R & A Bailey & Co were today announced as the new sponsors of Leopardstown's Irish Champion Stakes.
The sponsorship agreement, which will initially run from 2004 to 2006, means that the race will from now on be known as the Baileys Irish Champion Stakes.
"We look forward to making this year's event an outstanding competition and to building on our already long-standing patronage of Irish racing, through the Baileys Arkle Chase and with our partners, Leopardstown Racecourse," said Peter O'Connor, PR & external affairs director of R&A Bailey.
Leopardstown general manager Matt O Dwyer said: "This race has grown considerably in stature in recent years with last year's race ranked second in the world.
"This new association with Baileys offers both companies the opportunity to grow their business and profiles on both the Irish and international markets".