Lyo and Merly

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Lyo and Merly
Mascots of the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics (Singapore)
CreatorCubix International
SignificanceA red male lion (Lyo) and a blue female Merlion (Merly)

Lyo and Merly were the official

National Day Parade
activities, were displayed at competition venues and were featured in Youth Olympics memorabilia.

Background

The first official Olympics mascot was Waldi, introduced at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany.[1] Games mascots have varied between being animals native to the area where the Games take place, humans, and imaginary creatures. They often reflect the culture and history of the hosting region, and have traits chosen to embody the ideals of Olympism and the Paralympic movement. The introduction of a mascot or mascots is often highlighted in the lead-up to the Games, to help build event anticipation, with a focus placed on them in contemporary Olympics.[2] The first ever Summer Youth Olympics, Singapore's organizing committee extended the tradition of having mascots to this new event.

Development

In early 2009, seven shortlisted mascot design proposals were submitted to the Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (SYOGOC). Amongst the seven, the proposal of Cubix International, a company specialising in branding, animation and character development, was eventually selected. Cubix initially sought to develop robot mascots, intending to showcase Singapore as a "technologically advanced country". However, research on Olympic mascots prompted them to move away from the robot theme and focus on animal mascots. The company stated it wanted to develop a pair of mascots "who had contrasting yet complementary personalities".[3] Mascots and Puppets Specialists, led by creative director Frankie Malachi Yeo, was hired to transform the mascots from designs to actual three dimensional forms.[3]

Designing the mascots took about six months.[4] There were issues over the materials used to build the mascot suits. Eventually, foam was selected as the main material. The mascot suits are heavy, with Lyo's head weighing 8 kilograms (18 lb) and Merly's weighing 6 kilograms (13 lb). The heads are strapped on to a harness donned by the mascot wearer. To minimize overheating, costumes included a built-in fan, and optional cooling vests were made available.[3] Parts of the mascot production process were captured in the documentary, Beyond Gold: The Journey to the first Youth Olympic Games, which was commissioned by the Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (SYOGOC).[5]

Mascots

The mascots' designers created elaborate descriptions of Lyo and Merly, which are summarised below:

Name Lyo Merly
Colour Red Blue
Gender Male Female
Creature Lion Merlion
Astrological sign Leo[6] Aquarius[7]
Favourite foods Chilli crabs and Hainanese chicken rice[6]
Slush[7]
Personal motto "Never say never"[6] "You can achieve anything if you pour your heart into it!"[7]
Olympic values Excellence, Respect[8] Excellence, Friendship[8]
Dream "To win a gold medal in an international basketball championship"[6] "To become an environmental scientist"[7]
Hobbies Jamming the guitar, exploring and discovering new things and playing sports, especially basketball[6] Singing, swimming and returning seashells to the sea[7]
Symbolism Lion City; fire; "Blazing the Trail" (tagline of the
Singapore 2010 bid
)
Merlion; water
Merly on the side of a bus

Lyo's name is the initials (L.Y.O.) of "Lion of the

island of Singapore.[6] Merly is vegetarian due to "a deep respect for all living creatures", and her paw pad is shaped like a heart.[7]

Outreach

Lyo and Merly at the official opening of the Youth Olympic Games Superstore in front of Ngee Ann City on Orchard Road on 5 May 2010

The two mascots were officially introduced by

National Day Parade, also held in the month of August, and Lyo and Merly participated in pre-parade activities.[9]

Lyo and Merly were also widely featured in Games memorabilia sold at the official Youth Olympic Games Superstore in front of Ngee Ann City shopping centre on Orchard Road, Singapore's main shopping street, and at competition venues.[10] Male medal winners at the Games are presented with a Lyo plush toy during victory ceremonies, and female winners receive a Merly toy. Four postage stamps depicting the mascots in poses featuring the Games' Culture and Education Programme (CEP) and Olympic sports were also launched by the SYOGOC and Singapore Post. In addition, a limited-edition Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games Commemorative Pack, which depicted the journey taken by the country since it won the bid to host the Games, featured an exclusive MyStamp Sheet of the mascots in all 26 sport poses.[11] Lyo and Merly also appeared on three coins released by the Monetary Authority of Singapore to commemorate the Games.[12] A mural of the duo made by artist Charlene Tenio was showcased at a party held at the official hotel partner, Fairmont Singapore, to commemorate the 150-day countdown to the Games.[13]

References

  1. ^ "Olympic mascots Archived 9 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine", Hickok Sports, 18 February 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
  2. ^ "Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games mascots", Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, 2010. Archived from the original Archived 9 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine (and retrieved) on 23 August 2010.
  3. ^ a b c Amanda Zhang, "The creators of Lyo & Merly Archived 10 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine", SYOGOC, 23 November 2009.
  4. ^
    Channel NewsAsia. Archived
    from the original on 17 August 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2010.
  5. ^ "Watch 'Beyond Gold: The Journey to the First Youth Olympic Games' Captured Through The Eyes of Young Athletes". SYOGOC. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g "Lyo", SYOGOC, 19 November 2009. Archived from the original Archived 20 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine (and retrieved) on 23 August 2010.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Merly", SYOGOC, 19 November 2009. Archived from the original Archived 29 May 2010 at the Wayback Machine (and retrieved) on 23 August 2010.
  8. ^ a b c "Introducing Lyo & Merly – Mascots for the 1st YOG". Singapore Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (SYOGOC). 24 November 2009. Archived from the original on 29 May 2010.
  9. ^ Satish Cheney, "August a month of fanfare and festivities with YOG & NDP Archived 31 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine", Channel NewsAsia, 29 July 2010.
  10. ^ Patwant Singh, "Official Olympic Store selling YOG merchandise opens Archived 17 August 2010 at the Wayback Machine", Channel NewsAsia, 22 November 2009.
  11. ^ Lynda,Hong (26 July 2010). "Four postal stamps featuring YOG mascots launched". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 28 July 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2010.
  12. ^ Alvina Soh, "MAS launches YOG commemorative coins Archived 19 August 2010 at the Wayback Machine", Channel NewsAsia, 9 August 2010.
  13. ^ Dylan Loh, "150 days to YOG, organising committee says all on track Archived 23 March 2010 at the Wayback Machine", Channel NewsAsia, 17 March 2010.

External links

Preceded by
First event mascot
Olympic mascot
Lyo and Merly

Singapore 2010
Succeeded by