Melbourne, 19 January 2024 — Leading life, health and wellbeing insurer AIA Australia has announced Australian female badminton champion, Gronya Somerville, as its new AIA Ambassador.
Ms Somerville has been a professional badminton player since 2012, competing in 2020 Tokyo Olympics and in three Commonwealth Games, with her sights currently set on Paris 2024 Olympics.
Stephanie Phillips, Chief Marketing and Shared Value Officer, AIA Australia, said: “We’re excited to welcome Gronya as our ambassador in a year where she has a chance to compete in a worldwide competition. As a professional athlete, she is an inspiring figure of her sport who has strong connections to its enthusiastic fanbase.”
“We share a mutual passion for health and wellbeing and for encouraging communities to stay active. We look forward to working with Gronya to help carry her message to inspire others to try badminton and for athletes to sharpen their skills.
“We continue to support and invest in women in sport as we are doing with Ash Barty, Stephanie Gilmore, Layne Beachley, and more. This partnership with Gronya further supports our commitment to help Australians lead healthier, longer, better lives.”
Ms Somerville said: “I’m thrilled to work with AIA, a life and health insurer that lives and breathes its commitment for health and wellbeing. I look forward to opportunities to promote healthy living on and off the court and have a positive impact on the wider community.”
Ms Somerville made history by becoming the first Australian to win a Grand Prix title – winning both the Canada Open & Dutch Open in the same year.
She currently balances her badminton career with post-graduate studies in Sports Management, as well as growing her business, BADFIT, an online training program specifically designed for badminton players.
This partnership comes after AIA announced it had partnered with Badminton Victoria to invest and support the sport and deepen its ties to the badminton community locally.
“While we do support sport codes that have large mass appeal such as the AFL, we’re also excited about the opportunity to lift other codes that may have smaller, but equally as passionate communities and followers, and where we know our participation goes a long way,” Ms Phillips added.
