Entries Open for Young Kiwis to Fly International Flags

News Release
5 July 2011

Entries Open for Young Kiwis to Fly International Flags at Rugby World Cup 2011 Matches

Fifty or fewer fine words will help determine which lucky young Kiwis will have the honour of leading teams out onto the field during Rugby World Cup matches this year, bearing the teams’ national flags.

Applications have today opened for this experience of a lifetime chance, available to nearly 100 New Zealanders between the ages of 14 and 16.

Rugby World Cup 2011 Worldwide Partner Emirates Airline today announced details of a competition among young male and female rugby fans to carry out the national flags of the competing teams at 12 stadia around New Zealand. They include expressing in 50 words or fewer why they should be chosen.

All but four of the flagbearers for the 48 matches will be drawn from New Zealand. The opportunity for the young Kiwis will include flagbearer spots for the quarter and semi-finals, play-off for third place, and the Final itself, as well as all of the pool matches. One spot in the Final will be reserved for a New Zealand-domiciled Skysurfer (non-adult) member of the Emirates frequent flyer club, Skywards.

For the pool matches, the competition will be divided into regions, guaranteeing local provincial representation among the teams’ flagbearers.

As well as their own match ticket and on-field participation, each lucky winner of a flagbearer position will receive match tickets for two accompanying parents or guardians to attend the game at which they fly a flag.

The Tournament kicks off on September 9.

Applicants can enter by going onto the Rugby World Cup 2011 Emirates flagbearer page, located within the main Emirates website at www.emirates.com/nz/flagbearer

Full terms and conditions are on the site. Entries will open at 9am on July 5 and close at 9pm on July 31.

Because there are no longer any matches being played in Christchurch, entrants from Canterbury will be among those considered for matches being played in Dunedin and Nelson.

Regions

Entrants will need to name the region they live in from the following (based on match stadia) and would be eligible to be a Flagbearer in this region only for pool matches.

1. Auckland, North Harbour (from the Auckland Harbour Bridge north to Whangarei)
2. Auckland, Eden Park (from the Harbour Bridge south to Waikato)
3. Dunedin (all Otago and Canterbury)
4. Hamilton (All Waikato, Thames Valley, King Country – including Taupo)
5. Invercargill (All Southland)
6. Napier (Hawkes Bay, Poverty Bay)
7. Nelson (Nelson, Marlborough and Canterbury)
8. New Plymouth (Taranaki and Wanganui)
9. Palmerston North (all Manawatu and Horowhenua)
10. Rotorua (all Bay of Plenty)
11. Wellington (Wellington and Wairarapa)
12. Whangarei (Whangarei and Far North District)

Semi-finals and Finals:
• Upper North Island entrants (Rotorua northwards)

Quarter-finals:
• Upper North Island entrants
• Lower North Island entrants

Entrants will have to supply:

• name
• age
• address
• school (if applicable)
• region of application (as above)
• name of the parents / guardians to accompany the entrant
• their 50 word entry submission

“This is a top chance for young Kiwis to be part of what will be an historical event, both in world terms and certainly in the New Zealand context,” said Emirates’ New Zealand manager, Chris Lethbridge.

“As part of its sponsorship, Emirates has the right to provide the flagbearers for the 20 teams. We considered this an ideal opportunity to involve aspiring players and fans locally, so, with the exception of a handful of occasions, the flagbearers for the 20 teams will be New Zealanders.

“We also feel it only fair that their parents or guardians can share in the honour,” said Mr Lethbridge.

Chaperones will accompany them before and after their participation in the Tournament and return them to their accompanying parents or guardians to watch the match.

Emirates was the first sponsor to sign up as a Worldwide Partner for Rugby World Cup 2011, and has a strong affiliation with Rugby, including:

• Principal partner of the Rugby World Cup Sevens 2009, which took place in Dubai at Emirates’ newly built sporting venue, ‘The Sevens.’ The tournament was shown in over 200 countries via 29 broadcasters.
• Sponsor of four HSBC IRB Sevens World Series events - in Dubai, South Africa, London and Edinburgh.
• Shirt sponsors of the England and Samoa Sevens teams and the Emirates Western Force (Australia) Super 15 team. Official Airline of the USA national teams.
• Sponsors of the IRB referees and match officials.

About Rugby World Cup:

Rugby World Cup has provided the financial platform for investment and growth in the Game. The net RWC 2007 surplus of £122.4 million has underwritten a range of major funding initiatives, including annual national Union grants and Strategic Investments via the £48 million programme between 2009-2012 focusing on increasing competition across the global Game. The total invested by the IRB during the period will be £150 million.

Rugby World Cup 2011 in Zealand will be attended by over 1.6 million spectators and watched by a global TV audience of well over four billion in more than 200 countries.

Visit rugbyworldcup.com

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