CIBC is deepening its ties to amateur and paralympic sports through a new four-year partnership with the Canadian Paralympic Committee.

The marketing and sponsorship agreement will see CIBC become the official banking partner of the Committee, giving the bank trademark rights and rights to associate itself with the  Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games, the Toronto 2015 Pan and Parapan Am Games and the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Games.

CIBC will also look to provide funding and support for 67 up-and-coming Canadian Paralympic athletes through Team Next, a support and mentorship program that it launched in July as part of its lead sponsorship of the 2015 Toronto Games.

Monique Giroux, VP, sponsorship, marketing and strategy, CIBC, tells MiC that CIBC’s partnerships with the Canadian Paralympic Committee and the 2015 Toronto Games are about building the bank’s legacy as a supporter of amateur sport.

Giroux says this partnership is a good fit for CIBC because it is committed to causes that allow it to better engage with communities, much like its largest cause-related initiative the CIBC Run for the Cure.

Photo (left to right): Gaetan Tardif, president, Canadian Paralympic Committee; Laura Dottori-Attanasio, SVP, CIBC; Stephanie Dixon, Paralympic swimmer; Josh Cassidy, Paralympic wheelchair racer.