Winner: CITGO Petroleum Corporation - Official Fuel Sponsorship for the 2015 Special Olympics Unified Relay Across America
CITGO and its employees have a longstanding relationship with the Special Olympics. Having long donated funding and scores of volunteer hours to local Special Olympics chapters where the company lives and works, CITGO recently expanded its support nationwide as the official sponsor of the Special Olympics’ Unified Relay Across America (URAA). The cross-country relay that culminated in the World Summer Games in Los Angeles attracted more than 7,000 athletes from 177 countries. Over the course of 46 days as the official fuel sponsor of the Special Olympics’ URAA, CITGO supported 36
CITGO tapped the Houston Astros’ batting champion Jose Altuve and its existing Miss America sponsorship to help draw increased audiences at CITGO’s relay activates. Online, CITGO designed and executed the #FuelingHope campaign on Twitter. The campaign engaged audiences to send encouraging words to athletes, as well as help cultivate positive discourse about intellectual disabilities. Participation in the company’s campaign extended well beyond its marketers and retailers. The effort garnered strong involvement from employees, retirees and their families and friends, many of whom participated as torch bearers in their local relay segments. Coverage of CITGO’s partnership and campaign appeared on more than 200 websites with a total potential audience of over 20 million.