by Mary Beth Ginder, AthlePartner, Bethesda
Track and field is a universal sport, enjoying popularity around the world. Its participants and enthusiasts include the amateur runner hitting the treadmill to the gold-medal-winning Olympic athlete. The sport stresses individual performance, teamwork, endurance, speed and determination. AREVA, in my humble opinion, has very similar qualities – teamwork, achievement, energy – and therefore, it makes sense that AREVA has chosen to partner with the French Athletics Federation (FFA) and the French National Athletics League (LNA) to sponsor international track and field events.
This past weekend I attended the Meeting AREVA, a high-level sporting event that brought together runners, pole-vaulters, javelin throwers, and long and high jumpers from around the globe. The stadium and 50,000 attendees were decked out in green, black and gold in a Jamaican theme to celebrate Usain “Lightning” Bolt – triple gold-medalist at the 2008 Peking Olympic Games and holder of three world records. The feeling around the stadium was electric as Bolt ran (and smoked everyone) in the 100 meter dash, setting a new Meeting record of 9.79 seconds.
The author at Meeting AREVA. Click thumbnail to enlarge.
Meeting AREVA also brought together AREVA employees from around the world as “AthlePartners” to help foster excitement about AREVA’s track and field partnership in their respective home offices. This included training and information sessions, with presentations by AREVA Spokesperson Jacques-Emmanuel Saulnier and former French track star Jean Galfione. It was a wonderful experience to meet and work with people from AREVA Korea, Germany, France, the UK, and Canada. From this experience I can truly attest that AREVA is a great company because of its people!
Over the next four years AREVA will be a major sponsor of track and field events in France and, through AthlePartners like me, will get involved in local communities. Through our campaign “Energize the Athlete in You,” our U.S. offices will get involved in local track and field and other running competitions, including hosting a walk/run raising money to end illiteracy.
Be on the look out for information on getting involved locally in AREVA sponsored events! Although we might not have a Bolt competing at every event, we could find the next big star!
If you’re interested in learning more about AREVA’s partnership with track and field, please visit our website.
Share TAGS: AREVA Inc., AREVA North America, AthlePartners, Jacques-Emmanuel Salnier, Jean Galfione, Meeting AREVA, News, Nuclear Energy, Nuclear Power, Track and Field, Usain Bolt
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