Indiantelevision.com Team

(18 July 2008 8:00 pm)

MUMBAI: With less than one month left for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games to begin, Coca-Cola is set to unveil three new advertising spots, the first of which will begin airing this week.

All the ads are a part of the global ‘Coke Side of Life’ campaign, which aims to reflect life’s uplifting and positive moments. The commercials are supplemented by two Coca-Cola Olympic-themed vignettes that began running exclusively on NBC in June.

"Our fun, uplifting ads are a great complement to the action of the Games and perfect to enjoy with an ice-cold Coke in hand. These new ads bring people together by conveying the universal ideals of optimism, unity and inspiration that Coca-Cola and the Olympic Games have shared and promoted for more than 80 years,” said Coca-Cola North America chief marketing officer Katie Bayne.

The first ad, entitled "Yao and LeBron - Unity”, features Olympians Yao Ming and LeBron James engaging in a friendly, animated "face-off,” backed by two troupes of choreographed icons representing their respective cultures. It has been created by Wieden & Kennedy of Amsterdam.

The second ad, aiming to celebrate the 80-year partnership between Coca-Cola and the Olympic Games, features historical footage of Olympic athletes receiving their medals. The ad is backed by the voiceover, "If you’ve had a Coke in the last 80 years, you’ve had a hand in making every Olympic dream come true." The athletes in the ad, entitled “Ceremony”, include U.S. track and field Olympian Carl Lewis, Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci, French alpine skier Jean-Claude Killy and U.S. sprinter Wyomia Tyus.

"Ceremony" is developed by Leo Burnett of Chicago and will be aired in July.

The final spot, "Bird’s Nest", features animated birds in the colors of the Olympic rings flying across the world to collect drinking straws from various bottles and glasses of Coke. The five birds construct a miniature replica of the Beijing Olympic Stadium from the straws and then watch the opening ceremony from their new home.

The spot, also created by Wieden & Kennedy, will debut during the opening ceremony for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.