Citi in Poland won the prestigious contest "Benefactor of the Year 2019" in "sports" category. The Jury recognized the activity of the company which promotes paralympic sports and encourages the society to support paralympians. For 20 years, the competition has selected companies representing the highest standards in terms of the social involvement of business.
Since 2018, Citi in Poland has been in partnership with the Polish Paralympic Committee. As part of its global initiative, Citi organizes meetings with athletes from Team Citi, and the volunteering projects in 2019 gathered over 500 Citi volunteers. At the same time, Citi supports Natalia Partyka, a four-time Paralympic female champion in table tennis, and Maciej Lepiato, a two-time Paralympic champion and a four-time World Champion for the disabled in high jump.
According to S³awomir S. Sikora, Citi Country Officer in Poland: Diversity is one of the supreme values followed by our company. We are happy that we have been recognized in a field that is so important to us. Paralympians teach us perseverance and show that owing to strong motivation and hard work we can climb the highest mountains! We encourage everyone to support paralympians. It is an inspiring and very educative experience. I strongly believe that such support will directly translate into our greater openness to diversity and its better understanding.
Within the frame of the partnership with the Polish Paralympic Committee, Citi in Poland gets involved in important events organized by the Polish Paralympic Committee, for example the Closing Ceremony of the 1st Sportsman 2019 Competition, i.e. the Gala to celebrate 21 years of the Polish Paralympic Committee. The reliable Citi Volunteers also offered assistance in the Paralympic Zone during the 21st Olympic Picnic in Warsaw.
Cooperation with the Paralympic Committee is not the only sports initiative organized at Citi in Poland. Like every year, on the first Sunday of September Citi employees in Poland took part in the charity run organized by the Poland Business Run Foundation and on 14 June they competed in the virtual cyclic race over a distance of 40 km (COVID-19 Relief Challenge).
S³awomir S. Sikora also stresses that this year's award is not Citi's début in the "Benefactor of the Year" competition. As he says: In 2017 we won in two categories: employee volunteering and new technologies in social involvement. I am very happy that our efforts, as a company, were recognized again. Our #CitiVolunteers deserve special congratulations. They never fail.
The "Benefactor of the Year" competition has been organized since 1997 by the Academy for the Development of Philanthropy in Poland. The "Benefactor of the Year" award is considered one of the most prestigious recognitions granted for social involvement and corporate social responsibility activities.
