TEAM SPIRIT A LONGSTANDING PARTNERSHIP WITH DISABLED SPORTS the forefront. The Group has also directly sponsored Marie Bochet, a member of the French disabled ski team, since 2010. She became World Champion in five events in 2013 and made history with four Paralympic gold medals in Sochi in 2014. 61 I SOCIETE GENERALE 2013-2014 Because we love rugby There was an atmosphere of intense concentration in the changing rooms of the Georges Tauziat Stadium in Meaux, France on 12 March 2014. Grabbing each other by the shoulders, ready to form a scrum, some 15 men and women, all Societe Generale sales managers, got ready for a match by paying close attention to the words of their coach for the day, Jérôme Cazalbou, a former international player – "the goal at the end of the match is to have built something as a team". So began the Ambassador Days, in which figures from the world of professional rugby, with the support of local Societe Generale networks, spent two days meeting junior players, regional business leaders, students, children, caregivers from the hospital pediatric ward and more. In Meaux and some 40 other cities that have hosted the event over the past 10 years, the Ambassador Days, that are now a mainstay of French rugby, have been a sign of the direct partnership that has bound the sport and Societe Generale together for 25 years. "Friendliness, honesty and sharing - these are values found both in rugby and in business", says Pierre-Philippe Lafond, prop for Aviron Bayonnais and an SG Ambassador. Another initiative grounded in French rugby culture is the Societe Generale Talent d'Or prize, first awarded in 1988. During each of the country's international rugby union matches, viewers at home choose the most valuable player, and voters can win tickets to an international game in France or follow the national rugby team on a Six Nations match. Societe Generale's partnership is both Societe Generale and the Fédération Française Handisport (the French disabled sport federation) celebrated ten years as partners in 2013. At the IPC Athletics World Championships in Lyon, the bank invited 200 young people from the city to attend the final heats and take part in activities to build awareness of vision impairment. A longstanding partner of the Federation, Societe Generale has helped it organise local, national and international events, with the Paralympic Games at local and global, and it has tracked the international growth of the sport. Since 2007, the bank has sponsored the Rugby World Cup – it is a worldwide partner of the 2015 tournament in England – and also supports new forms of the game developing around the world. These include rugby sevens, which is especially popular in Asia, and will become an Olympic sport in 2016. ■
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