Raising fund & awareness for charity
(Cape Town, 04 July 2013) Sportingbet South Africa’s #BeTheStud for Charity campaign was a huge hit in the Twittersphere. Ten top media personalities took to Twitter at noon on Wednesday to get their hashtagged horse name mentioned as often as possible in order to propel their Nintendo 8-bit inspired horse across the finish line to win money for the charity of their choice.
“The race was designed to run for one hour,” says Scott Canny, Marketing Manager of Sportingbet. “We underestimated the passion and involvement of the followers – Craig Stack from MyCityByNight; Cale Pissarra from JustKickingIt; Sasha Martinengo from Ballz Radio and Dylan Moore, Mr Cape Town, were across the finish line in 20 minutes!”
The first of its kind, #BeTheStud was a hashtag-driven virtual horserace built to mimic the stages of the Durban July. Each of the ‘horses’ was handicapped, much as in the Durban July, but opposed to carrying actual weights, they were handicapped by the number of mentions needed to win the race according to the number of followers each had, to ensure they all stood a fair chance to win and support their charity of choice. The final field was announced the day after the Durban July Final field, and a Parade Ring went live on the BeTheStud website the same day.
“Our three winners are a perfect example of how the horses were weighted and how the underdog always stands a chance to win,” says Canny. “First place winner, Craig Stack, has just under 3,500 followers and had to get 150 mentions to cross the finish line; in second Cale Pissarra at almost 10,500 followers also needed 150 mentions & Sasha Martinengo at just short of 50,000 followers needed 350 mentions.”
#BeTheStud was trending in Cape Town, Joburg, Durban and South Africa, raising the profile of the race and by extension the charities selected. Of the R15,000 up for grabs from Sportingbet SA, Craig Stack won R10,000 for the JAG Foundation; Cale Pissarra won R3,500 for the Dirty Seagulls Foundation and Sasha Martinengo; sneaking in 2 minutes ahead of Dylan Moore; won R1,500 for Cupcakes 4 Kids with Cancer.
For the formal Durban July on Saturday 6 July Sportingbet SA is running a Pick 8 competition with the incredible prize of R1 million. The person who can pick the finishing order of the top 8 horses in the Durban July stands to win the prize. If no one gets it right the closest pick (the most horses in the correct finishing places) wins R10, 000. The competition is open and entry is free but you need to have a FICA verified Sportingbet account in order for your entry to be valid.
To see the final results of the #BeTheStud Unofficial Durban July 14th Race check out the Sportingbet #BeTheStud Winners Circle. You can also head to our Facebook Page or follow us on Twitter @SportingbetSA. To place your bets and stand a chance to win the Pick 8 competition, head to the Sportingbet Website.
About Sportingbet South Africa
Sportingbet is South Africa’s largest online sports book, covering the most sports, the most matches, the most markets, and the most in: play betting available in SA. Sports’ betting with Sportingbet is legal and regulated by the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board. With international affiliations, Sportingbet South Africa’s sports betting “product” is of the highest international standard and far more advanced than any other competitor. Sportingbet makes sports betting simple, safe and easy to access. Sportingbet is committed to promoting responsible betting.
