BMW Helps Improve Olympic Performance of USA Bobsled, Skeleton, and Speedskating

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BMW Group helps improve Olympic performance of USA Bobsled & Skeleton and US Speedskating with a special BMW Motorsport Experience

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Press Release

Heads of USA Bobsled & Skeleton and US Speedskating to be embedded in BMW Team RLL for Twelve Hours of Sebring Race.

Woodcliff Lake, NJ/ Sebring, FL – March 14, 2011… Darrin Steele, Chief Executive Officer, USA Bobsled & Skeleton Federation and Mark Greenwald, Executive Director, US Speedskating will be embedded within the BMW Team Rahal Letterman Lanigan (RLL) during the 59th Annual Twelve Hours of Sebring sports car endurance race on March 19 to learn best practices in team performance that can help their athletes selected for the U.S. Olympic Team.

As part of BMW Group’s partnership with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and four National Governing Bodies (NGB) - USA Bobsled & Skeleton, US Speedskating, USA Swimming and USA Track & Field - BMW consulted with the teams to find out how the automaker can help the teams improve their training and performance.

Steele and Greenwald asked to meet with BMW Motorsport to learn how to make their winning teams better. The gentlemen will meet with Dr. Mario Theissen, Director of BMW Motorsport; Bobby Rahal, Co-owner of BMW Team RLL and the team drivers. Steele and Greenwald will also suit up and join the team in pit lane during the race to learn from the 2010 American Le Mans Series GT class Manufacturer and Team champions in action.

“USA Bobsled & Skeleton is looking forward to learning how BMW Motorsport manages race day operations and builds a positive, results oriented team and program,” said Steele. “We’re interested to see how the team is structured to be most effective on the ground in terms of collecting data, preparing the team and minimizing distractions.”

Sebring is world famous for the annual 12 Hours of Sebring endurance race, part of the prestigious American Le Mans Series. Every year on the third Saturday of March, the raceway hosts thousands of race fans from around the world to witness the historic 12 hour classic. The BMW Team RLL M3 GTs finished second and third in the ultra-competitive GT class in last year’s 12 hour.

“We are interested in learning best practices in how teams are built and the functions of each member so we can apply our learnings to US Speedskating,” said Greenwald. “We’re also interested in examining the relationship with R&D, where ideas originate from and what is put into practice.”

BMW Group (including BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad) is the Official Mobility Partner of the USOC from now through 2016. BMW Group is also the Official Mobility Partner of four NGBs - USA Bobsled & Skeleton, US Speedskating, USA Swimming and USA Track & Field – as well as the 2012, 2014 and 2016 U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Teams, and the 2011 and 2015 U.S. Pan American and Parapan American Teams.

Photos and video from USA Bobsled & Skeleton and US Speedskating’s experience with BMW Motorsport will be available at: http://www.bmwusanews.com/sport.