Usain Bolt to Induct Breakers

Usain Bolt to Induct Breakers as Newest Premier Partner of Gatorade

Gatorade the new, official sports drink of the SKYCITY New Zealand Breakers

Gatorade and the SKYCITY New Zealand Breakers announced today that Gatorade is the Breakers’ new official sports drink. Usain Bolt will help launch the new partnership by inducting the team into the elite ranks of Gatorade’s premier sports partnerships which includes the world’s best athletes across the spectrum of sports.

"Gatorade has a history of fuelling the best athletes in the world, including basketball players, so we are thrilled to continue this tradition, with our new relationship with the SKYCITY Breakers,” says Mark Callaghan, CEO of Frucor, the official New Zealand distributor of Gatorade.

The partnership will be formalised during Usain Bolt’s visit on October 8, at an event on Auckland’s North Shore. Bolt will feature in the team’s warm up before the SKYCITY Breakers take on the NZ Breakers Academy squad in a friendly training session.

"Core to the Gatorade brand is the belief that success comes from within. This also cuts to the heart of the SKYCITY Breakers team philosophy and what better way to kick start the relationship than by inducting a winning Kiwi team into the elite Gatorade ranks? Having Usain leading the initiation while at the pinnacle of his success is an unbelievable opportunity,” says Callaghan.

Gatorade is the most tested sports drink in the world with more than four decades of scientific research behind it. Since it was first formulated in 1965 at the University of Florida, Gatorade has helped fuel athletes at all levels to reach their best performance.

"We are committed to supporting high performing sports talent in New Zealand through the Gatorade brand and the SKYCITY Breakers represent exactly that. They are one of this country's pre-eminent sports teams and a perfect fit for Gatorade,” says Callaghan.

"We are stoked to partner with Gatorade, and every player is buzzing about the opportunity to meet Usain Bolt and launch the relationship in a special way. Gatorade's commitment and proven success in propelling athletes and sports teams with science-based nutrition makes it the very best sports drink choice for the SKYCITY Breakers. Certainly the boys are looking forward to the chance to warm up with the fastest man on earth,” says SKYCITY Breakers general manager Richard Clarke.

The partnership extends for the next three years with right of renewal and will include the iconic Gatorade orange coolers, among other things, on the sidelines of the first SKYCITY Breakers game on October 5 at North Shore Events Centre.

Twenty local Gatorade fans will be selected via the Gatorade Facebook page to attend the SKYCITY Breakers induction event on October 8 via www.facebook.com/gatoradenz.

Gatorade New Zealand is currently working on another significant opportunity for Kiwis to see Usain Bolt in action. As soon as details are confirmed, they will be released. Additional detail about Usain Bolt’s involvement in other launch activities and itinerary will be released as soon as it is confirmed.

Ends.

For more information on Gatorade visit www.gatorade.co.nz.

Information on the sports science behind Gatorade is available at www.gssiweb.org.

About Gatorade: www.gatorade.com
The Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), provides sports performance innovations designed to meet the needs of athletes at all competitive levels and across a broad range of sports. Gatorade Thirst Quencher(r) is backed by more than 40 years of research and is scientifically formulated and athletically proven to quench thirst, replace fluids and electrolytes, and provide carbohydrate energy to enhance athletic performance. For more information, including details on the invention of Gatorade by scientists at the University of Florida, please visit www.gatorade.com.

About Frucor: www.frucor.com
Since its beginnings in the early 1960’s as part of the New Zealand Apple & Pear Board, Frucor has evolved from a small local juice business to a significant international beverages company, with 820 staff and annual revenue of NZ$500 million. Frucor exports approximately NZ$250 million of beverages a year, roughly equivalent to a quarter of New Zealand’s total annual wine industry exports. Frucor is the market leader in energy drinks in Australia and New Zealand, and the market leader in juice in New Zealand.
Frucor manufactures, markets and distributes a range of fruit juices, fruit drinks, energy drinks, waters and soft drinks, many of which are household names throughout New Zealand and Australia. Energy drink ‘V’ is also distributed throughout Europe and the UK. Frucor brands include ‘V’, Mizone, H2Go, Just Juice, Fresh-up, McCoy, Citrus Tree, Simply Squeezed, Arano, NZ Natural, G-Force, Supplement Water, Moccona, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, 7Up and Frank.
Since 2009 Frucor has been wholly owned by leading Japanese beverage and food company Suntory Group www.suntory.com

About Usain Bolt: www.usainbolt.com
Arguably the most naturally gifted athlete the world has ever seen, Usain St. Leo Bolt, has confirmed his tremendous talents when he realized his dreams by winning a phenomenal three gold medals and breaking three world records at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Bolt became the first man in Olympic history to win both the 100 and 200 metres in world record times and then as part of the 4 X 100 metres team, which also ran a record.
In 2012 in London he created history again by successfully defending all three Olympic titles with 100m, 200m and 4X100m victories. The relay was a world record of 36.84 seconds where Bolt was on the anchor leg.

About SKYCITY BREAKERS: www.nzbreakers.co.nz
The SKYCITY Breakers enter the 10th season of the Australian National Basketball League as back-to-back champions and seeking to become only the second team in the NBL history to secure a three-peat of titles.

The Breakers are the only New Zealand team in the Australian National Basketball League and the 2010, 2011 champions. The 2010 victory was the first by a New Zealand team in an Australian national sporting league.

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