Golden Gloves Strikes Partnership with Comcast

07.03.05 – Comcast, in partnership with BMW, Everlast and the SF Examiner, has teamed up to help revive the Golden Gloves, an annual amateur boxing tournament in San Francisco. The 74th Annual Golden Gloves takes place March 30-April 2, 2005 at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium..

As a service to San Francisco residents who can¹t attend the Golden Gloves live, Comcast will make highlights of the event available at no additional cost on ON DEMAND, Comcast¹s new video-on-demand service. ON DEMAND will allow Comcast Digital Cable customers to watch the Golden Gloves anytime, at their convenience, as well as rewind, fast-forward and pause to catch all the exciting boxing action.

³Comcast is dedicated to sponsoring local events such as The Golden Gloves that positively impact the local community where our customers and employees live and work,² said Andrew Johnson, Vice President of Communications. ³We¹re pleased that our new Advanced Digital Network can help bring visibility to an event that builds neighborhood pride, and helps fund after-school sports programs in San Francisco.²

Comcast is the largest provider of cable and broadband services in the United States, serving more than 21 million cable television subscribers and more than 6.5 million high-speed Internet customers. Comcast serves more than 1.6 million customers and employs 4,000 people in the San Francisco Bay Area.

About the Golden Gloves:

The Civic hosted the Golden Gloves from its start in 1931 until 1985. Following that year’s tournament, it moved and landed in the Cow Palace in the late ’80s. Now back at its home at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, this will be the tournament’s 74th edition.

Rich in tradition, the San Francisco Golden Gloves are where champions are born. From legendary middleweight world champion Fred Apostoli in the 1930¹s, to 2004 Gold Medalist Andre Ward, rising Featherweight superstar Robert ³The Ghost² Guerrero, and current undisputed Lightweight World Champion Diego ³Chico² Corrales; the SF Golden Gloves have showcased some of our nation¹s best young fighters.

In 2003 the SF Golden Gloves produced four amateur national champions, two of whom went on to represent the USA in the 2004 Olympics – – Andre Ward and Vicente Escobedo. This year a new crop of talented young boxers will thrill the City and will provide a preview of future champions!

“We are proud that the Golden Gloves’ board of directors will be donating $1 from every ticket sold to the Boys and Girls Club of America in downtown San Francisco, the Bayview, Mission and Visitacion Valley,” Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a statement.

For more information, and to arrange press credentials, contact Jared Rivera, jared@rivera-pr.com 415.640.2553, or visit http://www.sfgoldengloves.com