John Hancock's #RunBold Campaign Results In 26 Remarkable Street Banners To Line Finishing Stretch Of 2016 Boston Marathon

BOSTON, April 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Each spring, John Hancock lines the city's streets with more than 500 Boston Marathon banners designed by the company in anticipation of the world's most historic race.

This year the final stretch of the race on Bolyston Street will be lined with 26 banners designed—not by the company but—by runners, volunteers and fans celebrating their unique Boston Marathon experience through the John Hancock Extra Mile #RunBold campaign.

"We simply were overwhelmed by the response and the remarkable submissions to our #RunBold campaign," said Rob Friedman, head of John Hancock Sponsorship and Event Marketing. "This was a first-of-its-kind social media campaign and it truly was hard to choose just 26 banners from the hundreds of submissions. I'm sure, however, that all of the runners, the world's elite included, will get a little extra lift as they come down Boylston Street and see these incredible banners hanging from the light poles. We thank everyone for participating."

The 2016 Boston Marathon banners focus on the theme of endurance and feature runners, volunteers or cheering fans, with one of twelve theme words associated with the Boston Marathon experience: Gratitude, Passion, Pride, Dedication, Inspired, Drive, Psyched, Believe, Heart, Strength, Glory and Spirit.

The #RunBold campaign was designed, to engage people to celebrate their unique involvement with the Boston Marathon, John Hancock invited people to create a personalized image of themselves on a digital banner featuring one of this year's theme words.

Individuals could save the images for themselves, or enter them for consideration to be crafted into one of 26 finishing stretch street banners, by posting the image on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook using the hashtag #RunBold.

Please take a look at the 26 digital designs that will be crafted into Boston Marathon street banners to welcome runners across the finish line http://www.jhextramile.com/runbold/featured-street-banners/.

"The images we received were inspirational, motivating, and truly captured the spirit of what it means to participate in the Boston Marathon," Mr. Friedman said.

The 2016 Boston Marathon marks the 31^st year of John Hancock's landmark sponsorship of the legendary race. For additional information about the elite athlete program and sponsorship, please visit www.johnhancock.com/bostonmarathon/sportspartnerships.html or follow us @jhboston26 on Twitter.

About JHextramile.com
JHextramile.com is a blog site established by John Hancock in 2013 to provide inspiration for going the extra mile in order to reach goals relating to personal health, fitness training, fundraising, or making a difference in the lives of family members, friends, or the community.  Occasional posts are made by experts and ordinary individuals with stories to share.

About John Hancock and Manulife
John Hancock Financial is a division of Manulife, a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada and the United States. Operating as Manulife in Canada and Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, our group of companies offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Assets under management and administration by Manulife and its subsidiaries were C$935 billion (US$676 billion) as at December 31, 2015. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife can be found on the Internet at manulife.com.

The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies, comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers and administers a broad range of financial products, including life insurance, annuities, investments, 401(k) plans, long-term care insurance, college savings, and other forms of business insurance. Additional information about John Hancock may be found at johnhancock.com.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160411/353694 

SOURCE John Hancock Financial