Panasonic holds a send-off party for its advertising character, Japanese women's surfer Shino Matsuda, at the Paris Olympics! (LE VOLANT CARSMEET WEB) | Automotive Information and News
Presenting a giant surfboard-shaped handwritten message board for support
Shino Matsuda, who has been active as an advertising character for Panasonic Automotive Systems since November 2022, will represent Japan in the women's surfing event at the 2024 Paris Olympics, which will be held in France from the 27th of this month. In conjunction with this, a “Send-off Party for Shino Matsuda at the Paris 2024 Olympics” was held at Panasonic Automotive Systems in Yokohama on June 27th.
70 employees of the company gathered at the venue, and a talk session was held with Matsuda, President Masashi Nagayasu, employee representatives Ryohei Funato and Madoka Kono on the theme of the company's “comfortable travel design”. To improve the “comfort of travel” in the car, Matsuda brings his favorite stretch ball and aromas into the car to create time to relax. Traveling by car is an inevitable part of surfing competitions, so spending time in the car well seems to be the key to achieving good results.
Regarding the Olympics, he shared his thoughts, saying, “I think the powerful waves of Tahiti (French Polynesia), where the competition will be held, will make a great impression on people who are seeing surfing for the first time. I am feeling more and more motivated to show them something good.” He also shared his aspirations, saying, “I would like to ride some good waves that I can be happy with and come back with a medal.”
He plans to arrive in Tahiti about three weeks before the Olympics, and will be practicing and adjusting every day. He wants to get used to the local waves quickly and be able to ride waves in a variety of conditions.
During the talk session, a giant surfboard-shaped handwritten message board was handed over to Matsuda, and he was seen reading the heartfelt messages written on it. Furthermore, at the end of the send-off ceremony, President Nagayasu presented Matsuda with a large bouquet of flowers with meanings such as “hope,” “victory,” and “glory,” and employees sent him heartfelt cheers.
