Tero Pitkämäki (FIN) at the Helsinki press conference to announce the new sponsorship (© SUL)
Helsinki, Finland The Finnish capital, which hosts this summer’s 10th edition of the IAAF World Championships in Athletics, will continue to enjoy top international athletics competition at the very least until 2007 thanks to a new sponsorship agreement.
The deal sees the GE Money financing corporation become the title sponsor of the IAAF Grand Prix meeting in Helsinki.
GE Money is a part of the largest business corporation in the world, General Electric, and the meeting will be renamed as the 'GE Money Grand Prix'. This summer the competition will be held in Helsinki’s Olympic stadium on 25 July, the final warm-up event for the World Championships.
“Finnish Athletics is extremely happy to announce the new title sponsor for the Helsinki GP. GE Money has proven to be genuinely interested in developing athletics on various levels. For example, GE Money has announced plans for arranging an annual international Helsinki Junior GP for youth athletes,” commented Mr. Jari Töykkä, marketing manager of Finnish Athletics.
Taking place just two weeks prior to the World Championships, the GE Money Grand Prix 2005 will test out the renewed Olympic Stadium which has acquired a new back straight roof as part of its major refurbishment. The competition will attract many top level athletes to test the new Mondo-track, and will give the organisation its final dress-rehearsal.
The meet will also act as one of the last chances to qualify for the World Championships, as the last day for entries are just one day after the event.
Five to six Finnish throwers to battle for team places
For the Finnish audience it is naturally the men's Javelin Throw that will be the most interesting event of on 25 July. One of the Finnish throwers challenging for World Championship success is Tero Pitkämäki, an Athens Olympic finalist in the men's Javelin Throw.
“I have set my goal at 87.50m for the 2005 season. Based on my training I am fully confident that I will be able to throw that in July. I believe that there will be 5 to 6 Finnish guys throwing over the WCH A-standard, so a thrower who wants to participate the World Championships needs to be ready to throw well already in the GE Money GP, commented Pitkämäki.
“My training season has gone perfectly, right according to the plans of Hannu Kangas, my coach. I am going to do the final tuning for the summer in Portugal during the next two weeks,” says Pitkämäki.
Eläintarha will host the women's Javelin
This summer the Grand Prix competition will already have begun a day before the main action takes place in the Olympic Stadium. As on the 24 July the women javelin throwers will hold their competition on the legendary Eläintarha track. This event will open the renewed track that will act as a warm-up stadium for the World Championships. Women's Javelin competition will be an official event of Helsinki GP, and the competition will be free for public audience.
“The competition is part of our co-operation with the Helsinki City Council, and together we want to offer a great chance to see top level athletics for all the sports fans in Helsinki area. We want to thank all the fans for their enthusiasm and support, and that's why the competition is free of charge,” confirms Mr. Mikko Vanni, the chairman of Helsinki GP organising committee.
SUL
