Bank's backing for basketball pays dividends at Scottish Sport Sponsorship Awards

Wednesday 24 March 2004

Clydesdale Bank and basketballscotland scooped the top award at the Scottish Business in Sport Dinner in Glasgow last night (Tuesday 23 March 2004) for their youth basketball programme. They won the Best Sponsorship for Young People category and then went on to collect the overall Scottish Sport Sponsorship of the Year Award 2004 presented by Matthew Pinsent CBE, triple Olympic rowing gold medallist and supported by Shepherd and Wedderburn.

" There is a real need for businesses to continue to invest in sport at all levels and in particular there is a continuing battle for smaller sports to attract sport sponsorship.”

In selecting Clydesdale Bank and basketballscotland the judges were keen to recognise how the three-year partnership has focused on increasing participation and health education amongst young people across Scotland. The programme aims to deliver a comprehensive range of youth squad and player development camps as well as a junior coach scholarship programme to target all areas of the sport. In particular the judges felt that the role modelling programme to promote healthy living and raise drug and alcohol awareness across schools and the opportunities for the staff of Clydesdale Bank to become involved in their company’s sponsorship through trophy presentations and exhibition matches were worthy of merit.

The Scottish Sport Sponsorship Awards were launched by sportscotland in 2001 to recognise excellence and creativity across Scotland’s vibrant sport sponsorship scene. The evening recognises the best in sport sponsorship in Scotland demonstrating the enormous contribution that a sponsor’s investment can make to a sport and how this can also be good for business as well as sport.

Nearly 100 entries were received from businesses and sports organisations throughout the country for an award in one of seven categories that reflects the diverse range of sport sponsorships at work in Scotland. These range from best sponsorship of young people in Scottish sport to sponsorships in excess of £100,000. The seven category winners were then considered for the overall Scottish Sport Sponsorship of the Year Award 2004.

In a new category for 2004, Phil Anderton, Chief Executive of the Scottish Rugby Union was awarded the Scottish Sport Sponsorship Personality of the Year for his significant contribution to the Scottish sport sponsorship industry during 2003. Since joining Scottish Rugby in 2000, Phil has made an enormous impact on the business of Rugby in Scotland by transforming Scottish Rugby’s commercial activities and the organisation’s outlook towards sponsorship. In three years Phil’s work has raised commercial income by £11m and the sponsorship income has trebled.

Ian Robson, Chief Executive of sportscotland said: " The Business in Sport concept is about bringing the business and sporting communities closer together and creating win win situations, through successful and effective sport sponsorship. The awards seek to recognise the important role business sponsorship plays in Scottish sport and by spotlighting good practice we hope to encourage even more to get involved.

" There is a real need for businesses to continue to invest in sport at all levels and in particular there is a continuing battle for smaller sports to attract sport sponsorship.”

AWARD WINNERS

Best Community Sponsorship

Presented in association with Bowmore Islay Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Greaves Sports and Clydesdale Cricket & Hockey Club

Best Sponsorship for Young People

Clydesdale Bank and basketballscotland

Gairich Award, (for Sponsorships of under £25,000)

Presented in association with Bank of Scotland
Petrofac Facilities Management and Kenny Herriot, Wheelchair Athlete

Conival Award, (for Sponsorships of between £25,000 and £75,000)

Presented in association with Shepherd & Wedderburn
Scottish Daily Record & Sunday Mail and Scottish Racing

Cairnwell Award, (for Sponsorships of over £75,000)

Presented in association with Anderson Strathern
Safeway and Scottish Football Association – Scottish National Football Teams

Best First Time Sponsor

Presented in association with Bank of Scotland
Carling and Celtic FC and Rangers FC

Best Long Term Sponsor

Presented in association with Daily Record
Bowmore Islay Single Malt Scotch Whiskey and Bowmore Blair Castle International Horse Trials

Scottish Sport Sponsorship Personality of the Year Award 2004

Presented in association with Shepherd & Wedderburn
Phil Anderton, Chief Executive, Scottish Rugby

Scottish Sport Sponsorship of the Year Award 2004

Presented in association with Shepherd & Wedderburn
Clydesdale Bank and basketballscotland

• sportscotland is the national agency for sport in Scotland. Working with our partners, our core responsibility is to develop sport and physical recreation in Scotland.
• The Scottish Sport Sponsorship Personality of the Year award is chosen by the judging panel from the nominations received from entrants to the Scottish Sport Sponsorship Awards.
• The award categories are designed to accommodate the broad range of sponsorships that currently exist within Scottish sport, from local community projects through to the support of national teams.
• The independent panel of industry experts who judged the entries were:
  • Ian Robson – Chief Executive, sportscotland
  • Alan Ferguson – Managing Director, The Sports Business
  • Sandra Greer – Consultant, Sports Marketing Surveys
  • Mark Hollinshead – Chief Executive, Scottish Daily Record and Sunday Mail
  • Jane Ulke – Director, Marketing Mechanics
• The evening was staged in partnership with Shepherd & Wedderburn.
• Pictures of all the award winners with Matthew Pinsent are available free of charge from Steve Lindridge, Ideal Images mobile: 07718 919597.