Visa Olympics with Usain Bolt

I worked on a Visa brief at Saatchi’s in the run up to the 2012 Olympics. They’d shot a TV ad with Usain Bolt and wanted ideas other for digital/experiential they could do with him.  

My idea was to offer ordinary people the chance to race Usain Bolt over 100m. We would install a 100m long digital screen in (e.g.) Hyde Park. Alongside it is an Olympic quality running track. You can then run 100m alongside a virtual Usain Bolt.

Your times will be recorded in hundredths of seconds and displayed along with a photo finish on the screen. Microsoft Connect Cameras will capture your race and send you a video to post on your Facebook wall.

I had a second idea on the same brief called #OutTweetBolt. This was a challenge on Twitter to write a 140-character tweet faster than Usain Bolt can run 100m? 

Bolt's WR was 9.58s and  the World Touch Typing record is 212 words per minute (Barbara Blackburn in 2005) which is about 35 words in 10 seconds. Most people will probably manage about 10. Entrants log in to Visa’s website via a Twitter plugin.

A video shows Bolt breaking the 100m World Record in 9.58s and you have exactly that time to type a tweet. Whatever you’ve written by the time Bolt crosses the finish line will be automatically posted from your account with an #outtweetBolt hashtag. The person who can write the longest tweet (with no spelling mistakes) in 9.58 seconds, wins tickets to the Men’s Olympic 100m Final.