Tuesday, April 12, 2011

DIGICEL SERIES 2011 LAUNCHES IN KINGSTON, JAMAICA



(From left to right) Digicel Group CEO, Colm Delves and his wife Paula, former West Indies Captain, Chris Gayle and Digicel Jamaica CEO, Mark Linehan

Red Carpet Event Hosts World Premiere of ‘Fire in Babylon’

Monday, April 11th 2011 – Kingston, Jamaica: Digicel, proud sponsor of West Indies Cricket, on Saturday night officially launched the Digicel Series 2011 with a gala event held in Kingston, Jamaica.

This glitzy red carpet affair, which also incorporated the World Premiere of “Fire in Babylon”, saw more than 400 guests in attendance, including representatives from the West Indies Cricket Board, past and present cricket legends, the Caribbean business community and Caribbean Government officials.

From award-winning producers Charles Steel and John Battsek, “Fire in Babylon” tells the remarkable and compelling story of how the West Indies cricket team triumphed over its colonial masters through the achievements of one of the most gifted teams in sporting history during the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Digicel Group Head of Sponsorship, Karl Donnelly, said; “Our mission at Digicel – as proud sponsor of West Indies cricket since 2004 – is to find new and exciting ways to bring the full experience and excitement of the game to everyone and to provide the necessary resources to help grow West Indies cricket to its true potential so that players and fans alike can enjoy its benefits.

“I wish the West Indies team all the best as they face the best of the best in India and Pakistan in the Digicel Series 2011. Of course, we will also be running a number of exciting promotions and competitions – like “Cricket’s Biggest Fan” and “Crack the Cricket Code” throughout the Digicel Series – and our dedicated cricket website www.digicelcricket.com will feature lots of exclusive content, updates and interactions – so that fans can get the most out of the cricket action,” continued Donnelly.

Digicel also unveiled its brand new cricket campaign, “WI All In”, for the first time. “WI All In” is a full, through the line campaign which puts cricket fans at the centre of the action – making them the heroes of the game.

“It shows how cricket is deeply ingrained in the culture of the Caribbean; how important the fans are to the game of cricket; how their enthusiasm and support can fire up a team to achieve new heights of success; and of course how important the fans and their passions are to us at Digicel,” said Donnelly.

Following on from Saturday night’s World Premiere in Jamaica, each of the eight Digicel Series host countries – St. Lucia, St. Kitts & Nevis, Barbados, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Antigua & Barbuda, Jamaica and Dominica – will host a screening of ‘Fire in Babylon’ as their pre-match corporate event.


ABOUT THE DIGICEL SERIES 2011

The Digicel Series 2011 kicks off on Thursday April 21st when the West Indies Cricket team take on Pakistan in the Beausejour Cricket Grounds in St. Lucia. The Pakistan tour will then visit Barbados and Guyana before finishing up in Dominica on May 24th.

The West Indies v India tour begins on June 4th in Trinidad & Tobago’s Queen’s Park Royal. The teams will then play in Antigua & Barbuda, Jamaica and Barbados before finishing in Dominica on July 10th.

ABOUT FIRE IN BABYLON

In a turbulent era of apartheid in South Africa; race-riots in England and civil unrest in the Caribbean, the West Indian cricketers struck a wonderfully defiant blow at the forces of white prejudice world-wide. Told from a West Indian perspective, in their own words, “Fire in Babylon” celebrates the emancipation of a people through sport, whilst painting a fascinating picture of this extraordinary era of sporting dominance and its roots in politics, pride, anti-colonial fury and music.

With Caribbean flair, fearless spirit and a thumping reggae beat, they hijacked the genteel game of the privileged elite and replayed it on their own terms.

Directed by Stevan Riley (Blue Blood), produced by Charles Steel (the BAFTA-winning The Last King of Scotland), and John Battsek (the Oscar-winning “One Day In September”), with Ben Goldsmith and Ben Elliot as executive producers, “Fire In Babylon” boasts dynamic archive and classic music by the likes of Bob Marley and the Wailers, Gregory Issacs and Burning Spear.

ABOUT DIGICEL GROUP

After ten years of operation, Digicel Group Limited has 11.5 million customers across its 32 markets in the Caribbean, Central America and the Pacific. The company is renowned for delivering best value, best service and best network.

Digicel is the lead sponsor of Caribbean, Central American and Pacific sports teams, including the Special Olympics teams throughout these regions. Digicel sponsors the West Indies cricket team and is also the title sponsor of the Digicel Caribbean Cup. In the Pacific, Digicel is the proud sponsor of several national rugby teams and also sponsors the Vanuatu cricket team.

Digicel also runs a host of community-based initiatives across its markets and has set up Digicel Foundations in Jamaica, Haiti and Papua New Guinea which focus on educational, cultural and social development programmes.

In 2004, Digicel developed Digicel Rising Stars – an annual talent show to support aspiring young music artists in the Caribbean. The show has spanned the Eastern Caribbean, Haiti, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago ranking as one of the top-rated shows.

Digicel is incorporated in Bermuda and its markets comprise: Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Aruba, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Curacao, Dominica, El Salvador, Fiji, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Martinique, Nauru, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, St Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Suriname, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos and Vanuatu. Digicel also has coverage in St. Martin and St. Barts in the Caribbean.


Visit www.digicelgroup.com for more information.

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