GSD&M Rallies Support for U.S. Olympians

DALLAS GSD&M’s new image campaign for the United States Olympic Committee promotes America’s participation in this summer’s Olympic Games and introduces the tagline, “The U.S. Olympic Team. 300 million strong.”

Breaking last Friday, the national effort from the Austin, Texas, shop is designed to generate excitement and build support for the U.S. Olympic Team, the agency said. Consisting of three TV spots and up to 10 print ads, the work strives to unify Americans behind their team.

The first TV spot shows various Americans at work and at play. From a small boy knocking on a door to a barber snipping hair with his scissors, each person does his or her activity three times. Next we see a woman going through her mail. Suddenly we hear the faint rumble of a crowd chanting “USA.” As the woman looks at a nearby glass of water, the chants create three small ripples. The onscreen tagline: “Can you feel it? For 17 days in August, we all will.”

Another spot shows a man taking down the letters from the marquee of a small town store. As he removes the letters from “GO MUSTANGS,” he leaves “USA” up on the board to create “GO USA.” The tag: “For 17 days in August, we all have the same home team.”

Print work follows a similar theme as one ad shows a woman with her face painted red, white and blue to resemble the American flag. “For 17 days in August, we all have the same team colors,” proclaims the copy.

TV spots will air on Olympic-related programming; print ads will appear in USA Today and Sports Illustrated, the shop said.

This effort marks the second go-round for GSD&M and the Colorado Springs, Colo.-based USOC. In 1999, the agency developed a national image push for the USOC. The media budget is undisclosed.

The 2004 Summer Olympic Games will begin Aug. 13 in Athens, Greece. More than 10,000 athletes from 200 countries will compete in 296 events in 28 sports, according to the USOC.