Subscribe to L2P News London, UK. 15 June 2010
The London-Paris 2010 peloton heads out on the road on June 24th supported by an impressive coalition of sponsorship partners. Riders for 2010 include Olympian Rebecca Romero, Tour de France winner Stephen Roche, former Team Sky sports director Scott Sunderland, former England rugby captain Will Carling, ex-Formula-1 world champion Nigel Mansell and former England footballer Geoff Thomas.
This year’s L2P partners are adidas, Science in Sport, Specialized, Cyclevox, Sigma Sport, Mavic, Ambrosia, Map My Tracks, DHL and Sportique.
Global sports brand adidas, who have partnerships with many of sport’s worldwide superstars, have backed The L2P since 2008. adidas athlete, Olympic gold medallist James Cracknell, has twice joined the peloton.
Mark Sinclair, adidas senior sports marketing manager, who’s also ridden The L2P, said: "The L2P has grown to become one of the world's most prestigious cyclosportives and we're proud at adidas to have been part of that success. The L2P is a well-organised, professional event and in our view unparalleled. As our brand's stature in cycling grows, we place ever more importance on speaking and riding with our consumer. The L2P brings a fantastically diverse group together each year, from cycling legends to virtual beginners and we all value the experience every time. Impossible is Nothing".
Pete Slater, of sports nutrition company Science in Sport, is a sponsorship partner and L2P rider. SiS provides nutritional advice and products to many of the world’s top cyclists and athletes. Slater’s company entered last year’s L2P and rode away with the honours. Team SiS rider Andy Tinsley was awarded the men’s yellow jersey and the team were presented with the overall team title.
Slater said: “We have supported - and rode - the London-Paris for a number of years and are looking forward to this year’s event. The L2P is the closest thing many people will get to the Tour de France so it’s a great opportunity for new and experienced cyclists to challenge themselves on an endurance event.
“Effective sports nutrition is key to successfully competing in a sportive such as The L2P and our range of energy, hydration and recovery products is proven to help all riders compete at their performance best.”
550km on the bike can be uncomfortable if riders don’t look after their soft bits! Sportique is an innovative company with a growing reputation in sport as suppliers of natural, anti-allergenic body care and protection products for sportsmen and women.
Jan Pivoda, Sportique's founder and president, said: "SPORTIQUE products are created for and by physically active people. They are formulated especially for the demands of any sport. Our mission is to provide athletes with the purest of products, made with natural ingredients and free of petroleum or synthetics. Sportique remedies have been used for hundreds of years by our European ancestors who turned to nature to ease, soften and soothe their skin. We always enjoy our involvement with The London-Paris and we hope we contribute to a smooth and comfortable ride on the road to the French capital."
Having the right kit and equipment will ease the push to Paris and Sigma Sport, based in Kingston-upon-Thames and online, is one of the UK’s leading cycling retailers, who specialise in cycling equipment and service to road cyclists and triathletes. Sigma Sport director, Ian Whittingham, said: “Having Sigma Sport affiliated with such a great event is something we are very proud of. Most of us at Sigma Sport have ridden the event and we know just how much work goes into making the event come to life".
Eating the correct energy-boosting food is vital to riders participating in a multi-stage cycle event like The L2P and, for 2010, Ambrosia again joins the sponsorship team. Ambrosia, manufactured by global food leader Premier Foods, has a heritage dating back to 1917 and is one of Britain’s best-loved and well known food brands. For a second year, Ambrosia will be supplying The L2P riders with rice and custard pots.
Helen Kemish, Ambrosia’s senior brand manager, said: “Ambrosia rice and custard pots are perfect little energy providers and it’s great to be supporting the L2P event again this year.”
New partners for 2010 are the legendary yellow support cars of the French wheel makers, Mavic. As in the Tour de France and Paris-Roubaix, Mavic’s technicians will provide neutral assistance and mechanical support to The L2P riders on the road to Paris.
Alex Coventry, Mavic’s UK sales manager, said: “The L2P is now seen as a ‘must do’ event and it is the dream of most sportive riders to take part. Mavic is proud to bring a little more Tour de France flair to the event and we look forward to helping on the road.”
The L2P/Mavic partnership was negotiated by sponsorship specialists, Cyclevox, who are also The L2P’s media partners. The Cyclevox camera crew follow every inch of the event, from start to finish, capturing the challenge as it unfolds. The team edit on the road, uploading daily web clips to the website and producing a full length DVD to commemorate the event just a few weeks later.
Cyclevox is a media and sponsorship consultancy that has brought many key partners to the London Paris. Director Anthony McCrossan said "We love being involved with London-Paris. Our management team have ridden the event in previous years and each year we marvel at the grit and determination of riders as they pedal to Paris. We cannot wait to edit the footage for 2010 and capture the pain, the emotion and the glory of this three-day challenge".
Cycle equipment giants, Specialized have a global reputation for innovation and the company is known for its focus on riders’ needs through technically advanced products. The 11 L2P Ride Captains will be kitted out this year with Specialized Tarmac or Roubaix Expert bicycles, Specialized helmets and shoes.
Specialized’s managing director, Richard Hemington said: “Specialized are delighted to be the official bicycle partner of The London-Paris ride for the second year running. The London-Paris ride generates a huge amount of excitement amongst cyclists but also within Specialized. Being part of it all and sharing with the riders those special moments during the ride is a real privilege.”
The L2P 2010 is also introducing a new innovation with web specialists Map My Tracks, who will be providing real-time dashboard tracking of the riders as they power their way to Paris. The L2P website is expecting several hundred thousand unique visitors during the ride.
Nick Tatt, of Map My Tracks, said: “Map My Tracks joined forces with HotChillee for James Cracknell's End To End Relay Challenge last year and the interest was phenomenal. Map My Tracks provides GPS real-time tracking of sporting events and it's all about showcasing sporting achievement. This year, people all over the world will be able to track the progress of The L2P riders on the way to Paris. We'll also be updating The L2P website with video, photos and news. Map My Tracks coverage is a compelling, exciting and innovative way to follow the action."
Keeping 350 riders on the road and united with their bikes and baggage is a huge logistical operation and for 2010, world logistics leaders DHL have become L2P partners and entered a team in the ride.
Mark Taylor, DHL, business director, said: “DHL is looking forward to joining The L2P as logistics partner. We know how precious the bikes and equipment are to the riders and the successful running of the event and we will be taking good care of it all. Our business strives on working with interesting and challenging supply chains all over the world, as well as on-time delivery and we're delighted to be assisting such an exciting project as the journey from London to Paris.”
The London-Paris 2010 is now recognised as the UK’s leading cyclosportive. The popularity and profile of the event has grown along with its reputation as the closest the amateur rider can get to the Tour de France experience. The Daily Telegraph recently ranked the event as one of the world’s top 25 participation events, alongside the London and New York marathons. The event has also been named in the top ten of adventure events for women.
The L2P covers 550km in three days with a rest day in Paris and the event sold out in a record 20 hours when registration opened in November. Riders from the UK, China, the United States, Australia, Hong Kong and Europe besieged the L2P website.
Sven Thiele, director of The L2P, said: “The L2P has grown thanks to the enthusiasm and support of our community of riders and the generous and imaginative support of our sponsorship partners. The event began because a group of us wanted to see what was possible, we wanted to challenge ourselves. We rapidly realised that a lot of other cyclists wanted to do the same. It’s that shared sporting quest and shared sense of achievement that underpins everything we do at The L2P.”