Xoom Announces Sponsorship Of Peruvian Olympic Team For London Games

Latin America - español

Xoom will be wearing the red and white jersey this summer as it chants "¡Vamos Peru!"

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Jun 28, 2012, 08:05 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, June 28, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Xoom Corporation, a leader in the online consumer-to-consumer international money transfer industry, announced today that it has become an official sponsor of the Peruvian Olympic team for the upcoming 2012 London Olympic Games, which will run from July 27 through Aug 12, 2012. Xoom is kicking off its sponsorship with a corporate donation to support the Peruvian Olympic team, and will donate an additional dollar for every transaction sent to Peru using Xoom.com in the month of July. Xoom is also promoting quick and easy grassroots giving through its money transfer website (www.xoom.com/peru) and helping Peruvians in the U.S. make direct no-fee donations to their team through Aug 31.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120628/SF32394)

While Xoom's financial support is important to the Peruvian team, Xoom's main objective is to rally support for the Peruvian Olympic Team from the Peruvian community in the U.S. through an awareness campaign. A 30-minute documentary highlighting the Peruvian athletes' preparations, challenges and aspirations has been produced by Miami-based agency Hispanic Group for Xoom and will be broadcast on Sur Peru on Saturdays at 7:00 PM EDT and Sundays at 6:30 PM EDT through Aug 12, 2012 and Xoom's new Facebook page "Vamos Peru - Olimpiadas 2012" dedicated to the team's 2012 efforts (facebook.com/XoomOlimpiadas). A new dedicated Twitter hashtag (#VamosPeru) will relay real-time updates on the team's progress during the final weeks of training, as well as throughout the games.

"We are extremely excited to sponsor the Peruvian Olympic team in the London games. Peru is one of our top remittance markets, and we are proud to showcase the team's remarkable efforts to the Peruvian community in the U.S.," said John Kunze, President and CEO of Xoom Corporation. "We chose Peru because, while facing many difficulties, the Peruvian Olympic team has the spirit, determination and perseverance needed to compete against larger, better-funded teams. This is the same spirit, determination and perseverance we see every day in our customers who work hard to send money home and to succeed in this country."

"We are truly pleased to have the support of Xoom. We are glad to see this U.S. company make such a big deal out of the Peruvian Olympic team. We are a small team, with a big heart, and Xoom definitely recognizes that," said Ivan Dibós, Member of the International Olympic Committee and Peruvian Olympic Committee. "Partnering with Xoom was a good choice because they are helping us connect with Peruvians in the U.S. and through this connection, encouraging them to feel proud of their team. I can tell you that our athletic heroes love their country very much and go through incredible sacrifices for Peru. For them to have Peruvians, who are thousands of kilometers away from their country cheer them on and stay up to date with their performances, is a sacred honor that keeps their heart going during those times in competition when their body says no more."

The 16 athletes selected will represent Peru in athletics, badminton, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting, swimming and taekwondo. High-profile team members include swimmer Mauricio Fiol, rower Victor Aspíllaga, taekwondo fighter Peter López and marathon runners Inés Melchor and Gladys Tejeda. Ms. Melchor, in particular, is known for her growing fan base thanks to a series of strong showings at major distance races such as the 2012 Seoul International Marathon in March.

"On behalf of my teammates, I cannot emphasize enough what Xoom's support means to us. Whenever we travel for competitions we often meet Peruvians who have immigrated and they tell us their stories. We see them cry tears of joy when Peru succeeds," noted Melchor. "We, Peruvians, are strong people and we know how difficult it is for many of our countrymen to have left their country and moved abroad, we know that no matter how far away they are from Peru their heart is always close by. Knowing that we will also be having their support is what inspires us to bring home a medal wrapped in red and white."

Peruvian athletes have won a total of four medals in the summer Olympic games: One gold medal in shooting in London 1948, two silver medals in shooting in Los Angeles 1984 and Barcelona 1992, and a silver medal in women's volleyball in Seoul 1988.

There are approximately 500,000 Peruvian Americans living in the U.S., primarily in New York, Florida and New Jersey(1). It is estimated that Peruvians in the U.S. send approximately $900 million a year to Peru their country and send an average of $215 dollars per month to Peru(2,3).

Xoom has sent $1.7 billion dollars in 2011 to 30 countries around the world.

About Xoom
Xoom Corporation is a leader in the online consumer-to-consumer international money transfer industry. Our customers use Xoom to send money from any Internet-enabled computer or smart phone to family and friends in 30 countries, including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Uruguay. For more information visit: www.xoom.com.

About Peruvian Olympic Committee (COP)
The Peruvian Olympic Committee is an organization in charge of amateur sports, whose foundation dates back to October 9, 1924. The Peruvian Olympic Committee is in charge exclusively of managing amateur sports and the Olympic movement in our medium. The mission of the Peruvian Olympic Committee is to encourage and protect the Olympic Movement in Peru, following the Olympic Charter. For more information please visit: http://www.coperu.org

1. U.S. Census Bureau 2010-American Fact Finder (http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_SF1_QTP10&prodType=table).

2. Andina-Agencia Peruana de Noticias-Fondo Multilateral de Inversiones (Fomin) del Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID). http://www.andina.com.pe/Espanol/noticia-remesas-al-peru-sumaron-2697-millones-el-2011-reflejando-crecimiento-64-408840.aspx

3. ENAHO-Banco Central de Reserva-Gobierno de Peru (http://www.bcrp.gob.pe/docs/Publicaciones/Revista-Moneda/moneda-150/moneda-150-07.pdf)

SOURCE Xoom Corporation