Fiat Group has reaffirmed its support for the world of sport by creating a new team of young athletes – Fabbrica Italiana Atleti – who will represent Italy at the world’s most important sporting events.

Fiat Group has reaffirmed its support for the world of sport by creating a new team of young athletes – Fabbrica Italiana Atleti – who will represent Italy at the world’s most important sporting events.

Fabbrica Italiana Atleti is made up of ten top athletes who are already testimonials for the Fiat Group and for their respective sports. The athletes are Andrew Howe for athletics, Vanessa Ferrari for gymnastics, Aldo Montano and Margherita Granbassi for fencing, Federica Pellegrini and Filippo Magnini for swimming, Tania Cagnotto for diving, Wenling Tan Monfardini for table tennis, and Paralympic athletes Fabrizio Macchi and Roberto La Barbera for cycling and athletics respectively.

They are all positive, driven sports champions, and Fiat has chosen to support them because they reflect a cosmopolitan Italy which is open to change and because they represent the values in which the group firmly believes and with which it identifies: passion, commitment and a quest for high performance.

The “Fabbrica Italiana Atleti” project is an extension of the Fiat Group’s relationship with the world of sport and reaffirms a commitment which is based on mutual traits and values. A perfect example of this dedication was the Group’s sponsorship of the XX Olympic Winter Games in Turin in 2006.

Over time many projects have started and developed in this context, and these have been joined by other new projects. Current sponsorships include the Fiat Freestyle Team and the Fiat Yamaha Team by Fiat, the SuperBike Championship and sailing by Alfa Romeo, fencing and ice skating by Lancia, Juventus by New Holland, the Italian rugby team and the All Blacks by Iveco and the Italian football team by Fiat Professional. As part of this new initiative, Fiat will be helping the ten athletes as they prepare for their next competitions and key sports events.

The Group will provide economic support for the athletes so that they can concentrate on training regularly. It will also involve them in a widespread integrated communications project, helping them to expand their public image with advertising campaigns and targeted events. In addition, the new web site - http://www.fabbricaitalianaatleti.it/ - goes on-line today packed with lots of information and web pages dedicated to each athlete. The web site also enables the athletes to create their own journals so they can include comments, impressions and pictures of their sporting adventures.