McDonald’s Honors World’s Best Big Mac Builders With ‘First Medals’ of Beijing Olympic Games

- Olympians Carl Lewis, Gao Min and Wang Junxia Coach McDonald's Restaurant

                    All-Star Teams in Skills Competition

     - USOC Chairman Peter Ueberroth, IOC Managing Director Timo Lumme,

  Assistant to the President of BOCOG Tu Mingde and COC Deputy Director of

  Marketing Peng Xiao join Olympians and McDonald's Crew to Celebrate the

                               Olympic Spirit



    BEIJING, Aug. 7 /EMWNews/ -- The Official Restaurant of the Olympic

Games honored its best of the best restaurant employees - McDonald's

Olympic Champion Crew - who embody the Olympic ideals of excellence and

teamwork in Beijing today at a Big Mac Building competition. Olympic

officials and McDonald's executives joined world-renowned athletes,

including nine-time U.S. Olympic Track & Field gold medalist Carl Lewis and

Chinese Olympians Gao Min, two-time Diving gold medalist, and Track & Field

gold medalist Wang Junxia, to cheer on the company's all-star crew teams as

they demonstrated what they do best in McDonald's restaurants around the

world.



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    In this McDonald's Olympic event, crew competed for honors in four

categories: quality of food, teamwork and collaboration, celebration of the

Olympic Spirit and speed of service. The exhibition was held at the world's

largest free-standing McDonald's restaurant, located at the north end of

the Olympic Green, built to seat more than 1,000 customers.



    "These crew members exemplify the same spirit as the Olympic athletes

themselves and it showed during today's competition," said Jim Skinner,

McDonald's Chief Executive Officer. "Our outstanding restaurant employees

are the heart and soul of the company. They are being recognized for

providing the same efficient and friendly service to the international

crowds in Beijing as they do for customers every day in their hometowns,

all at the speed of service McDonald's offers worldwide."



    World-class Olympians Lewis, Min and Junxia coached McDonald's Olympic

Champion Crew as they showed off their skills in front of a crowd of

hundreds, including United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Chairman Peter

Ueberroth, International Olympic Committee (IOC) Managing Director Timo

Lumme, Assistant to the President of the Beijing Organizing Committee of

the Olympic Games (BOCOG) Tu Mingde and Chinese Olympic Committee (COC)

Deputy Director of Marketing Peng Xiao.



    "As a former McDonald's restaurant employee, I was proud to share in

this moment today with the McDonald's Olympic Champion Crew," said Olympian

Carl Lewis. "I needed dedication, energy and drive to compete as an athlete

and the same holds true for these outstanding crew teams."



    McDonald's has brought an unprecedented 1,400 McDonald's Olympic

Champion Crew representing 36 countries to the 2008 Games. They are serving

the world's best athletes, coaches, officials, media and spectators at four

new McDonald's Olympic venue restaurants. There is one in the Olympic

Village and one in the Main Press Center for the more than 30,000 media

expected, and two restaurants for spectators on the Olympic Green.



    "The McDonald's Olympic Champion Crew program demonstrates the very

ideals of the Olympic Movement - connecting cultures and communities while

celebrating excellence and achievement," said International Olympic

Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge.



    USOC Chairman Peter Ueberroth added, "Athletes and Olympic Committees

from every participating nation are positively impacted by the support

sponsors like McDonald's provide so that people everywhere can experience

the Games' core values of excellence, friendship and respect."



    While in Beijing, McDonald's Olympic Champion Crew will also experience

the fun and excitement of the Games and meet peers from around the world as

they attend Olympic events and visit China's cultural sites. Additionally,

they were invited to create short videos that express their Olympic spirit.

The top 22 "Olympic Spirit of McDonald's" (OSOM) videos are displayed on

http://www.mcdonalds.com, with the public voting for their favorite videos through

today, August 7. Winners will be announced on August 14 at an event in

Beijing.



    "It is a proud moment for China to host the 2008 Games, and I am

honored to welcome international guests at the McDonald's Olympic

restaurants," said Jiang Chuan, Olympic Champion Crew member and OSOM

finalist. Shan Libo, Olympic Champion Crew member from China, agrees.

"Thanks to this once-in-a- lifetime opportunity, I will create lifelong

memories and help my career development at McDonald's."



    McDonald's Olympic Games History



    McDonald's became an Official Sponsor of the Olympic Games in 1976 and

has a long-standing commitment to the Olympic Movement. At the 1968 Olympic

Winter Games, McDonald's airlifted hamburgers to U.S. athletes competing in

Grenoble, France, after they reported being homesick for McDonald's food.

Since then, the company has served its menu of choice and variety to

millions of athletes, coaches, their families and fans. The Beijing 2008

Olympic Games mark McDonald's sixth Olympic Games as a Worldwide Partner

and seventh as the Official Restaurant of the Olympic Games. McDonald's

current sponsorship will continue through the 2012 Games in London.

    About McDonald's



    McDonald's is the leading global foodservice retailer with more than

31,000 local restaurants in 118 countries. More than 75 percent of

McDonald's restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by franchisees and

affiliates. Please visit http://www.mcdonalds.com to learn more about the company.






    CONTACTS:



    U.S.-based contacts:

    Soraya Garcia, McDonald's

    (630) 623-2163

    [email protected]



    Emily Fullmer, GolinHarris

    (312) 729-4235

    [email protected]



    China-based contacts:

    Liz Woerth, GolinHarris

    (86) 1343-646-7143

    [email protected]



    Lisa Howard, McDonald's China

    (86) 1381-896-8969

    [email protected]

    To learn more about McDonald's Olympic Sponsorship Programs, visit

McDonald's Olympic Resource Center at

http://www.mcdepk.com/2008OlympicGames