LONDON, July 23, 2010 - Competitors racing in the Dextro Energy Triathlon World Championship in Hyde Park this weekend will receive the support of Britain's greatest multi-sport athlete Daley Thompson, who will attend the event to cheer on the triathletes, including All Blacks rugby legend Sean Fitzpatrick, raising money for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, Global Charity Partner to the International Triathlon Union (ITU).
As team coach for 25 Laureus fundraisers competing in Hyde Park, Thompson has lent his support to the competitors in the lead up to the event, providing tips and advice and hosting a training day, to ensure his team of triathletes are race ready.
One of the projects to benefit from the Laureus partnership with the ITU is the Midnight Basketball League in Lambeth, South London, an initiative that aims to give young adults an alternative interest between the hours of 10pm - 2am, when drug and crime activity is at its greatest. On Thursday, Laureus Academy members Boris Becker and Sean Fitzpatrick were joined by elite triathletes Jan Frodeno, Emma Snowsill and Simon Whitfield to launch the project.
Daley Thompson is a member of the Laureus World Sports Academy, a unique association of 46 of the greatest living sporting legends backing the Laureus charity partnership with the ITU, and will be joined in Hyde Park by fellow Laureus Academy Member, the legendary All Blacks rugby captain Sean Fitzpatrick, who will be one of the members of a relay team in the Olympic distance event. Thompson has also received the support of double Olympic 1,500 metres gold medallist and Academy Member Lord Sebastian Coe, who provided exclusive running advice for the Laureus fundraisers.
Speaking ahead of the Hyde Park event, Thompson commented: "The Laureus partnership with the ITU is a great initiative enabling sports enthusiasts to race at an iconic London 2012 venue alongside elite athletes, while raising funds for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. I've had great fun training the Laureus team, and have been really pleased with the commitment and level of fitness, so I'll be looking out for some impressive results in Hyde Park. The best of luck to Sean (Fitzpatrick) and the rest of the team!"
Laureus Academy Chairman and former 400 metres hurdles Olympic and World Champion Edwin Moses, who was at the announcement of the global charity partnership between Laureus and the ITU in Sydney in April added: "I am delighted with the support the Laureus Academy, including Daley Thompson and Sean Fitzpatrick in London and Miguel Indurain in Madrid last month, have shown for our exciting new association with the ITU. The partnership, which will run for at least two seasons, has been a great success in year one, and we look forward to building on this in 2011. Funds raised as a result of the partnership will benefit our 80 sports-focused projects worldwide, which have helped to improve the lives of over one million young people."
The Dextro Energy ITU World Championship series event in London, presented by Tata Steel, is the fifth of seven stages on the 2010 series. The race, which takes place on the London 2012 course, has attracted the world's best triathletes, including reigning World Champion, Britain's Alistair Brownlee, who will be joined by over 3,000 competitors. The event, which will be broadcast live on BBC 2 on July 25, 15.00-18.00; and live on red button from 13.00 - 15.00 on July 24, is also expected to attract thousands of spectators.
High res images of the weekends events will be available via http://drop.io/LaureusITU (password: Laureus). Further pictures will be available on http://www.laureusarchive.com/
Anyone keen to join the Laureus team fundraising effort at the Budapest World Final in September, or at any of the ITU World Championship events in 2011, should contact Campbell Gray at Laureus on 020 7514 2794 or Campbell.gray@laureus.com
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