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Alex Lo

A woman pharmacist beat close to 700 entries by coming up with what drug makers say is the most 'uplifting' name in a Chinese translation contest for new anti-impotence drug Levitra.

The winning name, Lap Wai Dai, was announced yesterday by pharmaceutical giants GlaxoSmithKline and Bayer Healthcare, which jointly produced the new sex drug. It will now be Levitra's Chinese brand name in Hong Kong.

A spokesman for the two companies explained the Chinese name: 'Lap means instant and wai dai means big in Cantonese. It's short and it will get the uplifting message across.'

Pharmacist Fu Yu,  32,  collected $5,000 for her troubles.

'I am interested in drug names because of my profession,' she said. 'It's purely a professional interest. My husband doesn't need the drug.'

The latest impotence cure will join Viagra and Cialis in a billion-dollar global market. It is estimated one in two men over the age of 40 experience varying degrees of erectile dysfunction.

A 2000 study published in the International Journal of Impotence Research estimated 1 million men in Hong Kong have the problem.

John Lo, general manager of Bayer Healthcare in Hong Kong, does not think it is a crowded market.

'Hong Kong is a stressful city. It is inevitable that the sexual performances of middle-aged men will be affected and they will be forced to seek help from modern medicine,' he said.

Chinese University urologist Chan Lung-wai, a consultant for the company, said: 'Erectile dysfunction should not to be taken lightly.

'The flaccid status of one's member is not just an embarrassing disappointment or a closeted secret. It should be regarded as an important indicator of one's health and a blocker of an otherwise cordial relationship.'

The Ten Finalists

Lap Wai Dai (Winner: instant big)

Lik Wai Dak (Special power)

Lok Wai Tat (joyous power)

Liu Wai Chong (Cure Impotence)

Lai Kor (Cantonese reference to Wai Kor, nickname of Viagra)

Loy Fei Chap (come on in)

Cheung Sat (always hard; Also Chinese name for tycoon Li Ka Sing's Cheung Kong Holdings)

Lei Wai Ta (you for her)

Li Wai Tsui (really fun)

Lik Wai tat (powerful and tough)



Uplifting name for yet another love drug is not lost in translation