| PowerBar and Ironman Extend Global Sponsorship Agreement |
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TORONTO, ON (December 22, 2008) – PowerBar, a division of Nestlé S.A., and the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC), owners of the Ironman brand, announced an extension of the exclusive three-year global sponsorship agreement. The deal designates PowerBar as the Official Global Energy Bar and Energy Gel Sponsor from 2009 through 2011 for all U.S. and international Ironman and Ironman 70.3 qualifying events, the Foster Grant Ironman World Championship 70.3 and including Ford Ironman World Championship, regarded as the world’s most challenging endurance event. In Canada, PowerBar® Sport Bars®, energy gels and recovery products, endorsed as Official Products of Ironman, will be on-course at the following three Ironman events in Canada: • Ironman 70.3 in Calgary on August 2, 2009 • Ironman Canada Penticton on August 30, 2009 • Ironman 70.3 in Muskoka on September 13, 2009 Additionally, PowerBar will be on course at more than fifty Ironman/70.3 events in more than twenty countries each year to deliver essential sports nutrition to Ironman competitors. Locations for these events include Singapore, Australia, Brazil, Arizona, California, and Germany. The nutritional needs of Ironman athletes are vast, with more than 25,000 units of PowerBar product consumed on Ironman race day alone. Athletes training for Ironman and Ironman 70.3 events will make PowerBar a key component of their training regimen, as athletes recognize the importance of training and racing with sports nutrition products that deliver consistent results. “The extended global partnership builds on a terrific relationship we’ve enjoyed with Ironman for years. It not only allows PowerBar to expand its range of technical sports nutrition resources into new markets, but also officially provides all Ironman athletes with the same critical PowerBar race-day nutrition tools that they’ve relied on throughout their training,” said Philip Annett, Global Business Head for Performance Nutrition at Nestlé Nutrition. “We look forward to collaborative marketing and education initiatives designed to support the world’s top endurance athletes and to expand the sport of triathlon and both our brands to a wider international athletic community.” PowerBar’s heritage with the sport of triathlon traces back to the company’s beginning. Over the past twenty years, thousands of triathletes worldwide have come to rely on PowerBar’s sports nutrition products for training and competition, including Canadians—three-time Ironman World Champion Peter Reid and Lisa Bentley, an eleven-time Ironman Triathlon Champion. “Ironman and PowerBar are both synonymous with authenticity, excellence, and performance. Ironman athletes have used PowerBar as an integral part of their training and race needs for years. The partnership worked extremely well over the last three years. Thus, Ironman and PowerBar are a natural fit for both brands’ first-ever global sponsorship,” said Ben Fertic, Ironman President and CEO. |
