Athletics

New York Road Runners, the body which organises the New York City Marathon, is overhauling its sponsorship structure by reducing the number of partners in its top two sponsorship tiers, signing longer-term deals, and bringing more sponsorship to its other events.

Tata Consultancy Services, an IT services subsidiary of the multinational conglomerate Tata Group, is title sponsoring the New York City Marathon to raise both brand awareness and brand perception amongst a potential client base in the United States and worldwide.

UK mineral water brand Buxton has announced a new partnership that makes it the official water of the London Marathon.

Continental governing body European Athletics has extended its existing four-year sponsorship agreement with convenience store chain Spar International by a further year, with the new contract running until the end of 2016.

The Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) has extended its partnership with the Giorgio Armani fashion house through to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Sportswear brand Asics has agreed a deal to become the first title sponsor of the Greater Manchester Marathon.

Indian IT and business solutions firm Tata Consultancy Services has announced an eight-year deal to become the title sponsor of the New York City Marathon from 2014.

Athletics superstar Usain Bolt has maintained his long-standing connection to Puma by extending his endorsement deal with the German sportswear giant through and beyond the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

German sportswear giant Adidas has reached a three-year sponsorship agreement with the Milan Marathon.

UK Athletics has confirmed Nike as its official sportswear partner in a seven-year deal running from 2014 until the end of 2020.

UK Athletics will switch its kit deal from Adidas to Nike next year after a Dutch court rejected a claim from its current partner, according to the Daily Telegraph newspaper.

It has been yet another excellent sporting summer and an excellent summer for sports sponsorship. This month's Insider brings you seven of the top sponsorship stories from August

The International Association of Athletics Federations is close to extending its 28-year partnership with watchmaker Seiko, and is looking to add two more brands to its Official Partner sponsorship tier, general secretary Essar Gabriel told Sports Sponsorship Insider this month.

Kenya Airways has announced a 58m Kenyan shilling (€511,000/$667,000) sponsorship package for the country’s 2013 Masai Mara Marathon, according to the StarAfrica website.

Japanese commercial electronics company Rakuten has been added to the list of official bid partners for Tokyo 2020, the city’s bid to host the 2020 Olympic Games.

Financial services company ING will end its title sponsorship of the New York Marathon after this year’s race, according to the SportsBusiness Journal.