Dimension Data to bring Tour de France to billions cycling of fans
The deal will see the IT solutions and service company become the official technology partner of the ASO.
Starting in July this year at the Tour de France, Dimension Data will partner with ASO to improve the viewing experience of billions of cycling fans across the globe.
This will also include providing race information on cycling events including the Paris-Nice, Critérium International, Paris-Roubaix, la Flèche Wallonne, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Tour de Yorkshire, World Ports Classic, Critérium du Dauphiné, la Course by le Tour de France, la Vuelta a España, and the Paris-Tours.
Both organisations said their common goal in the coming years was to deliver and share the best race information speedily and in real-time with race commentators and the global viewing public.
Tour de france director, Christian Prudhomme, Dimension Data's purpose was to 'Accelerate your Ambition'.
"Ours is to provide our cycling fans around the world with concise, reliable information on the Tour de France and all our other races by enhancing the content of our TV broadcast and our supporting digital platforms," he said.
"Cycling is exciting and complex, and deserves to benefit from the latest technologies to reveal all aspects of the sport.
"Our partnership with Dimension Data by our side will help us deliver on our ambition and take our cycling fans and spectators on a journey into the heart of the race and cycling in the future.
Dimension Data executive chairman, Jeremy Ord, said the company was privileged to partner with ASO to provide technologies and skills to one of the oldest and most prestigious events on the sporting calendar.
"We are privileged to partner with A.S.O. to provide our technologies and skills to one of the oldest and most prestigious events on the global sporting calendar," he said.
"Cycling touches the lives of everyone in the world at some time: from little children in cities and rural areas who learn to ride at a young age, to teenagers and adults who rely on a bicycle to get to school or work and back.
"At the same time, technology unites people, and enables organisations to do things better, faster, and more cost-effectively." Dimension Data group chief executive, Brett Dawson, said optimising the experience of fans, and providing them with a richer, more intimate experience of cycling was at the heart of the company's goal.
"Our focus is on harnessing technology to drive innovation in this exciting, high-performance sport," he said.