OREANDA-NEWS. February 20, 2013. The Russian Olympic Committee, Sberbank, a general partner of the XXII Olympic Winter Games 2014 in Sochi, and Visa, a worldwide Olympic partner for more than 26 years, announced the launch of Visa Classic Olympic Team affinity debit cards, reported the press-centre of Sberbank.

Using this new card, any Sberbank client can support the Russian Olympic team and the promotion of sport in the country.

It’s simple: Sberbank automatically donates to the Russian Olympic Committee when the card is taken out (50% of the service fee for the first year) and for each transaction (0.3% of the transaction value).

A Visa Classic Olympic Team card can be taken out in any Sberbank branch. Cards are valid for three years and are only available for ruble accounts. They can be used to pay at tens of millions of merchants around the world, including online stores that accept Visa. The Sberbank Visa Classic Olympic Team card is protected with an electronic chip. The annual service fee for the first year is 1,000 rubles (450 rubles per year subsequently). Visa Classic Olympic Team cardholders are granted free access to mobile and Internet banking. They are also enrolled in the Thank You Sberbank bonus programme.

“I think many of us have dreamed of being involved in a sporting event as significant as the Olympic Games. It’s great when dreams come true. In one year’s time, in February 2014, our country will host the Olympic Winter Games for the first time. But today we can all already support the Russian Olympic team. The social element of this unique project is very significant. I am certain this joint programme from Sberbank, Visa and the Russian Olympic Committee will find support from the Russian people, each and every one of whom can now make their contribution and support athletes at the 2014 Olympics on home soil in Sochi,” said Alexander Zhukov, President of the Russian Olympic Committee.

“Olympic history is made by the athletes. It is the athletes that produce the incredible performances. It is the athletes that put in long years of training to prepare for the Games. It is their unfaltering commitment and perseverance that produces well-deserved victories. There would be no Olympic Games without the athletes. But at the same time, the families and hometowns of the athletes are also confident in their success. The whole country supports them. That is the main idea behind creating this product. Today many people want to be part of the Sochi Olympic Games and support the Russian Olympic team,” said Stanislav Kuznetsov, Deputy Chairman of the Sberbank Management Board. “Now it’s easy to help our Olympic athletes, just take out a Visa Classic Olympic Team card at any Sberbank branch and use it to pay for your purchases.”

“Visa has been a worldwide Olympic partner for more than 26 years, actively supporting the Olympic movement and athletes around the world through its Team Visa sponsorship programme. It is a great honour for our company to be a partner in this Visa-card-based affinity programme to support the Olympic movement in Russia,” said Steven Parker, Group Country Manager at Visa for Russia, the CIS and SEE. “We thank Sberbank and the Russian Olympic Committee for our long-term partnership and hope the idea of the Visa Sberbank Olympic Team card will be close to people’s hearts and help them make their personal contribution to supporting the Russian national team at Olympics Games in the future, including at the Sochi Games.”