s £8,000 and is currently only available from Omega boutiques in Paris – if you’re planning to visit the French capital to buy one, why not also head over to the Berges de Seine near the Eiffel Tower where Omega have installed the official countdown clock too.

​Oracle Time 

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