Zurich lends its support to professional cycling on the Isle of Man

Zurich International Life (Zurich) has confirmed it is one of the title sponsors of the first professional cycle race to take place on the Isle of Man since 2003.

The international insurance company will sponsor the British Cycling Road Series Elite Men's race, which will take place over three laps of the iconic TT Mountain Course on Sunday 10 April. The British Cycling Road Series is an annual competition run by the sport’s governing body in the British Isles, consisting of nine Grand Prix events for top Elite category men and women.

Riders who will be competing in the Isle of Man next month include double Olympic Gold medallist, Ed Clancy MBE, and local stars Mark Christian and Jake Kelly, who will be riding for a team managed by Olympic gold medallist, Sir Bradley Wiggins. The event will be broadcast on Eurosport, and is being supported by the Isle of Man Department of Economic Development as part of a planned bid to host the National Championships here in 2018.

A number of Zurich employees will also be volunteering at the event in a series of support roles, including marshalling around the TT course.

Zurich’s Communications Manager, Merita Taylor, commented: “Zurich is incredibly excited to be lending its support to such a prestigious event, and especially so given it is the first professional cycling race to be held on the Island in more than 13 years. The event is a fantastic opportunity to promote the Isle of Man on a global scale, as well as watch some of our talented Manx stars racing back on home soil.”

Richard Fletcher, Chairman of the Isle of Man Cycling Association and one of the event organisers, added: “It’s wonderful to have a globally-recognised company such as Zurich supporting not only Manx cycling but ‘Isle of Man Plc’ too. The Zurich brand adds greatly to the event’s status and I hope this will become an annual initiative which brings benefit to both the sport of Cycling and the Island as a whole. The enthusiasm of Zurich’s local employees to get involved is also particularly pleasing and much appreciated by the organising team.”

For further information on the event, you can log onto www.manxinternational.com, use Twitter (@ManxCyclingGP) or log onto Facebook (Manx International Ltd).


PHOTO Steve Shimmin (left), Race Director of the Isle of Man leg of the British Cycling Road Series, and Oliver Last (right) representing Zurich International Life.