Potential problems regarding the organisation of the hugely popular ING Europe-Marathon Luxembourg came to light at the beginning of January. A very public argument over the conditions under which the event takes place broke out between the organiser, Step By Step, and the host venue of the race start and finish, La Coque. At one stage it appeared as though the event was genuinely under threat and even Jeannot Krecké, in his role as Minister for Sport, stepped in. In an interview on RTL, Krecké accused Step By Step’s Erich François of being a “hard-nosed businessman” who had held athletes “hostage”. The problem was eventually settled, and the marathon will go ahead as planned on 23 May. But some commentators fear similar arguments may arise next year. “The Marathon will go ahead next year,” says François. “If not at the Coque, then somewhere else. Athletes don’t come to Luxembourg for the Coque, but for the event. However, it would be strange if the biggest sporting event in Luxembourg did not take place at the biggest sports venue.”

In May last year, before any sign of the financial and economic crisis, ING signed its extension deal with Step By Step to support the Marathon until 2012. “I think it is important to give a commitment for the continuity of such projects,” said ING’s CEO, Rik Vandenberghe, last December. The event attracts a field of 8,000 participants and some 100,000 spectators enjoy watching the athletes and the numerous side-show events in along the course. “We are committed to the 2009 event,” says Eric Groenendaels, ING Manager of Communication in the Marketing & Product Management department. “We are glad to support the marathon and we have teamed up with the mayor and his management committee to do everything we can to make it a success.” François says the support of ING, not just financially but also in terms of their faith in the event, is priceless. He even reveals that in February last year Step By Step received an even better offer from another bank to take over the title sponsorship. “I had a gut feeling and I am glad we retained ING,” he says. “As the first big sponsor, they not only brought cash to the table but attracted other sponsors.” In addition, the fact that ING sponsors major marathons in New York City and Amsterdam also helps attract runners to the Luxembourg event.

Providing continuity

Meanwhile, Luxembourg’s most prestigious annual international sports tournament has undergone not only a name change, but also a change in status. What will this year be called the BGL Luxembourg Open began life as the Seat Open, and then became the Fortis Championships as it enjoyed four years as a Tier II WTA event. Now the tournament has been relegated to the new rank of International Tournament (formerly Tier III or IV). But BGL remains committed to the event. “We want to provide continuity throughout our sports sponsoring portfolio,” says Kik Schneider, Director Retail Banking Luxembourg at BGL. “We have retained the same budgets for sports sponsorship as for 2008 and that encompasses our support of the COSL team, the tennis federation, the national football league and the tennis championships.” Indeed, just last year Fortis, as it was then, signed a three-year agreement with the organisation of the championships which will ensure they are held in Luxembourg until 2010.

“We have been supporting the championships since the beginning, when they were a show tournament.” Schneider admits that agreeing on the title, after all that happened last autumn with the Fortis rescue and the renaming of the bank, has caused the organisers a bit of a headache. And, depending on the whim of shareholders, next year’s tournament could be called the BGL BNP-Paribas Open Luxembourg. But Schneider would have no problem with the event being more closely associated with the BNP name. After all, the French bank is perhaps one of the most important supporters of tennis at an international level in the world, sponsoring the French Open and the Davis Cup. “What is important for us as a sponsor is to have a presence, especially as the event is being broadcast on international television,” Schneider explains. “And it is important that we can invite clients and friends of the bank to the corporate events at the tournament, so that it takes on a PR aspect as well.”