Asics named new IAAF sponsor

Sportswear brand Asics will take over from Adidas as the official sponsor of the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) after signing a multiple-year deal.

As part of the agreement, Asics will kit the officials and volunteers at all IAAF World Athletics events with Asics' footwear and apparel, including the World Championships in London next year and Doha in 2019.

The move to sponsor IAAF events is part of the Japanese sportswear company “strategic expansion of its brand recognition internationally” and it is hoped that through this partnership with the world’s top athletics events, which are viewed by global audiences it will boost the brand.

Asics president and chief executive Motoi Oyama said: “I am so happy to have the honour of supporting the IAAF as an Official Partner. We at Asics hope to both develop excellent products and contribute to the growth the sporting world as a whole by supporting athletics around the globe as an Official Partner of the IAAF.”

IAAF president Sebastian Coe, added: “We are delighted to have attracted Asics, a world-class sportswear designer and manufacturer, as our latest official IAAF partner. This agreement is a huge endorsement of a bright future for athletics whose universality and diversity makes it a natural partner for a global corporation like Asics.”

The new sponsor comes after Adidas ended its 11-year sponsorship deal with the IAAF three years early by “mutual agreement”.