Being NFTs, the digital Olympic Pins will have various properties generally associated with physical pins, including authenticity, scarcity, and provenance.
Animoca Brands’ subsidiary nWay and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will launch a new Olympic-themed digital entertainment experience consisting of non-fungible token (NFT) Olympic pins and crossplay multiplayer video games developed by nWay as part of a new licensing agreement with the IOC.
The NFT Olympic Pins are digital versions of collectible and tradeable Olympic Pins, which will first be distributed and sold on nWayPlay.com starting on June 17, 2021.
Being NFTs, the digital Olympic Pins will have various properties generally associated with physical pins, including authenticity, scarcity, and provenance, making them a collectors’ items.
Graphic legacy of the world’s largest sporting event
The NFT Olympic Pins will launch with an inaugural set that forms part of the Olympic Heritage Collection, which celebrates the art and design of the past Olympic Games and reflects the graphic legacy of the world’s largest sporting event, such as posters, emblems, pictograms, and mascots from 125 years of modern Olympic Games.
Collectors can obtain unique and officially licensed NFT Olympic Pins in three ways: 1) by purchasing assorted packs on nWayPlay.com; 2) by purchasing specific pins directly from other collectors on the nWayPlay Marketplace; and 3) by earning them free of charge by playing a real-time Olympic-themed competitive video game connected to nWayPlay and to be launched in the lead up to the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.
nWay CEO Taehoon Kim said: “We are honoured to collaborate with the IOC to bring the NFT Olympic Pins Collection to the nWayPlay Marketplace for the first time.
“We used our experience as game developers to incorporate high-quality 3D models with animation and visual effects to create truly premium NFTs.”
IOC’s strategy to embrace digital technologies
IOC Television and Marketing Services Managing Director Timo Lumme said: “Olympic pins started as a way to identify athletes, judges and officials, but over the past 125 years it has become an Olympic Games tradition, where everyone from athletes to event staff, journalists and spectators all take part to collect and trade pins in the Olympic Village and beyond.
“Today’s announcement is a natural evolution of this tradition, in line with Olympic Agenda 2020+5 and the IOC’s digital strategy to embrace new digital technologies to promote the Olympic values and grow direct relations with our fans.
“They can now connect with the excitement of the Games in a whole new way and own a piece of Olympic history.”
