Olympic and Paralympic athletes join Canadians at the kitchen table

VANCOUVER, Jul 15, 2008 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) -- GIS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- General Mills Canada's sponsorship of the Canadian Olympic Team and the

2010 Winter Games puts athletes on cereal boxes and supports their quest

for Gold

VANCOUVER, July 15 /CNW/ - From Cheerios to Oatmeal Crisp, cereal boxes featuring Canadian athletes are now available across the country as part of General Mills Canada's Official Supplier agreement with the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC).

General Mills Canada has entered into a sponsorship agreement with exclusive rights in the cereal and unprepared grocery products category for the 2010 Winter Games and sponsorship rights for the Canadian Olympic Team for Beijing 2008, Vancouver 2010 and London 2012. In addition to cereal, the sponsorship extends to other General Mills brands including Nature Valley Granola Bars, Fruit by the Foot, Green Giant frozen vegetables and Old El Paso Mexican products.

"General Mills Canada is pleased and proud to support Canadian Olympians through to 2012," said Dale Storey, vice-president of marketing, General Mills Canada. "We are honoured to have such talented athletes featured on our cereal boxes and in the stores of our retail partners. The 2010 Winter Games will be particularly special for the nation, and General Mills Canada is excited to provide collectible items that serve as memorabilia for the Games to fans who want to support their favourite Olympians."

"Eating a healthy breakfast has always been essential to an athlete's training and success at the podium," said John Furlong, VANOC Chief Executive Officer. "Over the past decade, General Mills Canada has provided considerable support to our Canadian sport heroes. Today, their continued commitment to athletes, and to excellence, will help us bring the Games to homes across the country."

General Mills Canada's 10-year relationship with the Canadian Olympic Committee continues this summer for Canadian athletes competing at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing. The following seven summer Canadian Olympians and Paralympians have received sponsorships from General Mills Canada:

- Brent Hayden (Swimming)

- Marie-Hélène Prémont (Mountain Bike)

- Chantal Petitclerc (Wheelchair Track and Field)

- Jane Rumball (Rowing)

- Adam van Koeverden (Kayak)

- Jake Wetzel (Rowing)

- Simon Whitfield (Triathalon)

As part of this program, each athlete receives financial support and products from General Mills Canada to aid in their vigorous training schedules and quest for gold. Each athlete will also appear, separately, on a minimum of one promotional cereal box and one in-store display piece throughout Canada starting July 14, 2008.

For more information about General Mills Canada, visit

www.everydaycelebrations.ca.

About General Mills Canada Corporation

Established in 1954, General Mills Canada Corporation is based in Mississauga, Ontario. The company is best known for the many quality brands enjoyed by Canadian consumers each day. The company's flagship brand is Cheerios*. Additional key cereal brands include Honey Nut Cheerios*, Oatmeal Crisp*, and Lucky Charms*. General Mills also makes Betty Crocker*, Nature Valley*, Pillsbury*, Green Giant*, and Old El Paso* products. With the primary focus being Youth, Nutrition and Fitness, General Mills is dedicated to fostering good nutrition and fitness behaviours amongst young Canadians through the Champions for Health Kids grant program. In other areas, General Mills has been a long time supporter of organizations such as Active Healthy Kids Canada, Concerned Children's Advertisers and Hockey Canada. General Mills is also partner for the 2008, 2010, 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, proudly supporting all participating Canadian athletes.

*Trademarks/Marques Déposée of/de General Mills or its affiliates

About VANOC

VANOC is responsible for the planning, organizing, financing and staging of the XXI Olympic Winter Games and the X Paralympic Winter Games in 2010. The 2010 Olympic Winter Games will be staged in Vancouver and Whistler from February 12 to 28, 2010. Vancouver and Whistler will host the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games from March 12 to 21, 2010. Visit www.vancouver2010.com.

VANOC's marketing program is focused on securing mutually rewarding partnerships with shared values to generate sufficient revenue to host successful Winter Games in 2010 and to leave a financial legacy for sport. VANOC's Worldwide TOP Partners include Coca-Cola, Atos Origin, GE, McDonald's, Omega, Panasonic, Samsung and Visa. VANOC's National Partners are Bell Canada, Hbc, RBC Financial Group, GM Canada, Petro-Canada and RONA.

VANOC's Official Supporters include Air Canada, BC Hydro, Bombardier Inc, the British Columbia Lottery Corporation, Canadian Pacific, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, Jet Set Sports, Ricoh Canada Inc., the Royal Canadian Mint and Teck Cominco Limited. VANOC's Official Suppliers are 3M, Aggreko, Aquilini Investment Group, Birks, Britco, Canada Post, Canwest Publishing Inc., Dow Canada, EPCOR, Garrett Metal Detectors, General Mills Canada, Haworth Canada, Millennium Development Corporation, Nortel, Purolator, Saputo, Sleep Country Canada, Sun Microsystems of Canada, The Globe and Mail, Tickets.com, TransCanada, Vancouver Airport Authority, Vincor Canada, Weston Bakeries and Workopolis.

/NOTE TO PHOTO EDITORS: A photo accompanying this release is available on

the CNW Photo Network and archived at http://photos.newswire.ca.

Additional archived images are also available on the CNW Photo Archive

website at http://photos.newswire.ca. Images are free to accredited

members of the media/

SOURCE: Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games

SOURCE: VANOC

Kat Bayang, Optimum Public Relations, (416) 934-8082, kathryn.bayang@cossette.com; VANOC, Jason Macnaughton, (778) 328-6734, jason_macnaughton@vancouver2010.com

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