Volvo Car UK today became the official car sponsor to Athens Silver Medallists, Nick Rogers and Joe Glanfield. The support will help them to achieve their goal for 2005; being crowned 470 Worlds Champions in San Francisco this August.

Nick and Joe will become members of Volvo’s sponsorship initiative, ‘Team Volvo for life’ – consisting of some of Britain’s top sailors from Olympic sailing to the Volvo Ocean Race. Team members include Double Olympic Gold Medallists, Ben Ainslie and Shirley Robertson, Sydney Gold Medallist Iain Percy and his Star crewman Steve Mitchell, Laser sailor, Paul Goodison, 49er Bronze medallists Chris Draper and Simon Hiscocks, skipper of the Open 60 ‘Hugo Boss’ – Alex Thomson and Volvo Ocean Race skippers, Neal and Lisa McDonald.

The Rogers / Glanfield team is one of the longest running partnerships in current UK Olympic sailing. After teaming up in 1998, the pair quickly became a formidable partnership winning the first event they entered. By 2000 they had gained selection for the Sydney Olympic Games where they finished just outside the medals in fourth position, a single point from bronze.

2004 was a winning year for Nick and Joe. They won a medal at every single event they have entered including; gold at the European Championships and Princess Sofia Trophy, bronze at Hyeres regatta and a bronze at the 470 World Championships, and finished the year on a high with a Silver Medal in Athens and ranked number One in the world.

The pair will also work with the next generation of British sailors, supporting the Volvo RYA Keelboat Sailing Programme, the Volvo Musto Optimist Championships and the Volvo RYA Champion Club Scheme, a programme that rewards clubs who develop and encourage youth membership and youth race training, a role that is close to both of their hearts.