Friday, May 8, 2009

Sony Ericsson takes tennis underground in Madrid

Madrid, – Sony Ericsson, official sponsor of the Women’s Tennis Association marked the start of the Madrid Open with ‘Underground Tennis’. Elena Dementieva and Caroline Wozniacki rallied with each other on the tracks of one of Madrid’s busiest Metro stations; Chamartin.

Elena Dementieva, Sony Ericsson WTA Tour world no.3 player commented: “I never thought I’d be playing tennis on an underground track! It was a unique way to prepare me for the Madrid Open. I had never done anything like it before; it was crazy seeing the view of the train tunnels behind my companion when playing! Sony Ericsson always takes it to another level.”

“Taking tennis to new audiences is really important in keeping the game alive,” commented Caroline Wozniacki, Sony Ericsson WTA Tour world no.11 player,. “Playing tennis while commuters go about their daily business was a new experience and really fun.”

Luis Javier Díaz Iglesias, marketing director, Sony Ericsson Iberia commented: “In true Sony Ericsson style we have celebrated the start of the Madrid Open with a bang. Our aim with initiatives as innovative as this one shows our passion and commitment, it also helps to attract a wider interest in the game and energise the fan experience.”

This is not the first time Sony Ericsson has put tennis in places you would not naturally expect it. Sony Ericsson recently recreated a tennis court using the famous St Peter’s church in Rome, Italy as a backdrop; for the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami in March, tennis was taken to Ocean Drive with Venus Williams and Andy Murray stopping traffic to play on top of two cars. In previous years, Sony Ericsson has spectacularly put tennis on water, tennis on a desert island and created night tennis.

A specially built court placed on the unused track of the Chamartin Metro station for the players to rally with each other underground gave a once in a lifetime view for all onlookers. 44 people built the 20 x 6 metre court with layher (a special type of iron) and wood which was painted to look like a real tennis court.

For broadcast-standard video and print quality images as well as low res in both formats, please visit www.thenewsmarket.com/SonyEricsson. If you are a first-time user, please take a moment to register.

About Sony Ericsson:
Sony Ericsson is a top, global industry player with sales of around 97 million phones in 2008. Diversity is one of the core strengths of the company, with operations in over 80 countries including manufacturing in China and R&D sites in China, Europe, India, Japan and North America. Sony Ericsson was established as a 50:50 joint venture by Sony and Ericsson in October 2001, with global corporate functions located in London.

No comments:

Post a Comment