The happiness message behind a unique family relay race

In the increasingly popular world of running events, MB Ageas Life’s Happy Ekiden retains a distinctive charm. It has garnered widespread support from the community due to its humane message intertwined with exciting sports activities.

A festival for Vietnamese families

A semi-professional relay race for Vietnamese families, Happy Ekiden has been successfully held for four seasons, attracting thousands of participants nationwide. It remains the only large-scale semi-professional race organized by a life insurance company in Vietnam.

Ms. Nguyen Quynh Mai, Marketing Manager at MB Ageas Life, explained that the race follows the Ekiden relay format. Unlike typical races, each team member completes their leg and then passes the tasuki sash to the next runner. This relay format fosters team spirit and camaraderie to the fullest.

According to Ms. Quynh Mai, the most exciting aspect of Happy Ekiden is that each participating family team must consist of four members, including grandparents, parents, uncles, aunts, and children aged 3-15, forming a “Happy Team”. Race distances are designed to suit each team member, with clearly defined roles and collaborative efforts to overcome challenges and finish successfully. Happy Ekiden therefore emphasizes the journey of shared happiness rather than individual achievements, aligning with MB Ageas Life’s core message.

Happy Ekiden has made a significant mark in the community by enhancing family happiness, and has become one of the most appealing corporate-organized races in Vietnam, as evidenced by the growing number of participating families, from 200 in 2018 to 800 in 2023, with a record 20,000 participants.

Bringing “Healthy Happiness” to the community

“We believe that happiness stems from small, everyday moments,” said Ms. Quynh Mai. “Activities like exercising together lay the foundation for healthy happiness. This belief led us to make Happy Ekiden an annual event for Vietnamese families.”

Moreover, Happy Ekiden is a heartfelt community initiative. All ticket proceeds are donated to Operation Smile, which funds surgeries for children with harelips and cleft palates around the country.

Happy Ekiden is a key part of the “Healthy Happiness” brand campaign launched by MB Ageas Life in mid-2023. This campaign includes diverse community-oriented activities such as meditation experiences, “Healthy Happiness” talks, engaging social media mini-games, the Happy Ekiden race, the “With You, Tet Accompanies ...” campaign, the company’s seventh-anniversary celebrations, and “Nurturing Healthy Happiness” workshops providing life skills education.

Through such activities, MB Ageas Life has generated nearly 160,000 discussions, reached nearly 24 million people on social media in 2023, and ranked in the Top 6 of the 2023 YMI Brand Health Index (YOUNET INDEX).

“From the beginning, MB Ageas Life aimed to be a companion bringing happiness to Vietnamese families,” according to Ms. Quynh Mai. “Over the past eight years, our activities have focused on building a humane value chain, from providing optimal financial and insurance solutions to contributing to charitable funds, supporting the poor, and empowering children’s education. Continuing this mission, MB Ageas Life will undertake other meaningful activities to reaffirm our commitment to community development”.