Tokyo 2020 Welcomes Japan Racing Association -- Sponsor Spotlight

(ATR) The Japan Racing Association (JRA) joins the Tokyo 2020 effort as an Official Contributor.

Tokyo 2020 organizers announced the agreement on Friday.

As an Official Contributor, the JRA will be responsible for the renovation of the Equestrian Park and financial support for the temporary overlay work for the Equestrian Park. They will be lending the Equestrian Park to Tokyo 2020 for free before and during the Games period and will be supporting the operation of the equestrian competition, including supplying veterinarians, according to a statement.

In welcoming the JRA’s support, Tokyo 2020 President Yoshiro Mori said in a statement "I firmly believe the Equestrian Park will become a legacy of the Tokyo 2020 Games for the global equestrian world and will help contribute to its future development."

The Official Contributor Program differs from the Tokyo 2020 Sponsorship Program in that it is intended to recognize non-profit organizations that are contributing to the delivery of the Games. The program allows Official Contributors to reference their involvement with Tokyo 2020 through the use o designations that explain their contribution within the territory of Japan.

New Title Sponsor for World Curling Championships

Private banking company LGT will be the title sponsor for the next four World Curling Championships outside of Canada.

The World Curling Federation says the sponsorship deal will run until the end of the 2021-2022 season, extending LGT’s long-running involvement with the sport of curling.

As part of the collaboration, the financial specialist will be integrated into the new World Curling Championships logo, beginning with the LGT World Women’s Curling Championship 2019 in Silkeborg, Denmark, from March 16-24, 2019.

The financial specialists were already a main sponsor of the European Curling Championships.

World Curling Federation President, Kate Caithness, said: "This announcement sets our sport in good stead for the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games cycle.

"It has been a pleasure working with LGT at our Worlds and Europeans in recent years and I look forward to continuing the excellent partnership."

FIH Reaches Agreement with Global Sports Commerce

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) and sports technology and management company Global Sports Commerce (GSC) have signed a partnership agreement.

The deal makes GSC a FIH Global Supplier for the next four years in the category of brand analytics and measurement. It includes the FIH Pro League from 2019-2022, FIH Series Finals in 2019 and 2021, and Olympic qualifiers for both men and women in 2019.

"We’re looking forward to our cooperation which will contribute to our mission to develop hockey on a global basis," FIH CEO Thierry Weil said in a statement.

"GSC is looking forward to facilitating 200 plus premier hockey matches across the globe with the best of its digital and technological solutions," CEO of Global Sports Commerce M.S. Murlidharan said.

WFDF Signs Two New Partners

The World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) recently approved two new partners for the next four years.

VC Ultimate is the official Apparel Supplier and Discraft the Official Disc Supplier in separate agreements reached with the WFDF.

VC Ultimate, based in Toronto, Canada, will be given the exclusive opportunity to develop and sell selected official event merchandise and apparel for the WFDF Ultimate Championship events from 2019-2022 while providing benefits to the players and teams, event organizers and the WFDF. The company will continue to work with the federation to develop and market WFDF-branded gear through their online stories in Canada, the USA and Europe.

The agreement with Discraft, which is based in Michigan, USA, gives the company exclusive rights to produce "Official WFDF Ultimate Discs" for sale through merchandise channels while supplying the "Official Game Discs" during all WFDF Ultimate Championship events.

The agreement, which also runs from 2019-2022, will include sponsorship of the WFDF World Team Disc Golf and Freestyle Championships. For events, Discraft will provide discounted rates on the purchase of discs for event sales and a number of official game discs. It will also provide discs and sponsorship funding to support WFDF’s development programs and general activities.

Written by Gerard Farek

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