NBA All-Star Kevin Love Wins Best Smelling Player Award

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., May 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Henkel's Right Guard®, the official deodorant and body wash of the NBA, awarded Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves with the "Best Smelling Player" award. Right Guard selected Kevin, the 2011 Kia NBA Most Improved Player, based on his determination to hit the showers immediately after practice and encourage his fellow teammates to leave the stink on the court.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20091111/HENKELLOGO )

"We admire Kevin for his hard work on the court, in the gym and in the locker room," said Toby Gubitz, vice president of marketing for Henkel's Right Guard. "He strives to be a better player and embraces a team mentality by always smelling his best."

This year Henkel launched the Right Guard Total Defense™ 5 Body Wash line, which includes Refreshing, Cooling and Hydrating variants. The gym-bag approved body wash is designed to deliver 18 hour protection to keep you at the top of your game.

The new line of body wash is just one way Henkel leads the consumer goods marketplace in innovation. These new products go beyond just getting off the grime and provide total body care for an enhanced user experience.

Aside from keeping the marketplace fresh, Henkel's Right Guard keeps athletes fresh, too. "Guys don't want someone on their team who literally stinks," said Kevin Love. "I appreciate that Right Guard recognizes my efforts to smell great even after a day on the court."

Love is partnering with Right Guard Body Wash to launch the "Love in the Shower" campaign. The campaign will kick off in May on ESPN, ESPN.com and ESPN mobile.  Fans and consumers can participate in the promotion at www.LoveInTheShower.com or www.facebook.com/rightguard and enter for a chance to win tickets to The Finals 2011.

Right Guard Total Defense 5 Body Wash

RIGHT GUARD® has been a high performance antiperspirant and deodorant brand since its launch in 1961 and is currently depended on by millions of people worldwide for providing unbeatable odor and wetness protection.  In January 2011, the brand launched new RIGHT GUARD® Total Defense 5™ Body Washes which are available in three varieties: Refreshing Body Wash with Electrolytes, Cooling Hair & Body Wash with Menthol and Hydrating Hair & Body Wash + Shaving with Protein.

About Kevin Love

Putting the entire NBA on notice with his consistently record-breaking performances, All-Star Kevin Love, recipient of the 2011 Kia NBA Most Improved Player Award, continues to prove that he is the real deal. One of the league's top rebounders, the 6'10" Minnesota Timberwolves power forward/center holds the longest streak for consecutive games recording double figures in points and rebounds since the NBA and ABA merger. Helping to lead Team USA to the gold medal in the 2010 FIFA World Championships, Love, a Santa Monica, Calif. native, was selected in the first round of the 2008 NBA Draft. He enjoyed a stellar college basketball career at UCLA, where he led the team to a Final Four appearance and earned honors as Pac-10 Rookie of the Year and a Pac-10 Player of the Year. In addition to his phenomenal play on the court, Love's funnyman personality has deemed him a media and fan favorite off of it as well. A social media superstar, Love is an avid Tweeter and shares his commentary on his popular GQ.com blog. Utilizing his platform as an NBA player to help others, each winter he hosts "Kevin Love's Coat Drive," collecting coats that are distributed to those in need. Love is the son of former NBA forward Stan Love and nephew of Beach Boys' singer Mike Love. For more information about Kevin, visit his Web site, KL42.com, and follow him on Twitter @kevinlove.

About Henkel

Henkel operates worldwide with leading brands and technologies in three business areas: Laundry & Home Care, Cosmetics/Toiletries, and Adhesive Technologies. Founded in 1876, Henkel holds globally leading market positions both in the consumer and industrial businesses with well-known brands such as Persil, Schwarzkopf and Loctite. Henkel employs about 48,000 people and reported sales of $20.07 billion and adjusted operating profit of $2.27 billion in fiscal 2010. Henkel's preferred shares are listed in the German stock index DAX and the company ranks among the Fortune Global 500.

Contact:
Colleen Meenan
Right Guard Associate Media and Integrated Marketing Manager
Tel: 480-754-7545
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Henkel