Subscribe to L2P News London, UK. 3 June 2010
Global media, marketing and events company, HotChillee, is to publish the Official Guide to the Tour de France in South Africa.
It’s the first time the guide to the world’s largest annual sporting event will be available in South Africa.
HotChillee, organisers of The London-Paris 2010 and James Cracknell’s End To End Relay Record Challenge, is a growing brand in world sport. The company began by specialising in events and marketing and expanded into media when it took over the publishing of the cycling website www.cyclosport.org
South African-born Sven Thiele, HotChillee’s CEO, said: “We are extremely proud to publish the Official Guide of the Tour de France, one of the world’s iconic sports competitions.
“The South African Guide will be a fabulous source of information about the world’s greatest cycle race and it will be a wonderful souvenir of the 2010 Tour.”
HotChillee CEO Sven Thiele
Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme said: "A.S.O. and the Tour de France are delighted to have an official programme of the Tour de France in South Africa. The Tour de France Guide is popular with cycling fans across the globe and is the definitive source of information about the world's greatest cycle race. Cycling fans in South Africa will now have access to this exclusive information and it will enhance their experience of The Tour."
Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme
Cycling is a growing sport in South Africa, where there are an estimated 250,000 registered riders. HotChillee has forged strong links with South Africa’s cycling community. The HotChillee Team rode the Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour and the company has hosted business to business promotional events with Cervélo TestTeam in Cape Town.
This year’s Tour de France promises to be one of the most exciting, with seven-time Tour champion Lance Armstrong pitched against Alberto Contador and Britain’s Team Sky making their debut.
The 200-page, glossy, large format South African guide, retailing for R79, will include exclusive route, team and rider information direct from Tour HQ in Paris and will reflect the interest of South African fans.
The guide, produced with Cape Town-based Electric Ink Media, will be on sale three weeks before the start of the Tour on June 14th and is edited by the internationally renowned cycling journalist, Peter Cossins, who is working with the former editor of Bicycling South Africa, Tim Brink.
South African TV network MNET will be using the guide as a visible source of stats and information. It’ll be used by studio commentators presenting the live broadcast of every stage of the Tour and on their popular weekly Supercycling TV show.
Cycling fans buying the guide also have the chance to win an official Cervélo TestTeam bike worth R100,000, a trip to Paris for two to the 2011 Tour de France with Embassy Travel and 30 Nike official race leader technical cycling jerseys.
Thiele said: “Moving into publishing is an exciting development for HotChillee. We have seen enormous growth in the global popularity of cycling and cycling fans have a huge appetite for exclusive information about their sport. We believe that The South African Tour de France Guide will give them a new and exciting insight into the world’s biggest cycling event.”
The Guide’s website is www.letoursa.com