Since 2015, MMVO has held the Mazda Ekiden road relay race in Guanajuato, where its plant is located, and opened the race to local residents in 2016. The company promotes Japanese culture in the region while providing a space where employees, their family members, and local residents can spend quality time together.
Part of the 16-km relay takes place on the plant grounds, providing an opportunity for participants to learn more about Mazda and the plant.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions in FY2020, it was not possible to bring participants together for the event as in ordinary years, so we held the Ekiden road relay race online with employees of MMVO and suppliers as well as local residents of Guanajuato and other states across Mexico participating. Taking advantage of the online environment, we made it a borderless event and also invited 23 teams of the Mazda Group from across Japan, Australia, Canada and the United States to participate. As a result, this year's Ekiden saw the largest turnout ever, with a total of 543 teams and 2,715 athletes in an enthusiastic show of sturdy legs.