London 2012 Olympic Games: Lauren Mitchell Becomes First Australian Gymnast Ambassador for Visa
Olympic Games’ sponsor, Visa, has chosen Australia’s Lauren Mitchell as the face of its London 2012 Olympic Games Campaign.
Visa made this announcement on November 17. The campaign’s other ambassadors are: the Olympic sports’ greatest, Michael Phelps (swimming) and Valerie Adams (shot put).
The opportunity is predicted to give Mitchell greater coverage, making her a household name in Australia and deservedly so.
Mitchell is the first Australian woman gymnast to have brought home the World gold, when she competed in the 2011 World Gymnastics Championships, held in Rotterdam.
She is also the second Australian gymnast to have World medals to her claim, having attained two silver medals (balance beam and floor) at the 2009 World Gymnastics Championships, held in London.
She shared another first with Australia when she obtained her first World Cup Gold in Madrid 2008, for her impeccable form on the balance beam.
The 2010 Stuttgart World Cup was also a positive milestone in her gymnastics career, where she secured gold medals for balance beam, floor exercise and uneven bars.
And now, Mitchell has brought yet another first for her country by becoming the first Australian to be the face of Visa’s Olympic Games’ marketing campaign.
“The Olympic Games begin and end with the athletes and we’re excited to have Lauren join Visa as our first Australian Olympic ambassador,” Vipin Kalra, Visa’s Country Manager in Australia, said. She further praised Mitchell, calling her a “true inspiration
to thousands”.
The campaign, especially designed for the Olympic Games season, will go on air later this month, the proposed date being November 24. The television campaign has been named “Go World”.
It will feature Mitchell performing her signature routines. As soon as the campaign goes on air, cardholders will be entered to a weekly lucky draw. Winners of the draw will get a trip for two to the London Olympic Games.
The two-phased campaign will give local gymnastics fans and enthusiasts a chance to track Mitchell’s journey to the Olympic Games through the social media platform in its latter part.
“Winning an Olympic gold medal has been a dream of mine since I was a child and it’s great to know I have got Visa and the rest of Australia behind me as I head to London,” Mitchell said.
She also expressed her excitement and gratitude at receiving the opportunity to be joining world-class athletes who were a part of Team Visa.
The Australian team has also secured their place in the upcoming Olympic Games through their performance at the Worlds, held in Tokyo this October.
Visa has held a long association with Olympic Games and has been sponsoring the event for 25 years now.
Visa’s criteria for selecting athletes to associate with encompasses the athlete’s personal journey to the Olympic Games, dedication to their sport, community involvement and of course, athletic achievements, all of which were met by Mitchell, making her
ambassador material.
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