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Dutch leader Bauke Mollema (R) and his fellow countryman Robert Gesink pose with their bicycles during the presentation of the Belkin Pro Cycling Team for the Tour de France 2013
US consumer technology firm Belkin has taken over the title sponsorship of the Blanco Pro men’s cycling team, on a two-and-half year deal, replacing Rabobank in the process.
The team, newly christened as the Belkin Pro Cycling Team, will make its debut at this year’s Tour De France, which begins in Corsica this weekend.
Rabobank who pulled out at the end of 2012, does not believe that international professional cycling can amount to a clean and fair sport.
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Even though Blanco Pro men’s team stopped endorsing the Dutch financial organization’s name long ago, it continued to provide funds for the men’s team this year.
Belkin’s chief executive Chet Pipkin, who founded the firm in 1983, stressed on how cycling had “passionate, tech-savvy fan base that follows the sport closely, which aligns really well with the Belkin brand”.
He added that an alliance with a pro cycling team as such would expand the fan base worldwide to include millions of new customers.
The Belkin team is slated to comprise of twenty nine riders from five different nationalities.
General manager of Belkin Pro Cycling Richard Plugge admitted that the sponsorship deal is a great confidence boost for the team that has already won 19 races this season.
Talking about the team’s goal to project rider Bauke Mollema to the top ten finishers, Plugge said: “We won’t be happy with third, if second place appears possible.”
Source: BBC News Business
