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The Olympic Partners (TOP) ProgrammeThe Olympic Partners (TOP) programme is the highest level of Olympic sponsorship, granting category-exclusive marketing rights to the Summer, Winter and Youth Olympic Games to a select group of global partners.The programme – which was created by the IOC in 1985 – attracts some of the best-known multinational companies in the world. Through their support, Olympic partners provide the foundation for the staging of the Olympic Games and help more athletes from more countries participate on the world’s biggest sporting stage. Operating on a four-year term in line with each Olympiad, the TOP programme is now in its eighth generation (TOP VIII), with revenues having grown from USD 95 million in TOP I to more than USD 1 billion in TOP VIII. This revenue is subsequently distributed by the IOC to all NOCs, IFs and OCOGs, to support the development of sport around the world. The Worldwide Olympic Partners are very experienced in Olympic Games operations and delivery, and have become a major support to the OCOGs’ operations and an integral part of staging the Games.In 2015, the IOC announced that the Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) will join the TOP programme in 2017 (TOP IX), becoming the 12th member of the TOP programme in the newly-created mobility category (marketing rights in Japan with immediate effect).MEDIA GUIDE: IOC MARKETING / 13