Corporate & EventsGrant Thornton × GT5K Ambassadors — Community 5K
Grant Thornton scaled awareness of Ireland's leading corporate running series through trusted athlete ambassadors sourced and managed via Sport Endorse.
Overview
The campaign
Grant Thornton partnered with Sport Endorse to strengthen awareness and participation for its GT5K corporate running series by connecting directly with trusted Irish athletes across athletics, rugby and GAA. Using the Sport Endorse platform, the firm efficiently sourced, contracted and managed multiple ambassadors over several years to support a nationwide employee wellbeing and community engagement initiative.
The challenge
Grant Thornton's GT5K had grown into one of Ireland's leading corporate participation events, encouraging businesses across the island to prioritise employee wellbeing while supporting Athletics Ireland and charitable causes. As the event expanded into multiple cities and audiences, the marketing team required credible athlete ambassadors capable of engaging diverse corporate participants while reflecting the event's values of health, teamwork and community.
Sourcing suitable athletes through traditional methods would have required multiple agency relationships, lengthy negotiations, fragmented communications and complex contract management. Grant Thornton also needed the flexibility to appoint different ambassadors for national, regional and social activation roles as the campaign evolved from year to year.
The objective was to streamline athlete sourcing while ensuring every ambassador authentically represented both the event and the Grant Thornton brand.
The Sport Endorse solution
Grant Thornton used Sport Endorse to source athlete ambassadors across multiple editions of the GT5K campaign.
Through the platform, the marketing team was able to publish campaign requirements, identify suitable athletes from different sporting backgrounds, review applications, communicate directly with talent, finalise commercial agreements and manage campaign administration through a single digital workflow.
Over several years, Sport Endorse facilitated the appointment of multiple ambassador roles, allowing Grant Thornton to adapt its ambassador strategy as the GT5K expanded into a nationwide corporate wellbeing programme.
This scalable approach removed many of the administrative challenges associated with traditional athlete procurement while providing Grant Thornton with a trusted and efficient route to securing high-profile sporting personalities.
Athlete fit
Sport Endorse helped Grant Thornton build an ambassador team that reflected both the diversity of Irish sport and the broad audience participating in the GT5K.
Olympian and Irish international sprinter Brian Gregan initially served as Dublin Race Ambassador before becoming the campaign's Overall Race Ambassador, bringing strong credibility within athletics and reinforcing the event's partnership with Athletics Ireland.
Irish rugby international Eimear Considine joined as a Social Ambassador, helping broaden the campaign's appeal among female participants, rugby supporters and health-conscious professionals.
GAA footballer Boidu Sayeh introduced another community sporting audience, extending the campaign's reach beyond traditional running participants while supporting the inclusive nature of the event.
For the 2022 campaign, Irish rugby international James Lowe joined as Race Ambassador, adding national profile and helping promote the return of in-person racing following the pandemic.
Together, the ambassador group enabled Grant Thornton to engage audiences across athletics, rugby and Gaelic games while maintaining authentic connections with communities throughout Ireland.
Deliverables
- Campaign brief published through the Sport Endorse platform
- Athlete sourcing for multiple GT5K campaign editions
- National Race Ambassador secured
- City Race Ambassador secured
- Social Ambassador appointments across multiple sports
- Direct athlete-brand communication managed digitally
- Athlete contracting completed through the platform
- Campaign coordination and administration streamlined
- Multi-year ambassador programme supported
- Event appearances coordinated
- Promotional content and social media support delivered
- Brand licensing and campaign usage rights agreed as required
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