Olympics Ad Blackout Ends, Non-Olympic Sponsors Capitalize

Non-Olympic sponsors ran advertising in Thursday's newspapers featuring Olympic athletes as they seek to take advantage of the end of the advertising blackout period, according to Matthew Chapman of MARKETING MAGAZINE. Brands trying to capitalize off of the Olympics include U.K. Athletics main sponsor Aviva, Volvo and Virgin Media. Aviva is running a high profile campaign in papers including the Independent, the Telegraph, The Sun and the Guardian, which stars Olympic athletes Heptathlon Gold Medalist Jessica Ennis and track and field Gold Medalist in the 5,000 and 10,000m Mo Farah, amongst others. The tagline states: "We gave them our backing. They gave it their all" -- drawing attention to the fact it has been the main sponsor of British Athletes for the past 12 years. The Volvo campaign ran in the Daily Mail, Times and Guardian, and focuses on its sponsorship of British sailors including Gold Medalist Ben Ainslie and Silver Medalist Saskia Clark and Hannah Mills. Virgin Media is "jumping on the bandwagon by making use of its partnership" with Usain Bolt, who became the first sprinter to win the Gold Medal in the 100m and 200m in consecutive Olympics (MARKETINGMAGAZINE.co.uk, 8/16).