WONJU, South Korea, Oct. 17, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fortinet, a global leader in broad, integrated and automated cybersecurity solutions, will become the Official Cybersecurity Partner of the BMW Ladies Championship, taking place at the Oak Valley Country Club in the Republic of Korea. The partnership with the BMW Ladies Championship will represent Fortinet’s first sponsorship with the LPGA and in Asia.

The 2022 BMW Ladies Championship will take place at Oak Valley Country Club from October 20-23, where 78 players, including 68-top class LPGA Tour players will compete for a prize fund of $2,000,000. The Tournament began in 2016 as an LPGA of Korea Tour event and became a co-sanctioned LPGA event in 2019. It remains as the only LPGA event in Korea. World No.1 and Seoul native, Jin Young Ko will return to Oak Valley Country Club in October as defending champion after beating fellow Korean Heejeong Lim in a playoff last year to secure her third victory at this event.

Sangyun Han, Representative Director and CEO of BMW Korea commented, "I am thrilled to announce this partnership with Fortinet. We will promote tournaments and create events that will contribute to the development of the Korean golf and sports industry while expanding our partnership with a wide range of well-known corporate sponsors.”

John Maddison, EVP of products and CMO at Fortinet commented: “To help foster inclusion and diversity, Fortinet supports women’s career development through the Fortinet Training Advancement Agenda and Training Institute initiatives. As part of this work, Fortinet is excited to support LPGA tournaments and events for talented women.”

The partnerships with BMW further extend Fortinet’s involvement with a diverse group of organizations focused on benefitting local communities and closing the cybersecurity skills gap worldwide. For example, Fortinet was an Official Cybersecurity Partner of the Kroger Queen City Championship which took place in Cincinnati, OH, September 8 – 11, 2022.

As part of the company’s dedication to the community, Fortinet has designated proceeds from the Fortinet Championship to benefit nonprofit organizations in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM); diversity and inclusion; and reskilling programs, including organizations like non-profit WINE WOMEN, focused on advancing women in their careers.

About the LPGA  
The LPGA is the world’s leading professional golf organization for women. Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Daytona Beach, Fla., the association celebrates a diverse and storied membership with more than 2,300 members representing more than 30 countries. With a vision to inspire, empower, educate and entertain by showcasing the very best of women’s golf, LPGA Tour Professionals compete across the globe, while the Symetra Tour, the official qualifying tour of the LPGA, consistently produces a pipeline of talent ready for the world stage. Additionally, LPGA Teaching and Club Professionals directly impact the game through teaching, coaching and management.

The LPGA demonstrates its dedication to the development of the game through The LPGA Foundation. Since 1991, this charitable organization has been committed to empowering and supporting girls and women through developmental, humanitarian and golf community initiatives, including LPGA*USGA Girls Golf, the LPGA Women’s Network and the LPGA Amateur Golf Association.

Follow the LPGA on its television home, Golf Channel, and on the web via www.LPGA.com. Join the social conversation at www.facebook.com/lpga, www.twitter.com/lpga and www.youtube.com/lpgavideo, and on Instagram at @lpga_tour.

About The BMW Group
With its four brands BMW, MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW Motorrad, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. The BMW Group production network comprises over 30 production sites worldwide; the company has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2021, the BMW Group sold over 2.5 million passenger vehicles and more than 194,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax in the financial year 2021 was € 16.1 billion on revenues amounting to € 111.2 billion. As of 31 December 2021, the BMW Group had a workforce of 118,909 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company set the course for the future at an early stage and consistently makes sustainability and efficient resource management central to its strategic direction, from the supply chain through production to the end of the use phase of all products.

www.bmwgroup.com
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About IMG
IMG is a global leader in sports, fashion, events and media. The company manages some of the world’s greatest athletes and fashion icons; owns and operates hundreds of live events annually; and is a leading independent producer and distributor of sports and entertainment media. IMG also specializes in licensing, sports training and league development. IMG is a subsidiary of Endeavor, a global sports and entertainment company.

About Fortinet

Fortinet makes possible a digital world that we can always trust through its mission to protect people, devices, and data everywhere. This is why the world’s largest enterprises, service providers, and government organizations choose Fortinet to securely accelerate their digital journey. The Fortinet Security Fabric platform delivers broad, integrated, and automated protections across the entire digital attack surface, securing critical devices, data, applications, and connections from the data center to the cloud to the home office. Ranking #1 in the most security appliances shipped worldwide, more than 595,000 customers trust Fortinet to protect their businesses. And the Fortinet NSE Training Institute, an initiative of Fortinet’s Training Advancement Agenda (TAA), provides one of the largest and broadest training programs in the industry to make cyber training and new career opportunities available to everyone. Learn more at https://www.fortinet.com, the Fortinet Blog, or FortiGuard Labs.