BP gets set to fuel the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games

BP, one of the world's leading international oil and gas companies, can be revealed as the latest Official Partner for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

The company will also become an Official Partner of Team Scotland and Team England at the largest multi-sport event Scotland has ever seen.

As part of the support for Glasgow 2014, BP will provide advanced fuels for the official Games vehicles.

The Partnership with Glasgow 2014 will see BP launch a mentoring scheme for 65 young people aged between 17-21 to help give them the chance to develop skills that will help make them more employable. They will also take part in a number of projects in their local communities reflecting BPs commitment to Scotland, their Glasgow 2014 partnership and the Games legacy.

The Games will take place in Glasgow from 23 July to 3 August 2014 and will feature 6,500 athletes and officials from across the 71 Nations and Territories of the Commonwealth.

Lord Smith of Kelvin, Chairman of Glasgow 2014, said:

“We are delighted to welcome BP into the Glasgow 2014 sponsor family as a company with such a strong global brand, but with roots that are firmly in Scotland.

“This is an exciting partnership and with BP’s successful track record in supporting sport, we are looking forward to developing some exciting opportunities with them from now until Games time.”

Peter Mather, BP’s Group Regional Vice President for UK/Europe said:

“We are delighted to be supporting the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014 which follows naturally on from our major partnership with the London Olympics and Paralympics.”

“We are committed to help the organising committee deliver outstanding Games for Scotland and the UK.”

Trevor Garlick, BP North Sea Regional President, added:

“BP is a major employer and investor in the North Sea and is committed to continuing its long history of supporting the wider communities in which it operates. We are pleased to be contributing to what will be a fantastic festival of sport.”

Minister for Commonwealth Games and Sport, Shona Robison, said:

“As a world leading company with a big presence in Scotland, BP’s support for the Commonwealth Games is extremely welcome. BP now joins a growing list of major companies involved in making next year’s event truly spectacular.”

Councillor Archie Graham, Executive Member for the Commonwealth Games at Glasgow City Council, said:

“I am delighted that such a renowned global company, with such strong links to Scotland, will become the fuel sponsor for the Games. I know that BP have a long history of sponsoring major sporting events, and this partnership will no doubt be as successful as those in the past.”

Michael Cavanagh, Chairman Commonwealth Games Scotland, said:

“We are delighted that BP has signed up as a sponsor of both Glasgow 2014 and Team Scotland. We are particularly pleased to see that a worldwide company with such strong Scottish roots has made a further commitment to invest in world-class athletes and sport events of this stature. We look forward to sharing our journey to the Games with them over the coming months.”

Stef Reid London 2012 Paralympic Games silver medallist in the long jump said:

“BP’s on-going support has made a huge difference to me personally, allowing me to stay focused on my training. It’s also made a huge difference to all those athletes who will represent Team England and Team Scotland.

“After winning a silver medal in the London 2012 Paralympic Games, I’m excited about making my mark in history and will attempt to compete for Scotland in Glasgow 2014 in the able-bodied long jump.”

Jessica Ennis-Hill, London 2012 Olympic gold medallist said:

“It is fantastic news that BP is to be a partner for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. It is important to the organisations as well as the athletes that such strong brands are there to give their support.”

Further information

Contacts

BP Press Office, Sheila Williams +44 207 496 4851, sheila.williams@uk.bp.com

stephanie.todd@glasgow2014.com: 030 2014 0611 

Note to Editors

• The Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving 71 teams of athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years. Glasgow 2014 will be the XX Commonwealth Games and will be held from 23 July to 3 August. It will feature 17 sports in 11 days of competition with 261 medal events on show. The Games will play host to 6,500 athletes and officials and sell 1,000,000 tickets with the event aided by an army of 15,000 volunteers. Glasgow 2014 Ltd is the official name for the Organising Committee tasked with delivering the Games in partnership with the Scottish Government, Glasgow City Council and Commonwealth Games Scotland.
• BP was tier-one partner for the London 2012 Games, as well as Official Oil and Gas Partner, Sustainability Partner and the Official Carbon Offset Partner with Target Neutral and Premier Partner for the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival.
• BP is of one of the world's leading international oil and gas companies. It operates and markets its products in more than 80 countries and employs over 85,000 people. Its interests and activities are covered in two business segments: Exploration and Production, and Refining and Marketing. Exploration and Production's activities include oil and natural gas exploration; field development and production; hydrocarbon transportation, storage and processing; and the marketing and trading of natural gas including liquefied natural gas (LNG). Refining and Marketing's activities involve the supply and trading, refining, manufacturing, marketing and transportation of crude oil, petroleum and petrochemicals products. Its activities in low-carbon energy, primarily focussed on biofuels, are managed through our Alternative Energy business.
• Glasgow 2014 family of official sponsors is Longines, SSE, Emirates, Virgin Media, BP, Harper Macleod, Search Consultancy, Ernst & Young, Atos, Dell, Toshiba TEC, A.G. Barr, NVT Group, Cisco, RGS, Trespass, Riedel and Ticketmaster.
• The idea of the young people's programme is to give 65 young people the opportunity to develop skills that will make them more employable by taking part in a number of projects in their local communities. The young people will be mentored during the project by BP employees. The project is expected to start in late summer and continue through to August 2015. BP is providing the funding for the project. The scheme builds on the success of BP's London 2012 Young Leaders Programme, which took 100 young people from disadvantaged backgrounds around the UK, and through coaching and training, enabled them to have better opportunities for jobs. The scheme was so successful that 84 people at the end of the two-year programme achieved positive outcomes, including places at university or full time employment.