Maria Esther Bueno has teamed up with Pirelli as their brand ambassador and the company recently released a short promotional film that was aired during the Rio Open.
It brought the crowd to their feet cheering and waving several times during the tournament when it was aired and, during the semi finals, Maria Esther was in the commentary box to witness it.
She received a five-minute standing ovation and eventually was told by her SporTV Producer to stand up and acknowledge the appreciation as Rafael Nadal and Pablo Cuevas sat in their chairs on the changeover, somewhat bemused by the adoration.
“It was an incredible experience for me,” Maria Esther said. “It brought goose flesh to my arms and tears to my eyes to be the focus of such warmth.”
With the company’s kind permission, here is the Pirelli Ambassador video:
The film reflects the famous 2016 Pirelli calendar shot by the renowned American photographer Annie Leibovitz, who departed from a tradition established over 50 years ago.
The distinguished women she photographed represent how much things have changed in the half century since the calendar first appeared.
“I feel very privileged that Pirelli wanted to promote me in a smilar light in the video,” added Maria Esther.
“Serena Williams is one of those incredible women featured in the calendar in recognition that she is probably the greatest female athlete of all time who changed the face of our sport.”
Unquestionably, Maria Esther did much the same thing when she came onto the tennis scene in 1958 to become number one in the world and lay the foundations for what has now become the women’s tour.
Serena is the only tennis player in the calendar and she is just one of the 12 remarkable women featured.
The others are Yoko Ono, Kathleen Kennedy, Patti Smith, Mellody Hobson, Yao Chen, Fran Lebowitz, Amy Schumer, Agnes Gunn and Sadie Rain Hope-Gunn, Shirin Neshat, Tavi Gevinson and Natalia Vodianova.
“They all look really amazing!” concludes Maria Esther, who posed against a similar backdrop for her video.
