If Athens 2004 delivers the emotional benefit of the Olympic brand, how does it score in terms of functionality? Again, it is a home run (we chose “home run” because, for some reason, though baseball has been an Olympic sport since 1992, cricket is still not included). The front page is designed as a portal packed with news and information.

The left side is occupied by a comprehensive but nonetheless succinct navigation menu that covers all the major aspects of the Games from sports news, to schedules, to tickets, volunteering and weather. Its usability is high and, again, it is written in html and does not slow down the website in any way.

Unfortunately, Athens 2004 does not provide much help in terms of television schedules and webcasts, missing an opportunity to tie in with other channels of communication. Unlike the Tour de France, it is unfortunate that this and other major sports events give exclusivity (i.e., a monopoly) to the broadcast of their pictures. Although it may be good business in the short-term, it insults the intelligence of the viewers. Outside their home countries, people who wish to follow their country’s athletes will invariably face frustration. Sports lovers keen to watch great world champions will instead be subject to lengthy background stories of local Olympians, from interviews of their parents to close-ups of their hometowns, in lieu of any real footage of their performance. It can only backlash to deprive people of their right to choose when there is no compelling reason to impose such a ban. As a result, the sports industry may soon face the same passive resistance that the music industry currently faces, with similar long-term economic consequences.

Be that as it may, this website is nevertheless among the best in its class. Diving into the Sports pages, for example, the visitor will find a mine of information that would be expected, including history, rules, schedules and links. It is concise but provides all the basics to follow the Games closely. The site also includes a couple of games such as a Slider Game for kids and a Quizz for their parents.

The flip side of the site’s usability and depth of information is that it is often necessary to click several times before reaching the right page. As long as Athens 2004's server can handle the load, visitors should find their browsing experience most enjoyable.