Rafael Nadal

TODAY reporter Christine Ahern caught up with the Spanish superstar to help him with his preparations.

BACARDI LIMITED “CHAMPIONS DRINK RESPONSIBLY” SERVES UP A CHANCE TO PLAY TENNIS AGAINST RAFAEL NADAL

Ahead of the 2012 Australian Open, Bacardi Limited today launches an international competition to meet its Global Social Responsibility Ambassador Rafael ‘Rafa’ Nadal in-person as part of the award-winning “Champions Drink Responsibly” social responsibility campaign. Starting today, legal drinking age consumers and fans from Australia will get the opportunity to ‘Ace Rafa’ in an online virtual reality video game created by Bacardi Limited.

Fans that successfully ‘ace’ the ten-time Grand Slam winner in the game will go into a free prize draw to win a spot in the Grand Final. The lucky finalists will get to meet Rafa Nadal face-to-face in Mallorca, Spain, later in 2012 for the chance to try and “ace“ him in-person.

Legal drinking age Australians can enter the competition via the “Champions Drink Responsibly” Facebook page (www.facebook.com/ChampionsDrinkResponsibly) where they will face Rafa by using the RoboServ 3000 –– a state-of-the-art 12-foot tall tennis-serving robot.

The imagery in the game was shot on location in Rafa’s hometown of Manacor in Mallorca, Spain, where the tennis champion also trains. Unlike most console and online games, ‘Ace Rafa’ features live in-game footage of Rafa rather than a computer-generated version of the tennis great. The game is brought to life as Rafa reacts to each serve as though he was playing an actual game of tennis against another person.

‘Ace Rafa’ is the latest promotion in the Bacardi Limited “Champions Drink Responsibly” global campaign. The Bacardi Limited social responsibility campaign highlights the important message that “Everyone Knows Where the Line Is” when it comes to drinking responsibly and was launched by Rafa in March 2011.

“I hope my Australian fans enjoy this unique chance to play against me. Drinking responsibly is a serious message and I believe we will reach and influence more people with this important message by expressing it in a more light-hearted and interactive way. ‘Knowing where the line is’ is vital in tennis and in life,” said Rafa Nadal, the Bacardi Limited Global Social Responsibility Ambassador. “I have faced some incredible serves on the tennis tour, but the RoboServ is a tough competitor and in the right hands it is going to be difficult to beat. I look forward to meeting some of the best Bacardi Champions face-to-face in July.”

“We are really excited to launch this interactive game as part of our “Champions Drink Responsibly” program. We are serving fans a truly unique opportunity to compete online against one of the world’s leading tennis champions and one person will have the chance to ace Rafa in person,” said Colin Rochester, Managing Director of Bacardi Lion. “The ‘Ace Rafa’ promotion is all about connecting with consumers in a dynamic and engaging way to reinforce the important message of responsible drinking.”

The “Champions Drink Responsibly” campaign was first introduced by family-owned Bacardi Limited in April 2008 featuring seven-time Formula 1™ World Champion Michael Schumacher with the message “Drinking and Driving Don’t Mix.” The campaign is rooted in the strong heritage and commitment of Bacardi Limited to promote responsible drinking. The Company launched its first social responsibility advertising campaign in Mexico in the 1930s when it pioneered the idea of responsible drinking with the slogan of “Bacardi wishes to sell, but it does not want the money you should use to buy bread.”

Since then, the Company created widely respected social responsibility initiatives in the 1970s with its two-decade running, award-winning “Bacardi mixes with everything. Except driving.” advertisement. Also raising the bar in social responsibility messaging and engagement was the Company’s recent success with the “Driver's Corner” experience in Germany and Austria, and the “Whatever Your Reason” television campaign in the U.S. which personalized the responsibility message to teach adult consumers about the different reasons for drinking responsibly.

For additional details and information about the Bacardi Limited “Champions Drink Responsibly” campaign, please visit www.championsdrinkresponsibly.com

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