IBM hands over Olympic torch to Sema

Sema Group has won the race to take over from IBM as the principal technology sponsor of the Olympic Games.

The Anglo-French systems integrator is thought to be paying $220m for the privilege of having its name associated with the largest single-city sporting event in the world. An eight-year deal has been signed, beginning after the Sydney 2000 Games in 2001 and running until 2008.

Commenting on the decision by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to choose the company, Sema Group CEO, Pierre Bonelli, called the deal a "unique opportunity to demonstrate our skills and experience in the management of long term complex projects on time and to budget at the world's most highly regarded sports event".

Big Blue has been associated with the Olympics for several decades, but the 1996 summer games in Atlanta were plagued by computer failures, leading some observers to suggest the IOC would seek a replacement sponsor.

However, Sema is not directly replacing the company. Instead, it is set to lead a three-way alliance of technology vendors, also likely to include Swatch and either Compaq or Sun Microsystems, according to press speculation.

As part of the deal, Sema will be responsible for the systems that handle transport, medical services and accommodation. The company will also build and maintain Olympic Internet and intranet sites.

The company stressed that although it has never had such high profile global exposure before, it has helped out at other major sporting events including the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Euro 96 and the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur.