180-Year Old Boat Race Scores New Title Sponsor
The Boat Race, an annual rowing competition between Oxford and Cambridge that draws over 300,000 spectators to the River Thames, has scored a new title sponsor. BNY Mellon has announced it will sponsor The Boat Race, an event first held in 1829 through a five year agreement starting in May. The 2013 Race formally titled The BNY Mellon Boat Race.
At the same time, Newton, a BNY Mellon company and one of the UK’s leading investment firms, will continue their sponsorship of the openweight Women’s Boat Clubs in a joint initiative that will bring the Newton Women’s Boat Race to the Thames in 2015 to race on the same day and the same course as The Boat Race. Over 300,000 people watch the Race from the riverside and the event is shown live on BBC TV as well as being transmitted to over 200 countries around the world.
“In BNY Mellon we have a sponsor who values the history and heritage of the Race but is also committed to enhancing the event’s appeal to a UK and global audience," Robert Gillespie, Chairman of The Boat Race Company Ltd., said. "Newton has provided incredible support in the development of the Women’s Boat Clubs over the past two years and we are very excited about the prospect of the Women’s Boat Race coming to London in 2015. We are greatly looking forward to working together with both BNY Mellon and Newton to further enhance and develop the event.”
“The Boat Race is one of the world’s most famous sporting events with a rich heritage, and it is a great privilege and pleasure for BNY Mellon to be the title partner," Gerald L. Hassell, chairman, president and chief executive officer of BNY Mellon, commented. "In addition, we are pleased that Newton’s continued support of the women’s race is to bring parity to the sport. Being able to bring the women’s race to the same stretch of river on the same day for the first time is a significant milestone, and will enhance the experience for everyone. This is good for rowing, for gender equality, and for sport as a whole.”
Billed as one of the oldest sporting events in the world, Cambridge currently leads Oxford 80 to 76 in wins.
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