Radio Interview: Our Client, Darren Weeks, Founder & CEO of Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about the Canadian Luge Team $1,000.000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics

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Newspaper Story: Our Client Darren Weeks, Founder & CEO of Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about  the Canadian Luge Team $1,000,000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics

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Luge Prize Not A Stunt

Feb 13, 2010 By Cory Hare | St. Albert Gazette

Promising a $1 million payday for any Canadian luger who snags a gold medal may be garnering international publicity but it’s not a silly publicity stunt, said Darren Weeks, the owner of St. Albert-based Fast Track Group.

The organization has pledged a million-dollar prize if a Canadian luger wins an Olympic gold medal. Canada has never medalled in luge at the Olympics but this year’s team has had a number of top-10 finishes and is a threat to medal, Weeks said.

The $1 million would be split between the athlete and the Canadian Luge Association. If Canada produces more than one gold, the athletes would share the prize money.

His company is also offering $50,000 for each silver and bronze medal. There will be a $5,000 reward for the top Canadian in men’s and women’s singles and doubles. The athletes can pocket all the cash.

The offer applies to the Vancouver 2010 games or the 2014 games in Sochi, Russia.

Weeks said he came up with the idea about 10 days ago.

“Just trying to do something different,” he said.

“More than just financially, I wanted to make sure they got a lot of exposure.”

“I thought, if we put a million dollars on the line, I think that might get some publicity and then more people will know what the luge sport is all about, because very few people even know what it is.”

The story has been picked up by media all over the world.

Weeks insists it’s not a publicity stunt aimed at generating interest in his financial education company. He noted that his Fast Track Group began sponsoring the luge team last year after noticing the team was putting “For Sale” signs on their helmets in an attempt to attract sponsors.

“When I found out that they were for sale, I was kind of embarrassed as a Canadian that we had the Olympics coming up in 2010 and they didn’t have a corporate sponsor,” Weeks said. “I thought what the heck, let’s support a little guy, an underdog.”

There were several things he had in common with the team: both are Alberta-based and both use a fast track. His sponsorship is worth more than $1 million over five years.

Weeks has heard the snickers that this million dollar prize is just a publicity stunt with zero chance of the prize being claimed.

“I made sure we did a five-year sponsorship and also for those skeptics out there if they think this is just publicity because, they’re not going to win, one of the ladies came in fourth, one of the guys came in fifth,” Weeks said.

“If it happens to be a gold medal in Russia, I’ll still pay.”

Canadian Olympians who medal will receive bonuses of $20,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze from the Canadian Olympic Committee.

Newspaper Story: Our Client, Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about the Canadian Luge Team $1,000.000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics

Rewards Are Large For Medal Finishes

Canadian Luge Federation’s title sponsor, Fast Track Group of Calgary, has offered $1 million if a Canadian luger captures the gold medal.

By Terry Bell, Vancouver Sun February 12, 2010

Tony Gentile / Canada’s Samuel Edney speeds down the track during a practice run for the men’s singles luge Thursday. The members of the Canadian luge team could collect a cheque from the team sponsor if they collect a medal.

Canada’s lugers begin the ‘Great Canadian 2010 Olympic Million Dollar Slide Off’ on Saturday with the first two of four runs in the men’s event at the Whistler Sliding Centre.

The odds may not be very good, but if any among the Calgary trio of Sam Edney, Ian Cockerline or Jeff Christie should happen to win the gold medal here, they’ll be rewarded with a $1,000,000 cheque from the Canadian Luge Federation’s title sponsor, Fast Track Group of Calgary. The money will be split between the athlete and the CLF. Canada has never won an Olympic gold medal in luge. The same is true for silver and bronze, which, if it were to happen here, would be worth $50,000 from Fast Track. The top Canadian man, woman and doubles team will earn $5,000. So what are their chances?

Well, Edney, 25, is the early favourite to leave here with the $5,000 from the men’s event, which ends with two runs on Sunday. The fastest total time wins. Edney has stepped up during the 2009-10 World Cup season, earning a personal best-ever fifth place finish in Calgary and then coming seventh at a World Cup in Cesana, Italy. He’s ranked 15th in the World Cup standings after placing 19th in his Olympic debut four years ago in Turin.

“My confidence in my sliding has grown in the past couple of years and we’ve had some amazing training at Whistler this year that has really helped in building consistency,” Edney was quoted as saying on the CTV website.

Christie, who was born in Vancouver and raised in Calgary, is ranked 25th on this year’s World Cup circuit. Cockerline is ranked 35th.

Christie finished 14th at the 2006 Olympics in Turin. Cockerline crashed in his Olympic debut.

