Audi is "Outstanding Promoter of Sport"

INGOLSTADT – July 9, 2008: Minister President Dr Günther Beckstein has presented the Bavarian Sport Award 2008 in the “outstanding promoter of sport” category to AUDI AG. The jury primarily recognised the support provided to athletes in many different disciplines as well as the innovative training opportunities made available.

Since 2002, the Bavarian Sport Award has been presented to honour outstanding personalities in German and international sport. Meanwhile, the prize has evolved into one of the most coveted accolades in Bavarian sport. The fact that this year’s recipients include AUDI AG, and thus a corporation, honours the “exemplary supporting measures” in sport. Dr Günther Beckstein presented the awards during a gala event at the International Congress Center in Munich on Monday night.

In addition to its exploits in motorsport, which include the eighth win of the 24 Hours of Le Mans three weeks ago or the DTM title, Audi is actively engaged in many other types of sport. For example, European top-calibre football teams are partners just as well as regional clubs. The Audi quattro Cup, in which some 80,000 people participate around the world every year, is Audi’s own tournament series for amateur golfers. The Audi Medcup is advancing to become one of the most popular sailing regatta series of all.

A particularly long partnership has been linking Audi to winter sport: a total of nine national teams can rely on support from the four rings. The German Skiing Association (DSV) and Audi have even been cooperating with each other for more than two decades. “I grew up with Audi and ski races. Ever since I’ve been on skis, Audi has been a partner of the DSV,” said Felix Neureuther during the awards presentation at the Munich Congress Center. The German slalom ace delivered the laudatory remarks for AUDI AG, on whose behalf the Chairman of the Executive Board, Rupert Stadler, subsequently accepted the award.

In the justification for the award the jury expressly praised not only the financial support provided to the athletes but also the technical know-how which Audi makes available. For example, athletes from various disciplines make use of the ultra-modern Audi wind tunnel centre in Ingolstadt to work on further refinements of detailed aspects related to human performance as well as sporting equipment. Alpine and Nordic athletes in particular rely on this “Vorsprung durch Technik” in the fight for the crucial tenths of a second or centimetres in competition.

As a winner of the coveted award, Audi is in a league with prominent parties and personalities: Other awardees during the gala in Munich included FC Bayern, the highly successful coatch Ottmar Hitzfeld or Euro 2008 reporter Katrin Müller-Hohenstein. In Felix Neureuther’s opinion the jury made a good choice by selecting Audi: “Like ourselves, the brand from Ingolstadt aims to be at the top of podium and makes exacting demands on itself and on the athletes. For me, under the bonnet of an Audi, there’s not only a powerful engine at work, but a big heart that’s beating for sport.”