The recent high-profile murder charge against double-amputee Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius has many of his corporate sponsors treading the media waters carefully and suspending sponsorships, including a couple in Orange County.
Pistorius has been charged with fatally shooting his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, last month at his South Africa home. He was arrested, granted bail, and now is due in court in June.
Among sponsors that have officially suspended support is Foothill Ranch-based eyewear maker Oakley Inc., part of the Luxottica Group in Italy. Oakley announced it had put its deal with Pistorius on hold a few days after the shooting.
“In light of the recent allegations, Oakley is suspending its contract with Oscar Pistorius, effective immediately,” according to a statement from Oakley spokesperson Cheri Quigley. “Our hearts are with the families during this difficult time and we’ll continue to follow the developments in this tragic case.”
The Iceland-based parent of Össur Americas in Foothill Ranch, which had been providing Pistorius with prosthetic running blades for more than six years, issued a statement via its website saying its “thoughts are with all affected parties during this difficult time” as it awaits the outcome of ongoing investigation. Össur designs and manufactures prosthetic limbs and orthopedic devices, some of them locally.
Other former corporate sponsors that have put some distance between their brands and Pistorius include Beaverton, Ore.-based Nike Inc.
Nike and Oakley both sponsor long rosters of athletes in various sports. Pistorius is the last high-profile athlete to be benched by the two brands in recent months—both cut ties with cyclist Lance Armstrong last year amid continued allegations that the seven-time Tour de France winner used performance-enhancing drugs. Armstrong later admitted using such drugs.
Montage 10th Anniversary
Laguna Beach-based Montage Hotels & Resorts announced a college scholarship sweepstakes through March 29 geared toward teen volunteers to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the opening of Montage Laguna Beach.
Five $10,000 college scholarships are being offered to contestants who talk about how they are inspiring and providing service in their communities. Contestants can submit a PowerPoint presentation or 200-word essay, with an optional complementary video.
Montage Hotels & Resorts said finalists will be judged on their level of community service, creativity of achievement, and inspirational value to others. Finalists will be announced on the contest website, montagehotels.com/memory, where visitors can vote for their favorite candidate. Public voting will determine the final five recipients of the scholarships.
Winners will receive a free trip for two to Montage Laguna Beach to meet with Alan Fuerstman, chief executive of Montage Hotels & Resorts. They will be highlighted on the contest website and in Montage Magazine’s fall issue as the Montage Memory Maker Ambassadors for 2013.
Montage Hotels & Resorts includes the flagship Montage Laguna Beach and two other locations in Beverly Hills and Park City, Utah.
—Heide Kulicke
UCI’s Zot Com
The athletic department at University of California, Irvine, has launched a social media center dubbed the Zot Com Command Center. The name derives from Peter the Anteater, the school’s mascot. “Zot” was the term used to suggest the noise that’s made by anteaters as they snap up their prey in the B.C. comic strip by John Hart.
UCI had an open house on March 7, with speakers including Matt Prince, the social media manager for the Walt Disney Co.
The center will coordinate the athletic department’s own website, 17 Facebook pages, eight Twitter feeds and other social media, including Instagram accounts.
The Zot Com center takes up the lobby of the school’s Mesa office building and features three 47-inch television screens, along with four computers and three 30-inch monitors used to follow the school’s sports content. Five undergraduate students, supervised by media relations staff members, will be working at the center.
Bits and Pieces
Costa Mesa-based Blue C Advertising has combined with Scarlet X Marketing in Ladera Ranch. Scarlet X President Dana Zamalloa will head a new division branded as Infusion Marketing. … Oncore Marketing & Media in Santa Ana has added Garden Grove-based private protective services firm Ki International as a client. Oncore will primarily be promoting Ki’s firearm and training courses through video production and online branding efforts. … Laguna Niguel-based mobile media and marketing consulting firm Monster Offers has signed with the Denver Post, the largest print publication in Colorado, with 695,000 daily readers.
