The sponsorship announcement was made by Gyehyun Kwon, the vice president and head of worldwide sports marketing for Samsung, Sir Philip Craven, the President of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), and Ward Chapin,the chief information officer of Vancouver 2010.

The partnership announced represents an extension of Samsung's involvement with the Paralympic Games, through which Samsung will support the IPC's efforts to communicate the inspiration and excitement of disability sport to a wider audience around the world.

Under the agreement, Samsung will be the Official Wireless Communications Equipment Provider and the Official Mobile Communications Equipment Provider of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, exclusive bib sponsor and Presenting Partner of www.ParalympicSport.TV.

Sir Philip said: "On behalf of the International Paralympic Committee, I wish to extend our thanks to Samsung for their great support.

"The continuous involvement of an innovative, global company like Samsung will contribute enormously to the success of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.

"As Paralympians competing here in Vancouver will become visible on ParalympicSport.TV, people from all over the world will be able to follow their exciting performances and learn about their inspiring stories."

Kwon said: "We are honoured and delighted to become a Worldwide Paralympic Partner of the IPC and Official Sponsor of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.

"The Paralympic Games are about making accessibility a priority, and Samsung is fully committed to the vision of the IPC, which is 'To Enable Paralympic Athletes to Achieve Sporting Excellence and Inspire and Excite the World'."

Samsung is already a TOP sponsor of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), a deal recently extended through to the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Chapin said: "As the chief information officer for VANOC, I have seen first-hand the work that Samsung has done to help the organising committee stay connected with their mobile telecommunications technology.

"Samsung will continue to help organisers and athletes stay connected throughout the Paralympics with their community messaging so that everyone can share every memorable moment of these Games."



A highlight of today's signing ceremony was a visit from Jean Labonte (pictured), captain of the Canadian ice sledge hockey team and Samsung Athlete Ambassador.

Labonte was on the Canadian team that won the gold medal at the Turin 2006 Paralympic Winter Games and has been the captain of the Canadian Paralympic team since 2007.

He said: "As a member of Team Samsung, I am very pleased to be working with a company that appreciates the importance of allowing people to achieve their athletic goals and making sports accessible to everyone.

"The Paralympic Games represent a means for people to overcome adversity and strive for sporting excellence, and Samsung's support will certainly help to make that a reality for athletes from all over the world."

Labonte's experience and achievements as the captain of the Canadian team will be documented in an exclusive video blog.

This blog will be available on www.ParalympicSport.TV, the internet TV channel of the IPC which will webcast more than 140 hours of coverage from the Vancouver 2010 Winter Paralympic Games.


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