Italy’s Armin Zoeggeler is one pre-race favourite. The two time Olympic gold medallist had the second fastest first training run Wednesday and the fastest time on the second run. Russia’s Albert Demtschenko had the fastest first time and the second fastest time in the second run. Through the first eight races on this season’s World Cup, Zoeggeler has four wins and three second place finishes. Demtschenko has two wins, with Germans Felix Loch and Andi Langenhan each have a win. Despite an improved Canadian program that’s come since the hiring of German coach Wolfgang Staudinger three years ago, the Canadian men still trail the Zoeggelers of the luge world by a considerable margin. But if they have a chance here, it rests with advantage they should have on the Whistler track, a challenging test for even the most skilled lugers. The Canadians have had more time on the track than sliders from the other countries.

“It’s great, this is my second home,” Cockerline said of the track. “I’ve been struggling with the top 20 (on World Cup). I want to have four consistent runs and finally put them down. If I get that it will make me happy.”

As for the money — it’s unlikely to be a distraction. “We have been doing this for so long that the financial motivation is an afterthought,” said Cockerline. “Our cake is the Olympics and throwing down four of the best runs of our careers.”

Newspaper Story: Our Client Darren Weeks, Founder & CEO of Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about  the Canadian Luge Team $1,000,000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

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Newspaper Story: Our Client Darren Weeks, Founder & CEO of Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about  the Canadian Luge Team $1,000,000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics. http://vancouver2010.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/09/canadian-luge-gets-offer-it-cant-refuse/

Wire  Story: Our Client Darren Weeks, Founder & CEO of Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about  the Canadian Luge Team $1,000,000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

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Canadian sponsor to pay $1 million for luge gold

The gold medal for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games will be a pretty penny for a Canadian luger who wins one.

WHISTLER, B.C. (AP) - A Canadian luge gold medal will be worth $1 million, thanks to a team sponsor.

Fast Track Group, an Alberta-based company that bills itself as a financial education specialist, is putting up $1 million for a Canadian gold, to be split between the champion Canadian luger and the Canadian Luge Association.

The company also is offering $50,000 for silver and bronze, plus $5,000 for the top Canadian in each luge event.

A medal is considered a long shot. The team’s best hopes are Calgary sliders Alex Gough and Sam Edney.

The 22-year-old Gough is ranked seventh in the world; the 25-year-old Edney is ranked 15th.

The Canadian Olympic Committee also has promised a medals bonus, with $20,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze.

TV Interview: Our Client Darren Weeks, Founder & CEO of Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about  the Canadian Luge Team $1,000,000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Newspaper Story: Our Client Fast Track To Cash Flow was interviewed about  the Canadian Luge Team $1,000,000 performance bonus they can possibly win at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Canadian lugers offered $1m incentive to strike gold

Thursday 11th February 2010

From Sportsbeat staff, in Vancouver

CANADA’S lugers have had a million dollar golden carrot dangled in front of them as added incentive to capture a gold medal in Vancouver.

Team sponsors Fast Track Group are offering one million Canadian dollars (approximately £600,000) to finish on top of the podium as well as $50,000 for a silver or bronze medal and $5,000 for the highest placed Canadian.

The top prize would be split between the athlete and the Canadian Luge Association and the motivation will remain in place for the 2014 Games in Sochi.

But despite such a generous offer, Canada’s top lugers will be hard pushed to claim a medal in an event which has received little funding over recent years.

Whereas alpine skaters, figure skaters, snowboarders and speedskaters can receive six-figure sponsorship deals in Canada, athletes in other Olympic sports have often been left to fund themselves.

Two such athletes are Alex Gough and Sam Edney – the highest ranked Canadian lugers – who have had to rely largely on money raised themselves.

But despite this, Gough has finished in the top six at World Cup events four times this year and agonizingly came fourth at last year’s World Championships.

Currently ranked seventh in the world, the 22-year-old, who was 20th at Turin 2006, says she will not be focusing on the money.

“We still have to go out there and do our job,” she said.

“It’s just about going out there and sliding and doing the best we can.

“If we can put it down and slide to our potential, we do have a shot but in the end it’s really out of our hands.”

Edney finished a career-best fifth to kick off this season’s World Cup in Calgary and also managed a seventh place finish in Cesana.

The 25-year-old was 12th in Whistler in the pre-Olympic test event last year and is ranked 15th in the world.

“All of us going into the Olympics are not thinking about this million dollars,” said Edney.

“We come here to compete, represent our country, and go for the best results you can.

“If that turns out to be a gold medal, what that is and what that is worth is more than what they are offering as a bonus.

“At the same time, that kind of support and push is unbelievable and it definitely lights something in each of us.”