Through the Breaking2 endeavor, we not only created an understanding of the depth of innovation behind this attempt, but we more importantly brought to life less quantifiable components — the power of the heart and the mind.

Taking branded storytelling to the next dimension, we took a seminal sports moment, and told it through the National Geographic lens to create an empowering moment for mankind.

With breathtaking cinematography backed by a culturally-charged musical score, viewers found themselves rooting for each runner as their unique stories and personalities came to life. Despite the story’s heartbreaking outcome of barely missing the 2-hour mark, “Breaking2” was a win — inspiring, poignant and captivating — illustrating that there’s triumph and glory in not just winning, but in the journey it takes to get there, a message that mirrors the brand ethos of Nike and National Geographic and reaches far beyond the world of sports.

Bridging the Breaking2 race in May 2017 to the premiere in September, we drove awareness through short-form social storytelling — teasing out the athletes, science, and innovation that brought the whole journey to life.

On September 20, the branded content documentary premiered commercial-free on our cable network at 8pm EST. The film was made available the next day on 10 VOD platforms, including on YouTube in 34 languages. It was also broadcast an additional 33 times across our network, and on FS1. To drive awareness between the time of the marathon and the premiere, we conducted a robust tune-in campaign — priming entertainment, consumer and sports media to build momentum before “Breaking2” premiered.

With a consumer-first and mixed media distribution approach, we optimized engagement among audiences everywhere by leveraging traditional linear channels, digital, and VOD channel. We are still garnering 40K views a week on YouTube with no active marketing.

The film had a global reach of 231MM+ across platforms, 4MM+ documentary views and 124MM+ social impressions, with overwhelmingly positive sentiment. “Breaking2” generated 1.9MM+ views on YouTube alone, and six months on from the release, is registering on average 40K views per week on the platform.

In days following the premiere, the film achieved 180K impressions per social post, 360K impressions on Facebook, 282K views via YouTube and VOD, and 245K EST downloads. The film generated buzz outside of the sports pages with 43 pieces of consumer coverage, reaching a total of 963M+ readers.

“Breaking2” generated awareness and impact, connecting global audiences around a single sports moment. The goal was to break the 2-hour barrier, and though it didn’t happen, the partners told the story of the athletes who brought us just 25 seconds away, and have likely inspired the person who will prove no human is limited.

To quote “Breaking2” runner, Eliud Kipchoge, our goal in embarking on this unprecedented multimedia and consumer engagement co-production partnership with Nike was to “tell the world, no human is limited.”

A true feat in partnered content and entertainment, Breaking2 successfully combined Nike’s mission statement — “If you have a body, you’re an athlete” — with National Geographic’s commitment to premium science, adventure and exploration, and pursuit to go further, to create a universally poignant story about the power of human potential.

By joining forces, we were able to engage a global audiences — entertaining both runners and non-runners alike.

Leveraging a collaborative creative storytelling approach, we captured the power of human potential through the lens of the 2 hour marathon — creating a storyline so pure, it was impossible not to care.

“Breaking2” is not your typical heroic sports film. Framed by striking cinematography and emotional twists and turns, viewers got up close and personal with three super-athletes in incredibly intimate moments throughout the journey that bonded them. What could be viewed as a “sports” story was infused with heart to connect with new audiences, who care about science, exploration, and evolving the human journey.

What Nike brought to the table in terms of the creative idea for the challenge, National Geographic matched via consumer engagement, brand affinity and purpose.

The interest in viewing a two-hour marathon was transcended to a limitless, global audience and the distribution strategy was designed to meet the that interest.

Our brands share a long tradition of empowering people to test their own limits and break new ground; they encourage consumers to go “further” and “just do it.” Capitalizing on brand synergy and collective strengths, we developed a content partnership to explore human potential and tell the story of men attempting the impossible.

“Breaking2” chronicles the journey of three world-class runners as they attempt to run a marathon in under two hours. Bringing humanity and personal voice to the enormity of this moonshot moment, the branded film highlights the selection of runners, the identification of ideal marathon conditions and the creation of a running shoe that can make it all possible — all while channeling the main characters as a source of personal inspiration.

Together, our objectives were to create an inspiring, all-access documentary to capture the hearts and minds of a global audience to think about their own potential.