By James Waterson Photo Credit: WTA Tour
(May 12, 2011) The WTA launched "Strong is Beautiful," a new global advertising campaign, on Thursday that aims to emphasize the “athleticism and grace” of the tour’s top players.
The new ad campaign features 38 of the WTA’s top stars and next generation’s players in 30-second television and digital advertisements.
These ads focus on the player’s lives and “the intense and sometimes difficult social undercurrents of realizing their dreams as professional athletes,” a WTA article read.
The campaign includes Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic, who talks about practicing in Belgrade during the Kosovo War, China’s Na Li, who discusses the pressure she feels from playing for a country of 1.3 billion people and Kim Clijsters, who feels torn between pursuing her tennis career and raising her daughter.
"The personal stories are inspirational. The unique combination of athleticism, strength and determination on the court and success, interests and inner beauty off the court is what makes women's tennis so attractive to millions around the world,” Stacey Allaster, WTA CEO and chairman, said in the WTA article.
The personal nature of the campaign has drawn approval from some players, such as Caroline Wozniacki, the Danish world No. 1.
"It takes so many elements to reach the top of such a competitive sport as tennis - strength of character, discipline and willpower. All of these things define who we are as people and as athletes. For me the new campaign captures the inner strength of players in a beautiful way," Wozniacki said in the article.
The TV, print and digital parts of the campaign will run later this month, and the WTA said fans will have the chance to interact with the players on various social media networks, including Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.