LONDON, July 6, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --
To mark exactly one month until he
arrives in Rio de Janeiro to
defend his world record title, Virgin Media has created an
ambitious installation bringing Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt to
the River Thames. The event takes place in the run up to Bolt
competing in London later this
month and is the first stride out of the starting blocks for an
eight-week marketing campaign featuring the world's fastest
man.
(Photo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160706/386483 )
(Photo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160706/386484 )
(Photo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160706/386482 )
In a celebration of Bolt's 9.58 second
100m world record, at 9.58pm
yesterday the river in front of the Coca-Cola London Eye was
transformed into a 100m-long video screen, while the Eye itself
became a giant stopwatch counting down Bolt's time. Viewers within
the London Eye were able to witness Bolt's record-breaking speed,
thanks to a 100m-long, floating screen stationed on the river
beneath.
The screen itself is the longest of its kind ever constructed,
comprising 108 floating pontoon decks topped by 600m2 of horizontal
LED screen. It has been built over the past week at King George V
Dock in Newham, taking more than 1,000 man hours to build and four
hours to sail to Victoria Embankment.
The three-minute film centres on the concept of speed and the
fastest man of all time, Usain Bolt, ahead of a pivotal season in
Bolt's career. Speed unlocks the difference that Virgin Media
provides, and for Bolt, speed defines him. It is voiced over by
fellow sprinter, Michael Johnson,
who made a documentary with Usain Bolt in 2010.
The film lifts the lid on the real Bolt. It shows the
'overwhelming rush of hurt' he describes when talking about his
gruelling training schedule, the impact his achievements have had
on his country and adoring fans, his perceived "superhero" status,
and the Jamaican dancehall culture he is still a part of. The film
even provides a real-time dramatisation of the historic 9.58
second record breaking run, mimicking the distance and speed he ran
it at, across Jamaican locations he grew up at as a boy.
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