Sponsorship plunges downhill for ski racers

VAL D'ISERE (Reuters) - Lindsey Vonn, winner of this week's super-G competition at the Alpine world skiing championships, is one of the few racers who do not have to worry about sponsorship in the current economic crisis.

Vonn flew into Geneva from Austria on her sponsor Red Bull's private jet before being driven to the French skiing resort of Val D'Isere. The energy drink company also provides her with a physical trainer.

"I am so lucky," she told Reuters. "I just signed with Red Bull for another three years so I am all set.

"But I know some other girls are suffering, all those who are below five to 10th ranking find it more difficult today to find sponsors."

Vonn, who won gold in the super-G Tuesday, clocked the best time in Friday's downhill but was disqualified from the super-combined race after missing a gate in the afternoon slalom.

Sponsorships are becoming increasingly difficult to win these days as corporate supporters tighten their belts and scrutinize every expense.

"In the current environment we look even more closely at every euro invested in ski sponsorships," said a spokesman for German chocolate brand Milka, which has been one of the biggest supporters of skiing events for more than a decade and currently backs six racers.

Unlike Formula One drivers and tennis players, skiers belong to a non-profit organization, the International Ski Federation (FIS), which limits their sponsorships opportunities, often centered on sportsgear.

Some national federations belonging to the FIS have bigger budgets than others.

The French Ski Federation (FFS), for example, has a smaller budget than the German or the Austrian federations.

The only private space skiers are allowed for sponsorship is on their foreheads, for example on helmets or hats.

Many skiers also receive support from ski makers but their budgets have been cut as well and some racers now have to buy their own skis.

BROKEN PROMISE

Several racers said some sponsorships promised last year never materialized because of the economic slump.

"Early in the winter, some Hungarian banks said they would provide us with some cars to travel to the races but they then changed their minds because of the crisis," said Anna Berecz of the Hungarian team who came 34th in Tuesday's Super-G race.

The 20-year-old racer said she had also asked Porsche and Volvo for help but they too had declined.

French eyewear brand Vuarnet, named after 1960 Squaw Valley Olympic Winter Games downhill winner Jean Vuarnet, said it was not responding to requests for big ticket sponsorships anymore.

Vuarnet, which is already sponsoring the French winter sports team until the 2010 Vancouver Games, said the number of racers asking for sponsorships had increased.

"I get calls all the time now as more and more companies are slimming down their marketing budgets and athletes are struggling to find financial support to continue racing," said Cedric Pescheux, Vuarnet marketing manager.

Carmaker Audi, one of the world's biggest sponsors of racers and skiing events, said it was too early to say whether it could cut its budget but planned to be cautious in the current difficult environment.

Outdoor gear maker Halti, official sponsor of the Finnish Olympic teams and of the Val d'Isere 2009 Alpine skiing championship, sees sponsorships as efficient brand building tools but it also plans to be cautious.

"We will cut side events and contracts of racers who are not performing well," said Martti Uusitalo, senior vice president of Halti, which spends about 3-4 percent of its annual sales on sponsorships.

But Switzerland's 24-year-old Fabienne Suter, who finished 11th in Tuesday's Super-G race in Val d'Isere and 8th in the super-combined Friday, said she was shielded from the crisis.

Wearing a suit embroidered with logos of Audi, Swisscom and Victorinox, she said: "I feel no impact, I just focus on skiing," she told Reuters.

(Editing by John Mehaffey)