Laureus Sport for Good Foundation

LAUREUS
GLOBAL
FOUNDATION
REPORT
8
LAUREUS GLOBAL FOUNDATION REPORT
2007 SAW THE LAUREUS MOVEMENT GROW FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH.
THE FOUNDATION FINALISED THE STRUCTURE OF EIGHT NATIONAL AFFILIATE
FOUNDATIONS, INCREASED ITS NUMBER OF GLOBALLY SUPPORTED PROJECTS
AND ENGAGED IN A NUMBER OF FUNDRAISING INITIATIVES WORLDWIDE,
RAISING FUNDS AND PROMOTING THE MESSAGE OF SPORT FOR GOOD.
2007 has seen another tremendous year for the
Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. Income through
fundraising has increased, which leads to more projects
being supported by the movement. Continuing the
focus on working with partners and other donors
as well as utilising events around the world, the
Foundation raised funds through Founding Patron
contributions, Founding Partners and other Corporate
Supporters as well as through fundraising at the
Laureus Worlds Sports Awards and other Foundation
led events.
Once again Founding Patrons Richemont and
Daimler were instrumental in their support of the
Foundation, assisting with fundraising through
Founding Partner brands IWC Schaffhausen and
Mercedes-Benz. IWC continued their highly successful
limited edition watch series bearing the engraving
of a competition winners drawing; the results of a
worldwide competition held amongst participants of
Laureus supported projects. This was in addition to the
launch of the Let the Children Play book, a collection
of imagery taken at Laureus supported projects around
the world by renowned photographers, brought
together in a coffee table collection. Mercedes-Benz
were always on hand to lend their strength in transport
to numerous fundraising events around the world, not
least the Laureus World Sports Awards, whilst also
fundraising and promoting the cause through team
sponsorship of the British racing driver, Gary Paffett’s
car racing in the esteemed DTM series. The car,
adorned with the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation
logo was raced at various events, and signed by many
high profile individuals on its travels, endorsing the
Sport for Good message it carried. The car will be
auctioned in 2008 in aid of the Foundation.
IWC were instrumental in establishing and
launching the eighth national affiliate Foundation
in their home, Switzerland. Laureus Foundation
Switzerland was launched in June at a glittering gala
function which introduced many Swiss sports men
and women to the work of the Foundation. In the
short space of time to the end of 2007, the Swiss
Foundation had already signed up a number of high
profile national sporting heroes and a Country Patron
in the travel firm TUI Suisse, as well as supporting two
new projects in Switzerland.
As a result of these developments, the Foundation
grew its project reach with the addition of five projects
in 2007, bringing the total number of supported
projects to 51.
The research initiated in 2006 to evaluate the
movement across eight of its project partners was
delivered in the summer with the following key
conclusions;
• Being involved in a Laureus supported project
increases positive kinds of behaviour in participants
and decreases negative behaviours.
• The longer individuals are in a project, the more
those positive behaviours are displayed and the more
they value their local community.
Above all, the research scientifically confirmed
what all the Foundation and the Academy intrinsically
already know – that sport can go a huge way to impact
communities facing everyday social ills.
L A U R E U S S P O R T F O R G O O D F O U N D A T I O N A N N U A L R E V I E W