Published: 07.02.08 

The University of Brighton's Chelsea School is planning to use its national reputation to attract top speakers to the county in the run up to the London Olympics. This will give sports fans across Sussex the opportunity to hear from the personalities that shape UK sport and to put questions to them. However, the organisers have hit an unexpected snag.

The university wanted to name these public talks, 'The Olympic Lecture Series' but they have now discovered that they can't because the government has made it illegal to use any words linked to the games. The new law was passed last year to protect the interests of big companies who are paying huge sums for sponsorship deals.

From now on any business or organisation that makes unauthorised use of terms like 'London 2012', 'Olympic', or even '2012' is likely to end up in court. So if you own a cafe and were thinking of advertising an 'Olympic Breakfast', you'd better think again.

To resolve their dilemma the university's Chelsea School is launching a competition to find a new name for their events. They are looking for a title that both captures the spirit of the Olympics and also does justice to the sharp sporting minds that will be invited to speak.

Suggestions already made are 'The 'O' word', 'The Beijing to London Lectures' and 'Speaking for Gold' - can you do better? If you think you can the university's Chelsea School would like to hear from you. There is a £50 book voucher for the winning entry, kindly provided by Blackwell's bookshops. The voucher can be used in one of Blackwell's shops or online at www.blackwell.co.uk.

Email your suggestions to chelsea@brighton.ac.uk with 'Chelsea Competition 2008' in the subject line by 29 February 2008.

You may like to find out more about the brand guidelines.
 
You can also email the Chelsea School if you'd like to be kept informed about the sports lectures. Find out more at www.brighton.ac.uk/chelsea.