Supporting the Athletes
Visa believes that the Olympic and Paralympic Games begin and end with the athletes. From the euphoria of the Opening Ceremony to unforgettable moments of athleticism, the Games are embodied in the achievements of the 4,700 athletes who arrive from more than 200 countries around the world to compete. Visa celebrates the athletes through our corporate sponsorship of the Games and through the support we provide to individual athletes and their national teams. For the 2008 Games, for example, Visa is helping 90 individual athletes and a number of national teams around the world pursue their Olympic dreams through its athlete program, Team Visa Beijing.
Athlete Programs
Encouraging elite athletes to grow their sport globally.
Providing Olympic and Paralympic athletes with life skills training to help them get the most out of life.
An initiative to increase and improve the places where sports are played in the United States.
The first and only program of its kind honoring Paralympians.
Visa partners with people with disabilities of the host city's community.
Founded by Visa, the ORC provides Olympians from previous Games with a place to relax and meet friends during the Games.
Visa Friendship Lanes Tour
Visa partners with elite athletes to help them raise the visibility of their sports globally and support causes close to their hearts. In April 2007, Visa teamed up with World Champion swimmers Michael Phelps and Katie Hoff on the Visa Friendship Lanes Tour of China. This goodwill tour helped spotlight the sport of swimming globally and raised awareness for China’s Special Olympics chapter. This cultural exchange included local school appearances, Special Olympics clinics and visits with Visa Olympic staff in Beijing and Shanghai.
Practical Money Skills for Life
Visa provides Olympic and Paralympic athletes with financial skills training to help them get the most out of life. Visa has presented its award-winning financial literacy curriculum, Practical Money Skills for Life, to hundreds of Olympic and Paralympic athletes. And every American athlete making the trip to the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games will receive an interactive copy of the curriculum. For more information on this program, please visit www.practicalmoneyskills.com. For more information on financial literacy in Canada, visit www.practicalmoneyskills.ca.
Partnership for Play Every Day
Visa and its Olympic and Paralympic athletes are raising awareness of and support for the Partnership for Play Every Day, an initiative to increase and improve the spaces where America’s youth can play. Visa has already provided Play Every Day “jump-start” grants to local parks and facilities in Washington, D.C., New York City and San Francisco to create opportunities for children to participate in Olympic sports such as swimming, volleyball, gymnastics and track and field. For more information on this initiative, please visit www.playeveryday.org.
Paralympic Hall of Fame
In 2002, Visa was the first organization to become a global sponsor of the Paralympic Games. The Paralympic Hall of Fame, presented by Visa, is the first and only program of its kind honoring Paralympians. It was established to celebrate the achievements and spirit of athletes with disabilities and their coaches both for their contributions to sport and for their commitment to the disabled community. Visa’s sponsorship of the Paralympic Hall of Fame is anchored in its vision of greater worldwide acceptance of people with disabilities. As the first global sponsor of the Paralympic Games and Worldwide Partner of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), Visa helps to facilitate progress toward such acceptance by providing products and services that promote equal access for the disabled community and by promoting awareness of these remarkable athletes with disabilities.
Paralympic Community Day
Prior to the start of every Paralympic Games, Visa partners with people with disabilities of the host city’s community to host Paralympic Community Day. Established in 2002, this program provides an opportunity for children of all abilities to meet Paralympic athletes and watch them demonstrate their skills. As part of the program, Visa provides Paralympic Games tickets and special day passes to the children so they may attend the Games as guests of Visa.
Olympians Reunion Center
Introduced at the Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games, the Olympians Reunion Center was founded by Visa, in partnership with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), to help support the World Olympians Association (WOA), which was in its formative stages. The Reunion Center has continued to grow in popularity and stature with each subsequent Games. Today, through its leadership, the WOA now has assumed its rightful position as the sole proprietor of the Olympians Reunion Center, “the most exclusive club in town” catering to an amazing elite – Olympians from past Olympic Games. Visa is proud to have conceived of and supported the Olympians Reunion Center and looks forward to working with the WOA on new projects in the future.