Athletes Are Welcome To Tweet on 2012 Olympic

Athletes competing at the 2012 Olympic Games in London are free to tweet during the competition, the Olympic Committee said.

The athletes are actively encouraged to “take part in social media and to post, blog and tweet their experiences,” the guidelines from the Olympic Committee (AOC) say, as long as it’s not for commercial purposes.

There are a couple of other stipulations, too: Tweeters must steer away from curse or vulgar words, use “first-person, diary-type formats” and shouldn’t report on events in the manner of journalists. On the other hand, “accredited media may freely utilise social media platforms for bona fide reporting purposes.”

Athletes can upload photos to social media sites but cannot sell them or distribute them in other ways. During the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, uploading photos taken at venues was prohibited.

Broadcasting audio or video taken inside the venues will stay prohibited in the 2012 London Olympics. Breaching the guidelines could mean getting banned from the competition.

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