Iran claims that the four-year-old London 2012 logo spells the word “Zion,” and has lodged a formal complaint with the International Olympic Committee (IOC). “As Internet documents have proved, using the word Zion in the logo of the 2012 Olympic Games is a disgracing action and against the Olympics’ valuable mottos,” the Iranian government wrote in a letter to the IOC, which was released via the state-backed Iranian Students News Agency. “There is no doubt that negligence of the issue from your side may affect the presence of some countries in the Games, especially Iran which abides by commitment to the values and principles.”

An IOC official confirmed that the letter had been received, but insisted that the logo “represents the figure 2012, nothing else” while a London 2012 spokesman told The Guardian that “we are surprised that this complaint has been made now.”

I’m on Iran’s side. Not only does the logo spell Zion, but if you squint while giving yourself a good slap it’s also a swastika.

2012 Zion reported elsewhere:

London 2012 Olympics: Iran objects to Games logo due to similarity to word ‘Zion’, The Telegraph

London 2012 Logo Is Racist, Spells Out ‘Zion’, Huffington Post

Iran calls logo for 2012 Olympics racist, CBS

Iran NOC oppose ‘racist’ London 2012 logo, BBC