Kia introduces Lucky Drive to Australia campaign

NEWS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Michael Choo (  mjc@kia.co.kr),
International Communications Manager, Kia Motors Corporation, Tel:
+82-2-3464-5663

Kia Motors exciting, new fan event is ace for 2010 Australian Open

 

-         Kia enters 9th consecutive year as major sponsor of Australian
Open 

-         Kia introduces Lucky Drive to Australia campaign, allowing lucky
customers to win a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend the Australian
Open in Melbourne

-         Kia Fan of the Day and Kia Fan of the Australian Open 2010 chosen
by fans at the stadium and online

-         Seventh annual Kia Amateur Australian Open World Final to feature
16 teams from 13 countries

 

(Seoul) January 17, 2010 - Kia Motors Corporation announced details of its
continued sponsorship of the Australian Open, the first grand slam
tournament of the year, marking the ninth year the carmaker sponsors the
global tennis event.

 

Kia's sponsorship of the 105th Australian Open encourages greater off-court
participation by fans with the newly introduced Kia Lucky Drive to Australia
campaign, whereby lucky showroom visitors were selected to win a trip to the
Australian Open, along with its continuation of Kia Fan of the Day and Fan
of the Australian Open competitions for tennis fans in attendance at
Melbourne.

 

In the new Kia Lucky Drive to Australia campaign, Kia customers could
participate by entering a lucky draw for an official invitation to the grand
slam in Melbourne. Participating Kia distributors in 16 countries around the
world selected a total of 53 lucky customers to travel to Australia during
the second week of the Australian Open for the opportunity to watch a men's
and women's semifinal match, receive a behind-the-scenes tour of Melbourne
Park or enjoy a scenic Melbourne city tour. 

 

In its fourth year, the Kia Fan of the Day and Fan of the Tournament events
add color and fun to the competition. Daily winners are decided by thousands
of public votes, with each winner then having a chance to be voted Fan of
the Tournament and awarded the grand prize.  

 

Hyoung-Keun Lee, President of Kia Motors Corporation said, "Kia is committed
to providing customers with exciting experiences and we view our sponsorship
of the Australian Open as an opportunity to provide young-at-heart fans with
unique and fun ways to enjoy the tournament, such as the Lucky Drive to
Australia, the Kia Fan competitions, and the Kia Amateur Open. We look
forward to working with Tennis Australia again this year to make this an
all-around enjoyable sporting occasion."

 

The Australian Open is Kia's longest running major global sports sponsorship
and takes place in Melbourne (January 18-31, 2010). Kia is the major sponsor
and supplier of a 101 Kia tournament vehicle fleet to Tennis Australia. This
fleet will transport players, officials and VIPs safely and conveniently to
and from Melbourne Park.

 

Kia has committed to sponsor the tournament until 2013 and deepen its
relationship with tennis further by continuing its partnership with one of
the world's top ranked players, Rafael Nadal, as the company's global brand
ambassador.

 

Tennis Australia CEO Steve Wood said, "Kia Motors' long-term partnership
will, no doubt, continue to delight and excite Australian Open fans. Kia's
commitment to quality and fun is demonstrated clearly through its
sponsorship, and we are thrilled that Kia Motors will invigorate this year's
tournament with new and exciting competitions for fans, a critical element
of the tournament."

 

Kia live sites will also continue to give fans in Sydney and Melbourne an
opportunity to view the tournament on outdoor giant screens. Additionally,
Kia will set up a marquee at the Grand Slam Oval, which will serve as an
enjoyable and interactive destination for fans. The marquee will be equipped
with a Kia car display and live music performances, among other promotional
activities.

 

Kia continually supports grassroots tennis through the Kia Amateur
Australian Open. A field of 19,691 amateur hopefuls has been narrowed down
to 32 players through preliminary elimination rounds. 

 

The 32 finalists from 13 countries will take part in this year's Kia Amateur
Australian Open World Final (January 28 - February 1, 2010) with the dream
of winning one or all of the four available titles:

 

*        Kia Amateur Open Women's Champion 2010

*        Kia Amateur Open Men's Champion 2010

*        Kia Amateur Open Mixed Doubles Champions 2010

*        Kia Amateur Open Team Champions 2010

 

Throughout the tournament, nine Kia vehicles will also be displayed around
Melbourne Park, alongside Kia experience kiosks and Kia face painting
stalls.

 

About Kia Fan of the Day 

 

Every day, a Kia Fan of the Day will be chosen for the most entertaining
attire by accounting for crowd reactions to images of creatively dressed
fans projected on the giant screens in Rod Laver Arena as well as online
votes through the Australian Open website (www.australianopen.com). The Fan
of the Day winner will be awarded a special Kia gift pack and automatically
entered as a candidate for the Kia Fan of the Australian Open 2010. Kia Fan
of the Day winners with the highest votes will be awarded the Kia Fan of the
Australian Open 2010 grand prize 

 

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Kia Motors Corporation (www.kia.com) -- a maker of quality vehicles for the
young-at-heart -- was founded in 1944 and is Korea's oldest manufacturer of
motor vehicles. As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to
become one of the world's premier automotive brands. Nearly 1.5 million
vehicles a year are produced in 13 manufacturing and assembly operations in
eight countries which are then sold and serviced through a network of
distributors and dealers covering 172 countries. Kia today has over 40,000
employees worldwide and annual revenues of over US$14.5 billion. It is the
major sponsor of the Australian Open and an official automotive partner of
FIFA -- the governing body of the FIFA World CupT -- as well as a EUROTOP
partner of UEFA. Kia Motors Corporation's brand slogan -- "The Power to
Surprise" -- represents the company's global commitment to surpassing
customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation.