RECORD-BREAKING 11,000 PARTICIPANTS AT THE 2011 OLYMPIC DAY RUN

Kuala Lumpur, 17 July 2011 – The more than 11,000 participants of the 2011 Olympic Day Run this morning broke the record achieved by their predecessors, with the eighth edition of this fun run topping last year’s 7,000 strong participants. The runners of all ages and walks of life were flagged off at Dataran Merdeka for this annual event jointly organised by McDonald’s Malaysia and the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM). As part of a concerted effort by McDonald’s to promote balanced, active lifestyles among Malaysians, this year’s run also introduced the Group and Family categories to encourage participation.

The 7km run was flagged off by Youth and Sports Minister YB Dato’ Sri Ahmad Shabery Cheek, accompanied by YBhg Dato’ Zolkples Embong, the Director General of National Sports Council, YBhg Tan Sri Mohamad Noor Abdul Rahim, the Vice-President of the Olympic Council of Malaysia and Ms Sarah Casanova, the Managing Director of McDonald’s Malaysia.

“McDonald’s is excited that this eighth installation of the Olympic Day Run is bigger and better than ever. We are dedicated to promoting a balanced, active lifestyle in keeping with our commitment to the well-being of our consumers. The introduction of the Group and Family categories this year also offers the added element of team building and healthy family activities,” said Sarah Casanova, Managing Director of McDonald’s Malaysia.

According to Sarah, the Olympic Day Run is a show of unity among Malaysians in embracing the Olympic spirit of friendship and solidarity, directly connecting with people of all ages and cultures. At a global level, McDonald’s is the Official Active Partner of the Olympic Games and has been staging Olympic Day activities around the world since 1976.

“The OCM has always welcomed Malaysians who wish to share the Olympic spirit and we have always been delighted with McDonald’s unflagging enthusiasm for the Olympic Day Run ever since they became our partners internationally in 2004. We are also very happy that they are promoting the run as a healthy group and family activity this year,” said Dato’ Sieh Kok Chi, Honorary Secretary of the Olympic Council of Malaysia, who regretted that this is the first time he is unable to participate in an Olympic Run, due to an overseas engagement.

The highly-charged event kicked-off with a warm-up session by Ronald McDonald, McDonald’s Chief Happiness Officer. After the run, the crowd was kept entertained with performances by the talented children of Smart Reader Kids and local talent, Adik Puteri, stage games and a lucky draw session.

The 2011 Olympic Day Run was divided into 13 categories – Men’s Open, Women’s Open, Men’s Junior Veteran, Men’s Senior Veteran, Women’s Veteran, Men’s Junior, Women’s Junior, Men’s Senior Citizen, Women’s Senior Citizen, Primary School Boys, Primary School Girls, and two brand new categories: Group (for 4 participants aged 15 years and above) and Family (for 2 adults and up to 3 children aged 7-14 years). A minimal participation fee of RM10 was fully channelled to the Federal Territory Amateur Athletics Association (FTAAA) for administrative expenses, while students with school stamps on their registration forms only paid RM5 and Groups and Families paid RM20 per team. The winners took home attractive prizes, including cash prizes amounting up to RM17,975, finisher’s medals, certificates of participation and McDonald’s vouchers. All participants also received an exclusive Olympic Day Run t-shirt.

The Olympic Day Run began in 1987 to commemorate the foundation of the IOC on June 23, 1894 by Baron Pierre de Coubertin. The event continues to grow in popularity internationally, from 45 participating National Olympic Committees in its first year to more than 100 at present. More than ten million people, including those with disabilities, have participated in the Olympic Day Run around the world.

7,100 PARTICIPANTS UNITE FOR THE 2010 OLYMPIC DAY RUN

Kuala Lumpur, 26 September 2010 – A record-breaking 7,100 participants took part in the 2010 Olympic Day Run held at the Dataran Merdeka this morning. This annual event is jointly organized by McDonald’s Malaysia and the Olympic Council of Malaysia, and this is the seventh year that this historic event is held as part of a concerted effort to promote balanced, active lifestyles among Malaysians.

Yang Berhormat Datuk M. Saravanan, Deputy Minister of the Federal Territories, graced the event with his presence and also flagged off the participants in the 7 km run. Also present were Yang Amat Mulia Tan Sri Tunku Imran Ibni Tunku Jaafar, the President of the Olympic Council of Malaysia, Yang Berbahagia Dato’ Sieh Kok Chi, Honorary Secretary of the Olympic Council of Malaysia and Stephen Chew, Vice-President of Marketing, Communications & Consumer / Business Insights of McDonald’s Malaysia.

“McDonald’s is an Official Partner of the Olympic Games and has been staging the Olympic Day Run at a global level to showcase the spirit of ‘Olympism’. We’re also dedicated to promoting a balanced, active lifestyle amongst the public and this global event is a manifestation of our commitment to creating a higher awareness on the importance of leading an active lifestyle in the interest of our overall well-being,“ said Stephen Chew, Vice-President of Marketing, Communications & Consumer / Business Insights of McDonald’s Malaysia.

The highly-charged event kicked-off with a warm-up session by Ronald McDonald, McDonald’s Chief Happiness Officer and the instructors from Celebrity Fitness. After completing the run, participants were kept entertained by some local entertainers, stage games and a lucky draw session.

The 2010 Olympic Day Run was divided into 14 categories – Men’s Open, Women’s Open, Men’s Junior Veteran, Men’s Senior Veteran, Women’s Veteran, Men’s Junior, Women’s Junior, Men’s Senior Citizen, Women’s Senior Citizen, Upper Primary School Boys, Upper Primary School Girls, Lower Primary School Boys and Lower Primary School Girls as well as a special category for the disabled. A minimal participation fee of RM10 is charged for all entries while students with school stamps on their registration forms only pay RM5. The winners took home attractive prizes, including cash prizes amounting to RM18,300, finisher’s medals, certificates of participation and McDonald’s vouchers. All participants also received an exclusive Olympic Day Run t-shirt.

The Olympic Day Run began in 1987 to commemorate the foundation of the IOC on June 23, 1894 by Baron Pierre de Coubertin. The event continues to grow in popularity internationally, from 45 participating National Olympic Committees in its first year to more than 100 in 2005. More than seven million people, including those with disabilities, have participated in the Olympic Day Run around the world.