KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 4 (Bernama) -- Low-cost carrier AirAsia today became the official airline of the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) for 2007-2009, and will fly Malaysian contingents to sporting events at any of its 80 local and overseas destinations during the period.
AirAsia Group Chief Executive Officer Datuk Tony Fernandes and OCM President Tunku Tan Sri Imran Tuanku Ja'afar signed the memorandum of understanding on the two-year sponsorship, here.
The first sports contingent to fly AirAsia under the arrangement was made up of the 400 athletes and officials bound for Korat for the 24th SEA Games hosted by Thailand.
"AirAsia also will be the official airline to carry the Malaysian contingent for the Olympic Games in Beijing next year. Currently, AirAsia has the landing right in Tianjin, about an hour's flight to Beijing. But in future who knows ... (AirAsia may get the landing right in Beijing)," Fernandes told reporters.
Fernandes said AirAsia was also sponsoring triathlete Kimberly Yap in her quest to grab a spot at the triathlon event in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
"Kimberly has an impressive career in triathlon. She was the gold medallist in the 2005 SEA Games in Manila and at the 2006 Doha Asian Games, she finished sixth. Kimberly has AirAsia's support for her endeavour to qualify for the Olympics," he said.
Tunku Imran said the OCM and AirAsia shared the same values and passion towards the development of sports.
"While international participation is crucial for athletes' development, travelling takes up a massive portion of the council's budget and with AirAsia on board, we look forward to sending more athletes for training and competitions through the airline's extensive network," he said.
-- BERNAMA
No comments:
Post a Comment