Bermuda Commercial Bank, its parent company, Somers Ltd, and ICM Ltd, the Bermuda-based fund manager have agreed to sponsor the Bermuda Olympic Association for the next four years.

The BOA was formed in 1936 to promote Bermuda’s representation at the Olympic Games and other international games, such as the Pan Am Games, Commonwealth Games and Central American and Caribbean Games.

This sponsorship acknowledges the importance of the role that the BOA plays in aiding the country’s high-performing and elite athletes who compete for Bermuda at the international level. The BOA has historically received funding from various sources, including the Bermuda Government and the International Olympic Committee’s Olympic Solidarity Fund, but as public and private sector funding sources have been scaled back commensurate with economic challenges, the BOA has been challenged to cover the costs of providing services to Bermuda’s athletes and youth. BCB, Somers and ICM have agreed to be the main corporate sponsors for the next Olympiad, which includes the Summer Olympics in Rio in 2016 and the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang in 2018.

Importantly and as part of the partnership, the BOA intends to introduce a youth education programme that will promote wellness and involvement in sports. The programme will draw upon the experiences of Bermuda’s elite athletes, who will help inspire young people to pursue sports and international competition as a vehicle for personal growth and development. “We are delighted to partner with the BOA for the next four years,” Alasdair Younie, a director of BCB, Somers and ICM, said. “We are particularly pleased that we can combine the goals of the Bermuda Olympic Association of supporting the development of Bermuda’s athletes while representing their country with a youth education programme that will focus on the importance of education, exercise and healthy eating and in the long term provide a solid foundation for our young student athletes.”

Judy Simons, the BOA president, added: “We are extremely grateful to BCB, Somers and ICM for their support of the BOA and our mission to help Bermuda’s athletes on their journeys to success. As we look ahead to the prospect of preparing our athletes and officials to attend the Pan Am Games in Toronto in 2015, and the Summer Olympic Games in Rio in 2016, we recognise this level of support was much needed and is greatly appreciated. We will be introducing a youth educational programme which we hope will expose more of Bermuda’s youth to the significant benefits of sports and international competition.”