The New Zealand men's and women's hockey teams, who are referred to as the Black Sticks, are both outside medal prospects at London 2012 after the men finished seventh at the Beijing 2008 Olympics and the women finished 12th, but the deal will give them a huge boost ahead of the Games next year.

"Ford is such an iconic brand and we are thrilled to have them as our partner," said Hockey New Zealand's chief executive Hilary Poole.

"Hockey is a growing sport in New Zealand and this commercial support allows us to deliver top quality participation and high performance programmes.

"The next twelve months promises to be a big year of hockey with international competition, a centralised programme and players vying for one of the 16 places up for grabs in the Olympic team.

"To have Ford right behind the Black Sticks as they take on the best in the world is fantastic."

The three-year contract also sees Ford support New Zealand's next generation of hockey players through "Small Sticks", which is Hockey New Zealand's junior programme.

The junior programme will be rolled out nationally next year to give primary school children a taste for hockey and connect them with their local association.

"Hockey is a game of agility and performance which is why we feel it's a perfect fit for Ford and we are proud to be the driving force behind the Black Sticks," said Chris Masterson, marketing manager of Ford New Zealand.


New Zealand's two hockey teams are both on the rise and they illustrated as much when they each came away with success at the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games last October as the men secured the bronze medal and the women went one better by picking up the silver.

At the London 2012 Olympics, the two are set to compete at the brand new London 2012 Hockey Centre in Eton Manor, which is currently under construction and located adjacently to the Olympic Park in Stratford.

After the Games, the Hockey Centre will move to the north of the Olympic Park and have 3,000 permanent seats with the ability to increase to up to 15,000 for major events.

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