Citi’s Paralympic ads reframe the question the athletes so often get: ‘What happened?’

Citi is reframing perceptions about people with disabilities in a Paralympic campaign from Publicis that responds to common questions about the cause of athletes’ impairment with unexpected answers. The ads, which launched during the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony, redirect the question “What happened?”—usually a query about what caused the athlete’s disability—with narratives about the athletes’ achievements. Two spots directed by Cole Webley highlight athletes Alice Tai (Great Britain) abd Trey Jenifer (USA), who detail their accomplishments to curious passersby. Additional digital posts for social media, photographed by Jordan Nicholson, who himself has TAR syndrome, detail how six Team Citi Paralympians, including Scout Bassett (USA), Lauren Steadman (Great Britain), Diede de Groot (Netherlands) and Ntando Mahlangu (South Africa) are working to change the narrative for adaptive athletes and people with disabilities. The idea came from Paralympians themselves, who often receive the question. The campaign is an evolution of Citi’s “Stare at Greatness” campaign from the 2020 Summer and 2022 Winter Paralympics, which highlighted how we’re often told not to stare at individuals with disabilities. The campaign then posed the question of whether it would be OK to stare if they were a Paralympic gold medalist competing at the highest level. The campaign will run on linear TV and digital. More Creativity coverage from Ad Age: Sign up for our daily Creativity newsletter to see the best stories of the day.

Citi’s Paralympic ads reframe the question the athletes so often get: ‘What happened?’

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