“As a long-standing partner of the Clown Doctors, Škoda Auto is supporting this special organisation this year with another Enyaq iV. And as an important part of our cultural sponsorship in the Czech Republic, the Zlín Film Festival is the perfect setting for the handover of this uniquely designed vehicle: just as with the Clown Doctors, the initiators have always been particularly keen to bring joy to children and provide moments that will be remembered. We are very pleased that this year we can use the reach of this event to draw even more attention to the Clown Doctors and their outstanding work.”
Maren Gräf, Škoda Auto Board Member for People and Culture
The external look of the fully electric Enyaq iV “Clown Car” is a result of the children’s art competition titled “A Car for the Clown Doctor”. The second year of the competition was announced by the car maker in the spring of this year. An expert jury selected ten finalists from the submitted proposals, which were then put to public vote on the website https://autoproklauna.skoda-auto.cz. The winning illustration is by 8-year-old František Hanko. Specialists in the Design department then finalised the process by transferring the illustration to the car in the form of a professional foil wrap.
This is the third Škoda Enyaq iV in a row created for this purpose. The first two Enyaq Coupé RS iV models were presented in September last year. This year marks the 21st anniversary of cooperation between Škoda Auto and the Clown Doctor non-profit organisation. The car maker has also donated CZK 1 million in financial support to the Clown Doctor organisation.
The car was presented at the Zlín Film Festival as part of the Škoda Auto Day which hosted a number of attractive activities throughout Friday. Craft workshops for children were also available for kids wanting to try rock painting or creating their own vision of how an electric car should look. The Škoda Auto Day also featured the Škoda EDU.Lab mobile laboratory which gave visitors the chance to experience state-of-the-art technologies used by the manufacturer, such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence and 3D printing.
Since 2001, Clown Doctors have been giving joy and laughter not only to sick children, but also to lonely seniors as well as healthcare professionals and other people around them. The mission of a Clown Doctor is to bring good spirits, and most importantly a sense of hope to places such as hospital children’s rooms, specialised outpatient departments, sanatoriums, day care centres and households caring for critically ill children.
There are close to one hundred professional Clown Doctors in the Czech Republic who regularly visit dozens of hospitals, retirement homes, and one hospice. The number of supported locations continues to grow. The care Clown Doctors provide to improve the mental condition of patients during hospitalisation is beneficial not only for the patients and their families but is also uplifting for the attending healthcare personnel.
The partnership between Škoda Auto and the Zlín Film Festival and with the Clown Doctor organisation is now entering into its 21st year. Giving support to cultural activities and disadvantaged children and helping healthcare and social organisations is firmly rooted in the corporate social responsibility principles of the manufacturer from Mladá Boleslav.