BP brings Olympic and Paralympic spirit to Chicago as sponsor of World Triathlon race
CHICAGO – BP announced today that it is a main sponsor and the official energy partner of this weekend’s International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Triathlon Chicago, furthering its long-running association with US Olympic and Paralympic sports.
“As a proud partner of the United States Olympic Committee, BP is honored to sponsor ITU World Triathlon Chicago, where triathletes from across the globe will compete for a chance to represent their countries in the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” said Luis Sierra, president of BP Chemicals. “We’re particularly excited about supporting this weekend’s paratriathlon, which makes its Paralympic Games debut at Rio 2016, given that we’ve long been a leader in backing both U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes.”
Chicago is the only US city to host one of the eight ITU World Triathlon Series events in 2014. The results in these Olympic-distance events are part of the qualifying process for national triathlon federations looking to field teams at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
BP America announced its sponsorship of US Olympic Committee and Team USA in February 2010, and, in 2011, the company extended its partnership with the USOC as its official energy partner through 2016.
BP America and its local BP-branded fuel retailers have been building awareness of Paralympic sports in the US through grassroots support of Paralympic Sport Clubs. Since 2011, BP-branded retailers in 13 states have donated more than $700,000 to their local Paralympic Sport Clubs.
In 2013, the USOC recognized BP’s commitment to US Paralympics with its Paralympic Amazing Impact Award, an honor given annually to organizations that raise awareness and support for the US Paralympic Movement.
In conjunction with this week’s races, BP is also sponsoring an adaptive bicycling demonstration organized by Chicago-based paratriathlon club Dare2tri for children with physical disability or visual impairment on Friday, June 27th from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the 31st Street Marina located at 3155 South Lake Shore Drive. Interested participants should contact Dare2tri at (847) 942-6937.
About BP
Over the past five years, BP has invested nearly $50 billion in the US – more than any other energy company. BP is a leading producer of oil and gas and provides enough energy annually to light nearly the entire country for a year. Employing approximately 20,000 people in all 50 states, BP supports more than 260,000 jobs total through all of its business activities. For more information, go to www.bp.com/us.
