Supermarket Sainsbury‘s is to sponsor the British Athletics Summer series of sporting events this year following its success as lead sponsor of last year‘s Paralympic Games, it has been announced.
Sainsbury‘s will sponsor three world class athletics events over the course of the Summer, beginning with the Sainsbury‘s Grand Prix in Birmingham‘s Alexander Stadium on June 29-30th 2013.
The Midlands venue will also host the Sainsbury‘s British Championships on July 12-14th while the events will end with the Sainsbury‘s Anniversary Games at The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on July 26-28th.
Part of the grocer‘s legacy programme, the events follow its £2 million funding for schools and organisations providing backing to upcoming Paralympic athletes and ensuring they receive the coaching required to compete.
In the weeks that followed the Games, Sainsbury‘s created the Active Kids for All programme to help disabled children be included in mainstream school sports classes as well as backing the Sainsbury‘s School Games aimed at helping children compete at school, county and national level.
Sainsbury‘s CEO Justin King explained that the supermarket is eager to build on the inspirational achievements of athletes in the London Games, adding: “As the first ever sole-sponsor of the Paralympics, Sainsbury‘s saw firsthand the power of sport to bring people and communities together.
“We said at the time that we saw our involvement as much more than a one-off sponsorship – we wanted to be part of the movement, and to play our part in ensuring a lasting legacy building on the momentum created last Summer.
“Now with this partnership and our sponsorship of the Summer Series we‘re proud to be part of Britain‘s renewed love of athletes and sport for all, supporting our current crop of world class athletes as well as inspiring the sporting stars of tomorrow.”
