Giant Cone Award Ceremony From Ms. Ayase to "The Boss of Hamamatsu" "Great work today!"

Ezaki Glico held the "Thank You for Your Hard Work! Giant Cone Award Ceremony 2016" on November 20 at the Jiji Press Hall in Chuo Ward, Tokyo.

Since April, the company ran the "Good Job! Giant Cone Twitter Campaign," where participants tweeted about their "hard work" for a chance to win prizes like Giant Cone ice cream bars with message cards from actress Haruka Ayase, the product's image character. They also ran a photo category where participants submitted "Good job!" themed photos.

Ayase, dressed in a red dress to match the Giant Cone, took the stage.

Six winners from the photo category received awards for posts like "I worked hard to create a surprise for a friend's wedding," "I worked hard with my daughter's intensive swimming training," and "I worked hard on a labor-intensive dish." The six winners, who received Giant Cone trophies directly from Ayase, expressed their joy with comments like, "I can't wait to show the trophy to my family," and "Meeting Ayase-san was the best reward."

Next, former professional baseball player Daisuke Miura, who retired from active play this season, was introduced as a special guest. Miura, who joined the current DeNA BayStars in 1991, excelled as a pitcher for 25 years and was beloved under the nickname "Hama no Bancho" (Hama's Boss) due to his hairstyle.

Meeting Miura for the first time, Ayase remarked, "I just can't help but notice your hairstyle," clearly fascinated by his pompadour. Reflecting on his career, Miura said with emotion, "I never thought I'd play for 25 years, and I'm surprised I managed to keep going that long. I decided to retire this year because I couldn't get the wins."

When the conversation turned to Ayase's long career as an actress, she laughed and said, "It's been a while," while promoting Giant Cone, which has been loved for 50 years. When she started to say, "50 years ago, Miura-san...," she hesitated. Miura replied, "I'm 43, so I wasn't even born yet," and the venue erupted in laughter. After a consistently warm conversation, including talk about TV commercials featuring pro wrestler Giant Baba, Ayase presented Miura with a trophy and bouquet, saying, "For 25 years of unceasing effort and for moving so many people." Miura beamed, saying, "Hearing 'Good job!' from such a popular actress is truly moving."

On stage, Ayase revealed her handwritten character for 2017 resolutions. Following "楽" (enjoyment) the year before last and "笑" (laughter) last year, this year's character is "信" (trust). She explained it embodies trusting herself and others, believing in the future, and having confidence in herself. She concluded, "Thank you for your hard work this past year. Let's keep health as our top priority and work together to enjoy many happy days next year too!"

Campaign site: http://cp.glico.jp/giant-twitter2016/campaign/