Budweiser Launches National Bike Riding Tour In China To Welcome Upcoming Olympic Games
On July 7, Budweiser launched a nationwide bike riding tour in China to celebrate the one-year countdown to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Budweiser co-organized the event with the General Administration for Sports in China to celebrate the Olympic spirit.
At the beginning of the tour, the Deputy Mayor of Guangzhou gave riders red Budweiser flags, symbolizing hope for the success of the 2008 Olympic Games. The flags from Guangzhou, when combined with similar ones collected from 11 other cities, will form a red Olympic flag covering 2,008 square meters. The giant flag, the world's largest, will be flown at Beijing’s China Millennium Monument to celebrate the one-year countdown to the Games.
The tour takes thousands of riders on two separate routes after leaving Guangzhou. One group of riders will take a western route through Kunming, Lhasa, Chengdu and Changsha, while another group will take an eastern route, passing through Shantou, Wenzhou, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Nanjing and Tianjin. The two groups will meet in Beijing on August 6. During the journey, the Budweiser Big Rig, carrying celebrities and star athletes, will visit each city to welcome the riders with performances and parties. Budweiser also will set up beer gardens in these cities with Olympics-based themes, and invite local residents to join in the celebrations.
“As the official international beer sponsor of the 2008 Olympic Games, Budweiser is building excitement for this global event,” said Y.R. Cheng, managing director, Anheuser-Busch China. “Through the national bike tour and other local activities, we will bring millions of Chinese people together to share in the Olympic spirit."
The bike tour is only the first big event in Budweiser’s series of Olympic marketing initiatives. Leading up to the bike tour, Budweiser launched Olympic packaging. The brand’s outdoor, TV and print media advertisements are beginning to incorporate Olympic Games themes as well.