Longines Olympia Stopwatch 7819 Cal. 260 Olympia Grenoble 1968 with archive extract

Offered is a very rare piece of sports and Olympic history: the official Olympic stopwatch of the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble in excellent condition. It may be a NOS, unused, stock piece in its original packaging.

The accompanying original Longines archive extract from the 2000s proves that this is indeed an original and authentic piece of equipment from the 1968 Olympic Games in Grenoble.

The stopwatch was delivered and calculated in 1967 to the Longines Timekeeping Service department. This department organized all use of stopwatches and measuring devices for Longines, as the official timekeeper at the 1968 Olympic Games in Grenoble, including systems for timing speed events.

This Olympic artifact is in absolutely perfect condition and still in its original protective film. While the film may have originated from a service, given the fact that absolutely no signs of age or wear are visible, we assume that the watch was kept at the Longines Timekeeping Service during the Olympics in Grenoble, but was only used briefly or not at all for competitions or training runs.

The watch is truly in like-new condition! This, along with an extract from the archives confirming its Olympic designation and use – it couldn't be better, more original, and more authentic!

Description:

Olympic Stopwatch Reference: 7819 Movement: Manual winding Movement caliber: Caliber 260 Year: 1967

Longines archive extract dated November 24, 2024, stating that the watch was invoiced to the Longines Timekeeping Service on June 30, 1967

Dial shape: Round Dial color: Silver Dial: outer 60-second scale, split-seconds hand, two sub-dials with live seconds and time, Arabic numerals

Case size: Approx. 66 mm, Case material: Steel

This super authentic piece of Olympic history runs continuously (accuracy not tested)

EZ: 1* Dial in very good condition. The crystal is in very good condition, the case is in very good condition, presumably NOS – an unused piece from the Olympic timing reserve or used only a few times.

History of Olympic timekeeping by the Longines Manufacture and the Longines Sport Stopwatches:

1966 Longines Chronograph. Stopwatch with 1/10 caliper, also known as the official chronograph of the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble

This Longines stopwatch was and remains a truly exceptional, high-quality instrument. It was sent to the Swiss Observatory in Neuchâtel for timekeeping and stored there by the factory.

It has been used at all major events, from the Olympic Games to timing Donald Campbell's land and sea speed record attempts with the Bluebird.

Caliber 24 was developed in 1939, converted to caliber 260 in 1957, and then to caliber 262 in 1966, featuring hour, minute, second, and 1/10-second split-second chronographs with a 30-minute counter.

Longines was one of the leading manufacturers worldwide and I say manufacturer because while even Patek, Vacheron and AP used purchased movements, Longines was actually one of the few companies that manufactured its own chronograph movements.

Longines was founded in 1832; its winged hourglass logo is the oldest registered watchmaker's trademark.

Longines supplied the timepieces for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.

In 1899, a Longines watch traveled with the Arctic explorer Luigi Amedeo of Savoy to the North Pole.

After his transatlantic flight, Charles Lindbergh designed a pilot's watch to aid in air navigation. The Longines Hour Angle Watch, manufactured according to his specifications, was introduced in 1931 and is still in production today.

The company began producing military watches for World War II, primarily for European armed forces.

Today Longines is part of the Swatch Group