(Creation of the week) “A race beyond what you imagine”, new campaign from Orange – Budgets > Agencies

Insight

Orange’s brief was in line with its long-standing commitment in favor of a more inclusive and equal society. A commitment already revealed in 2023 with the partnership between Orange, the FFF and Orange WoMen’s Football communication. For more than 20 years, Orange has strived to go beyond simple sporting issues to address major social issues through its various partnerships. As a premium partner of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Orange wanted this campaign to be more than just a communication around the event. The objective was to design a digital activation that can not only capture the attention of the general public, but above all provoke real reflection on the perception of the Paralympic Games.

Device

The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, although a major sporting event, attract less attention than the Olympic Games. Less impressive, less successful, less of a spectacle, there are still many preconceptions about Paralympic sport. Also, for changing the way we look at disabled sportOrange, premium partner of the Paris 2024 Games, is launching a campaign for to show that the greatest performances are not always where we expect them and to encourage as many people as possible to let yourself be carried away by sporting emotions whatever they may be. With the message “When you love sport, you love sport”, Orange and Publicis Conseil have created a visual experience by juxtaposing the final of the men’s 1500m T13 of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games with that of the Olympic Games of the same year. The images are identical in every way, the tension at the start of the race, the suspense until the finish line and the explosion of joy just after, yet there is indeed a difference in this movie: 1.71s. At the end of the race, the film reveals a surprising truth: for the first time in history a para-athlete finished 1.71s ahead of the Olympic gold medalist. And that’s not all, there are four para-athletes in total who have achieved a better time than the Olympic champion. This revelation highlights the excellence and exceptional performance of Paralympic athletes, defying all expectations.

Objectives

This film aims to reaffirm Orange’s commitment to inclusion, both in the field of sport and in society in general. Inclusion is a central pillar of Orange’s CSR strategy, and this film is a concrete illustration of this. Through this, the brand seeks to change perceptions, to change mentalities and to raise awareness among the general public about the issues related to this.

The opinion of Marco Venturelli, CEO/CCO of Publicis Conseil and CCO of Publicis groupe France

“The challenge was to changing the general public’s perception of the Paralympic Games. We know that the Olympic Games naturally attract the attention of the public and that the Paralympic Games are often wrongly considered as being less impressive. A cognitive bias against which we had to fight. The challenge was therefore to to make the general public understand that para-athletes are first and foremost high-level athletes, whose performances are just as remarkable. Through this campaign, we wanted to breaking down prejudices and celebrating the true sporting excellence of para-athletes. The visual parallel staged in the film fbrought out the equality of sporting achievements. Indeed, the format of the video suggests that a difference might appear at some point, but despite expectations or prejudices, no visual difference emerges, with the exception of the Paralympic medalist’s record. “When you love sport, you love sport” is a very simple sentence that highlights the idea that Passion for sport transcends all distinctions between athletes and eventsincluding those related to physical abilities. People still too often tend to compare what is not comparable. Women’s football is not men’s football. The skills of the athletes are different, as is their way of playing. Five-a-side football, beach soccer, are also not comparable to 11-a-side football. When you love sports, you love it for the athletes who give their all and surpass themselves, You love it for the suspense, the tension, the enthusiasm, the collective fervor, the strong emotions – and this, regardless of the person who practices it.