Before the Sunshine: Organising and Promoting the Olympic Games in Stockholm 1912

In 1910, two years before the Olympics in Stockholm, The General Secretary of the Swedish Games Mr Kristian Hellström assured that the competitors should expect the most exciting time of their lives. As long as they lived, they would remember the sport event. To make the competitors feeling welcomed, it required a successful organisation. The present article examines the promotional work behind the Stockholm Olympics. The event was the first Olympic Games with a professional advertising campaign and an official poster. Initially, the intention was to establish a solid organisation consisting of a specific Advertising and Reception Section. The General Secretariat was in charge of advertising, for instance contacts with the media in Sweden and worldwide. They also organised a specific ‘Advertising and Information Committee’ that worked with advertisement. Finally, the promotional work did not only focus on the sport event. The tourism of Sweden was also the object of marketing. This article argues that promotional work on different levels made it possible to modernise and internationalise the event. By analysing Hellström's work as General Secretary, it is possible to understand the intensity of promotional activity, which resulted in an innovative campaign.