Tag Heuer is now the official timekeeper of the Abu Dhabi Tour
Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer is further linking itself to the world of cycling through three new affiliations with international races.
Tag Heuer has become the official timekeeper of the Abu Dhabi Tour, the Amgen Tour of California and the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race. Tag Heuer sees these partnerships as an opportunity to raise awareness through the medium of an increasingly popular sport.
Pedaling off popularity
The Abu Dhabi Tour, part of the UCI Asia Tour, will kick off Feb. 23. The multi-day race will be held in four stages, with two sprints followed by a mountain stage, with the final spring expected to end on Feb. 26.
For the first time, Tag Heuer is also aligning with the Amgen Tour of California, the most popular biking race in the United States. Cyclists, including some Olympic medalists and Tour de France stage winners, will begin the 700 mile course in Sacramento on May 11, taking seven days to travel along California’s coast and reaching Pasadena on May 20.
Originally founded in 2006, the Amgen Tour of California will be part of the UCI WorldTour Calendar for the first time in 2017.
Throughout the race, Tag Heuer will be the official watch partner and presenting sponsor of the Best Young Rider jersey. Each day, the cyclist under the age of 23 with the least amount of time lapsed since beginning the race will be given the jersey designed by Alec Monopoly for Tag Heuer in its colors.
Amgen Tour of California
The Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, established in 2015, was the first event of its kind held in Australia. Part of the UCI WorldTour Calendar, the third annual race will be held from Jan. 26-29, with Tag Heuer as its official and exclusive timing partner.
After a 20-year hiatus, Tag Heuer has once again joined up with the BMC Racing Team, a U.S.-registered UCI WorldTour team that is sponsored by bike maker BMC Switzerland. Tag Heuer's history with cycling dates back to 1946, when the brand made pocket chronometers to help cyclists measure their times at both races and trials.
"In America, cycling is the new golf,” said Marc Biver, Tag Heuer's global sports director.
“Thanks to the development of high-tech equipment accessible to the public, it now cuts across all social categories,” he said. “The proof can be seen in Silicon Valley where, every lunchtime and evening, executives take to their full-carbon bikes en masse.
“Being appointed Official Timekeeper for the Amgen Tour of California is therefore an important step in TAG Heuer's development, both in cycling and in the U.S."
Cycling provides Tag Heuer with an opportunity to showcase its precision.
In 2015, LVMH-owned Tag Heuer is entering a multi-year agreement to serve as the official timekeeper of the Haute Route, the highest altitude amateur bicycle race.
During the week-long stage races within the Alps, Pyrénées and Dolomites Swiss Alps, the brand will provide timekeeping solutions to track the 1,600 riders. This challenging course enables the brand to reinforce its "Don’t Crack Under Pressure" brand motto (see story).