International Paralympic Committee Extends Global Public Relations Partnership with Edelman

BONN, Germany, 3rd July 2009 – The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced today that it has renewed its global working relationship with Edelman as its Official Media & Communications Agency.

Edelman will continue its work as a pro bono partner of the Germany-based IPC, the international governing body of the Paralympic Movement. The assignment is an extension of an agreement originally forged in 2006, when Edelman was selected as the IPC’s first global public relations agency of record.

“Edelman has been a terrific partner to the IPC over the past three years, and particularly around the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. Their expertise in the sports industry and media relations, combined with their global reach, has helped us improve our global communications efforts, expanding the Paralympic message to a much broader audience,” said Sir Philip Craven, President of the IPC. “It’s critical to the success of the Paralympic Movement that we have partners as passionate as we are, and Edelman has proven to be a valuable and trusted adviser. We look forward to continuing our work with them in the lead up to the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games and beyond.”

Edelman will continue to support the IPC on the development of its global PR program and implementation in key countries, leveraging the firm’s expertise in sports marketing, corporate reputation, consumer and multicultural marketing, and issues management. Edelman’s IPC team, based across the UK, U.S., Canada, Germany and China, will expand to include offices in Russia and Australia as part of the new agreement.

Kate Gordon, Edelman’s UK Head of Sports & Sponsorship, said “Our relationship with the IPC means a great deal to Edelman on many levels. This project not only offers an interesting and challenging assignment for our sports teams around the world, but we believe in the power of the Paralympic Movement to change attitudes and perceptions in a positive way. It is rewarding for us to put our expertise to work for such an important organization.”

Edelman has been actively involved in every Olympic Games for nearly three decades, supporting a wide variety of clients including worldwide sponsors, national governing bodies, organizing committees, bid cities and athletes. Most recently Edelman worked with several clients in Beijing, in addition to the IPC, including Johnson & Johnson, GE, PUMA and The Province of British Columbia, Canada.

About the IPC
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games, and serves as the International Federation for nine sports, for which it supervises and co-ordinates the World Championships and other competitions. The IPC is committed to enabling Paralympic athletes to achieve sporting excellence and to developing sport opportunities for persons with a disability from the beginner to elite level. In addition, the IPC aims to promote the Paralympic values, which include courage, determination, inspiration and equality.

About Edelman's Sports Practice

With devoted staff in New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Hamburg, Amsterdam, London, Paris, Milan, Sao Paulo, Toronto, Montreal, Singapore, Shanghai and Beijing, Edelman’s sports practice works for major sports properties, athletes and leading brands and companies in support of their sports sponsorships. Visit www.edelman.com for more information.

For more information, please contact:

Steffi Klein
IPC Media and Communication Senior Manager
Tel: +49 (228) 2097230
E-mail: steffi.klein@paralympic.org

Kate Gordon
Edelman Sports
Tel: +44 203 047 4005
E-mail: kate.gordon@edelman.com