August 12, 2003 (Berkeley, California) – Clif Bar Inc. announced today that Jose Luis Rubiera of Spain has won the second annual Beyond The Podium Award*, earning a $10,000 first prize from the company. The award honors domestiques – the unsung heroes of cycling – by asking cycling fans to vote for the domestique on the U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team they believe contributed the most to the team's performance in the Tour de France. The USPS team helped its leader win an historic fifth straight yellow jersey at this year's Tour.
The gregarious Rubiera, aka “Chechu,” received 6,726 of the 20,192 votes cast by cycling enthusiasts on the Clif Bar Inc. website (www.clifbar.com) during a three-week period coinciding with this year's Tour de France. USPS teammate George Hincapie came in second with 4,488 votes, nosing out by just 44 votes Roberto Heras, last year's winner of the first Beyond The Podium award. Voting on Clif Bar Inc.'s Beyond The Podium Award is becoming an increasingly popular way for cycling enthusiasts to share in the excitement of the Tour de France. This year's phenomenal tally of more than 20,000 votes eclipsed last year's total of nearly 12,000.
“Chechu's tremendous contributions in the mountain stages of this year's Tour epitomize the teamwork and sacrifice that domestiques bring to the sport of cycling,” said Gary Erickson, Clif Bar Inc. owner and CEO. “Domestiques don't usually get the headlines or the glory, and that's why we're excited to help shine the spotlight on them.”
Based in Berkeley, Calif., Clif Bar Inc. is the official energy bar and gel sponsor of the U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team. A leading maker of all-natural energy and nutrition foods, Clif Bar Inc.'s products include the CLIF* BAR, the energy bar providing nutrition for sustained energy; CLIF SHOT*, The Natural Energy Gel* for endurance activities; LUNA*, The Whole Nutrition Bar for Women*; and MOJO Bar*, the first natural snack bar with popular salty snack flavors.
Clif Bar Inc. is committed to sustainability from the field to the final product. The company is working to reduce its ecological footprint by using organic ingredients, supporting a wind farm to offset its CO2 emissions, purchasing certified organic cotton for its promotional T-shirts and incorporating “green” office practices. To learn more about Clif Bar Inc., visit www.clifbar.com or call 1-800-884-5254.