Title	THE BREAKAWAY: THE FIRST ECYCLING TEAM FOR PRISONERS
Brand	DECATHLON
Product/Service	SPORTS GEAR
Entrant	BBDO BELGIUM Brussels, BELGIUM
Idea Creation	BBDO BELGIUM Brussels, BELGIUM
Media Placement	BBDO BELGIUM Brussels, BELGIUM
Media Placement 2	SEMETIS Brussels, BELGIUM
Media Placement 3	Decathlon Brussels, BELGIUM
Production	FLEDGE Brussels, BELGIUM
Production 2	ERACINGTV Brussels, BELGIUM

Name	Company	Position
Frederik Clarysse	BBDO Belgium	Creative
Tom Jacobs	BBDO Belgium	Creative
Debby De Ridder	BBDO Belgium	Copywriter
Loes Fierens	BBDO Belgium	Agency Producer
Bram De Vidts	BBDO Belgium	Account Director
Evelyn Savels	BBDO Belgium	Account Manager
Alexander Neesen	BBDO Belgium	Account Manager
Wim Esteban De dobbeleer	freelance	Designer
Elena Haniotakis	BBDO Belgium	Designer
Jan Dejonghe	BBDO Belgium	Creative Director
Eva De Gendt	BBDO Belgium	Chief Commercial Officer
Thomas Lejeune Debarre	Decathlon Belgium	National Marketing & Communication Director
Michael D'hooge	Decathlon Belgium	Content Leader
Julie Nevejan	Decathlon Belgium	Leader national campaigns
Heather Loontjens	De Rode Antraciet	Sports Deputy
Pieter Van Caeneghem	Oudenaarde Prison	Prison Director
Kathleen Van De Vijver	Federal Justice dept	Spokeswoman

Why is this work relevant for Integrated?

The Breakaway is a multichannel campaign. It was led by a digital and PR initiative where prisoners are enabled to cycle online on Zwift, in an ongoing project. We amplified the meaning of this initiative in an online film, and documented the project’s impact in a podcast. Their race against a team of lawyers, judges and the Belgian Minister of Justice was broadcast live on Decathlon’s Facebook channel.

Background

Sport has many benefits. Not only on a health level, but also on an emotional and mental level. Decathlon’s purpose is to make sport and its benefits accessible to all. Even when it seems impossible. During the lockdowns in 2020 and 2021, we all felt a bit like prisoners. In the spring of 2021, Decathlon wanted to make “freedom” its central theme. We wanted an activation that demonstrated how sport can liberate people and fits in the company’s vision of making sport accessible.

Describe the creative idea

In a maximum security prison in Oudenaarde, Belgium, we launched the first eCycling team for prisoners. Decathlon provided them with clothes and equipment (bikes, trainers, …) to cycle on Zwift, a virtual world where 3 million cyclists race and ride together. Enabling them to ride with people from the outside world for the first time. As anonymous athletes instead of being labeled a prisoner or outcast. The project is ongoing, permanently reconnecting them with society from behind bars. In a podcast, we documented how riding online with others changed their life. In an epic race streamed live on Facebook by Decathlon, they even competed with a team of judges, lawyers, prison guards and the Minister of Justice.

Describe the strategy

We wanted regular sporters to have an emotional connection with the Decathlon brand. Instead of telling people sport changes lives, we actually changed the life of six people through sport. In Oudenaarde, the heart of international cycling, we used the Zwift platform, allowing six prisoners to ride online with other cyclists for the very first time. In an environment that only judged them on their performance on the bike, not on their past. To show the outside world how sport changes lives, we an emotional launch film where the prisoners tell about their connection to cycling. We let them tell their side of the story in a podcast, and broadcast their ultimate race live on Facebook.

Describe the execution

Special permission was given by the Federal department of Justice and Oudenaarde prison, to allow the prisoners to go online for the first time in history. Decathlon provided the equipment needed to ride on Zwift. To guarantee anonymity the prisoners’ Zwift avatars were named John Doe 1-6, the term for a defendant who remains anonymous in legal dossiers. The faces and identity of the prisoners were not shown in any way. The Breakaway was launched on march 31, 2021. From that moment, the prisoners started training and participating in races, preparing for a challenge on September 14, 2021: a race against a team of lawyers, prison guards, judges and the Minister of Justice. Between march and september, a podcast documented how the project changed their lives. The race was streamed live on Decathlon’s Facebook channel in a broadcast with commentary by the country’s most famous cycling commentator, Renaat Schotte.

List the results

The Breakaway project showed the real power of a virtual sport. It was discussed by all mainstream media in Belgium, and the international cycling press. In combination with the social reach by Decathlon, this reached over 15 million people and earned around 1.3 million in free media attention. In may, John McAvoy, ex-bankrobber and now an acclaimed pro triathlete, organized an official group ride on Zwift, creating a social event with hundreds of cyclists riding with the prisoners. After racing them live on Facebook on September 14, the Minister of Justice decided to expand the Breakaway project to all Belgian prisons. In collaboration with Decathlon, all prisons will be equipped with eCycling in the coming years.