Unveiled: official Olympics graphics for Rio 2016

With any new Olympic or Paralympic Games, all creative eyes are going to be on the all-important design aspects. Logos aside, pictograms are probably one of the most essential designs for the games - adorned across leaflets, architecture, flyers, tickets, and more.

Here, we get our first glimpse at the pictograms for Rio 2016 - depicting each of the 41 Olympic and 23 Paralympic sports that are set to be part of the programme. Taking 16 months to complete, the project started with designers researching each sport before creating the first strokes by hand.

The strokes were then reconstructed on a computer, fitting the contours of the letters, with the pebble shaped icons designed to symbolise the athletes' different movements. President of Rio 2016 Carlos Nuzman concluded: "For the first time, all Olympic and Paralympic sports are individually represented."

[via Inside the Games]

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What do you think of the pictograms? Let us know in the comments box below!