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Allianz today took another significant step into the world of women’s golf as they announced they are partnering both Spain’s Beatriz Recari and the 2013 Ricoh Women’s British Open.
Allianz, one of the world’s strongest financial communities, is already an important and prolific supporter of golf globally. Since 2009, they have been a global partner of St Andrews Links in Scotland, the Home of Golf, and a partner of Golf Club St. Leon-Rot in Germany, initiator and organiser of the very popular junior golfing initiative Lucky 33. Further more, Allianz Life in the US is a long-term title sponsor of the ‘Allianz Championship’, an annual PGA Champions Tour Event taking place in Florida.
At the end of last year Allianz announced it would support the Solheim Cup 2015, the most prestigious women’s golf event in the world, taking place at Golf Club St. Leon-Rot. This, combined with the new partnership announced today, represents a significant step for women’s golf and a strategic statement for Allianz as they commit to both a global golfer and a Major Championship. In celebration, Allianz has launched an online gathering point for golf fans, facebook.com/AllianzGolf. They have opened up a competition giving away spots to play with Recari in the Pro-Am at St Andrews Links on 30 July 2013, before the Open.
Dr. Christian Deuringer, Head of Global Brand Management, Allianz SE said, “Allianz has been a strong supporter of golf for many years. We are now taking our engagement to new places, in new directions, and pioneering innovative ways to build on the success we have achieved to date and to reach new audiences. In particular we will focus on working with partners like St Andrews Links and Golf Club St. Leon-Rot to make golf more accessible to new players, especially women and youth. We are therefore delighted to make this announcement today, as we are sure that Beatriz Recari and the Ricoh Women’s British Open together with our other partnerships will offer us all the elements we are looking for to further develop our global golf programme. We look forward to the summer ahead!”
Beatriz Recari, a winner on both the LET and LPGA Tour is currently at a career high No. 24 on the Official Rolex Rankings. In 2012 she played 27 events and made a phenomenal 27 cuts and in 2013 she began the year with two top five finishes before winning the Kia Classic in a thrilling play-off. She will not only be the main female face of Allianz’ social media and digital golf programme this year, but she will also become a mentor for a soon to be announced young golfer’s initiative taking place at St Andrews Links in September 2013.
The Ricoh Women’s British Open will take place at The Old Course, St Andrews from 1 – 4 August and is the most international of the majors with last year’s field including 27 nationalities and 20 Major Champions. The 2012 edition took place at Royal Liverpool and South Korea’s Jiyai Shin won her second Ricoh Women’s British Open title.
Recari commented, “Allianz is a fantastic brand and I am so pleased that they have chosen to work with me. They have great credentials in both business and golf and I am excited to be a part of their plans going forward. I hope that I can deliver on course and help Allianz achieve their goal of inspiring the next generation of young golfers.”
IMG Tournament Director, Ross Hallett, added, “On behalf of IMG and event owner, the Ladies Golf Union, I am thrilled to welcome Allianz as partner to the Ricoh Women’s British Open. We have developed the Ricoh Women’s British Open into a leading event that is an attractive platform for a blue-chip brand like Allianz. They have exciting plans for women’s golf and their work with young golfers developing their game is growing all the time. We very much look forward to working with Allianz not just this year, but hopefully in future.”
This year fans will again be able to watch the BBC’s extensive live coverage of the Ricoh Women’s British Open in HD (high definition) on all four days of the Championship, underlining the significance of the event in the BBC’s sports portfolio.
The Ricoh Women’s British Open was founded by the LGU in 1976 and is staged in conjunction with IMG, the world’s largest sports marketing company. The event has been co-sanctioned by the LPGA and LET since 1994 and gained Major status in 2001.
Ricoh, the leading technology provider of Managed Document Services and Production Printing, has been the title sponsor of the Ricoh Women’s British Open since 2007.
The Allianz Pro-Am competition to play with Beatriz Recari at St Andrews Links on 30 July closes on 15 July 2013. To enter, visit facebook.com/AllianzGolf.
