It has been 20 years since Trukai first jumped on the fun run bandwagon.
In 1999, Trukai Industries painted the streets of Port Moresby, Lae and other participating centres with their signature bright yellow-coloured t-shirts.
The 2019 nationwide Trukai Fun Run was launched today in Port Moresby.
100,000 t-shirts will be available for the fun run, which is set for June 16th.
National marketing manager, Maybellyn Fernandes, highlighted how one shirt can change the lives of so many people, whether it is supporting Team PNG, schools raising funds through selling them, or fun run participants winning scholarships to study at the Institute of Business Studies.
“I was thinking about this the other day and I realised, it’s possibly one of the only events where a major sponsor takes a step back and gives up prime position on branding material to encourage other brands, and other logos, to take up a spot on what is literally a walking, talking billboard for many years to come,” she said.
“It’s a hundred-thousand opportunities for other organisations to brand a prime spot with their logos. And a spot like that can’t get any cheaper.”
President of the PNG Olympic Committee, Sir John Dawanincura, thanked Trukai and partners for their continuous support.
“It’s a hundred-and-fifty days today that Team PNG will march into the opening ceremony on the 7th of July this year in Apia, Samoa,” he said.
“And the games is the pinnacle of the international events that we attend, and we’ve been attending these games since 1966.
“I’d like to also acknowledge the support from the government in the past and we’re knocking on their doors for additional support. Our current budget for Team PNG is K6 million and obviously, we have an enormous task to raise that amount of money.”
Since becoming the major sponsor of the fun run, Trukai Industries has invested over K9 million into the growth and success of Team PNG at the elite level.
Trukai’s support has taken Team PNG to six Olympic Games, five Commonwealth Games, five Pacific Mini Games and four Pacific Games, with this year’s Samoa Games being its fifth.
(National marketing manager, Maybellyn Fernandes, centre, with Trukai models)
