Skyter backs out of plan to take over Equipe Nürnberger Versicherung

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Skyter GmbH will not take over Equipe Nürnberger Versicherung in the coming season, due to financial considerations. The team management was not clear what would happen with the team built around Trixi Worrack and Olympic Champion Nicole Cooke.

In a statement released Friday evening, the team said that Skyter informed them only a few days ago that other sponsors, whose identities the team does not know, were not fulfilling their obligations. “Obviously these have pulled out and Skyter alone is not in a position to fulfill its agreed-upon sponsoring obligations.

“Skyter continues to produce new excuses as to why it must not pay the agreed-upon money,” the team charged.

The team further noted that, in reliance on Skyter's sponsorship agreement, “numerous contracts with the athletes and suppliers of Equipe Nürnberger have already been signed. If Skyter should break its contract, the Equipe Nürnberger GmbH will force Skyter to meet its responsibilities and request payment of damages.”

Skyter is a Luxembourg-based company that purchases, sells and charters yachts of 30 metres in length and up. It started time-sharing yachts for a specified number of weeks per year. Skyter GmbH is the firm's German branch, based in Fürth, near Nürnberg.

Nürnberger Versicherung, which had sponsored the team for 10 years, announced over the summer that it was ending its sponsorship at the end of this year.

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