Increasing the Level of Awareness Through Cycling

Phonak Hearing Systems are sponsoring a new Pan European professional cycling team

The Phonak Group is investing in cycling and will be the main sponsor of a new professional second-division team. The Pan European Phonak team will be managed by Jean-Jacques Loup, who has already been considerably successful with various national and international teams. The members of the Phonak Cycling Team are young, motivated cyclists who have to submit to a strict code of sporting-, ethical- and moral conduct.

Drawing Attention to the Problems of Hearing Impairment:
'For Phonak this cooperation presents a unique opportunity to sensitise the general public to the problems of hardness of hearing and to make people aware of today's possibilities of correcting hearing loss with hearing computers', explains Andy Rihs, Chairman of the Board of the Phonak Group. It is also an excellent occasion to inform people who are directly affected that they can consult a specialised body of trained hearing aid acousticians. Today about 15% of the population are directly affected by hardness of hearing, but only a fraction of these people wear a hearing aid. Indirectly, the families of such persons are also affected and these represent about another 40% of the population. The consequences are high social costs, combined with the increasing isolation of those affected. Hardness of hearing is also the most common occupational disease.

Cycling as an Ambassador:
With their present investment in cycling, Phonak is continuing a long tradition of sports sponsoring. With the help of this marketing instrument they have been able to build up a good market presence over the past few years: sponsoring has proved a very effective means of increasing the level of awarenes.

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