Athletes Confused by Olympic Social Media Rules

American skier Lindsey Vonn, one of the potential stars of the 2010 Winter Olympics, told her nearly 35,000 Twitter followers that she would not be posting to the social network until after the Games were over, perhaps based on a faulty understanding of the International Olympic Committees rules on blogging and social networking.

Vonn wrote that because of the Olympic rules (blackout period) I will not be able to post any updates from now until march 3rd. Sorry, it bums me out too! In the update, which was also posted to Vonns Facebook account, she encouraged fans to keep sending her messages.

But there is no Olympic rule that sets up a blackout period for athletes according to Bob Condron, the Director of Media Services for the United States Olympic Committee.

Athletes are free to blog during the Games, says Condron. And Twitter is just a blog thats written 140 characters at a time.

There are some restrictions on what athletes can do online during the Olympics. According to the IOC Blogging Guidelines for the 2010 Games, athletes and other accredited people must keep their posts confined to their personal experiences. You cant act as a journalist if you arent, says Condron. You need to do things in a first person way.

Rule 49 of the Olympic Charter says that Only those persons accredited as media may act as journalists, reporters or in any other media capacity.