ABeam Consulting Sets Sail to the Beijing Olympics

Tokyo, 4th August 2008 – ABeam Consulting, a global provider of operational consulting services, today announced that two of its employees will represent Japan in the Beijing Olympic Games. ‘Team ABeam’ will compete in the Women’s Sailing 470 event – one of the most important events for Japan at the Games and the only women’s sailing event in which the country has previously won a medal.

Team ABeam was chosen to represent Japan after skipper, Ai Kondo, and crew, Naoko Kamata, placed first among the Japanese teams in this year’s 470 World Championships and the fiercely competitive national team selection race. Team ABeam is expected to finish high in the Olympic competition. Qingdao, the ocean area in which the race will take place, experiences mainly weak wind conditions, which the pair excels at navigating.

Kondo and Kamata joined ABeam in 2005 and 2006 respectively to work as part of the human resources team in Tokyo. Since then, both competitors have received sponsorship from ABeam, and been granted extended leaves of absence to allow complete dedication to training. They have been working towards representing Japan in the Olympics since the team was formed in 2005.

“We are embracing this opportunity – it’s one we’ve worked very hard for. Reaching this level demands a lot of mental and physical commitment, as well as time, but we’re lucky in that ABeam has been extremely supportive of our task,” says Ai Kondo at ABeam.

The Women’s Sailing 470 will be held at Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center beginning on 11th August 2008.

Alastair Clifford-Jones, CEO, ABeam UK, comments: “As a company whose name originates from a sailing term, we are delighted to support these top athletes and will be cheering them on during the Beijing Games.”

About ABeam Consulting

ABeam Consulting provides operational consulting services that create strategic advantage, improve business processes, leverage technology innovation, and enhance organizational performance for leading multinational and domestic companies worldwide. ABeam partners with clients to diagnose and solve their real challenges with solutions that combine industry and operational best practices with technical expertise. Pragmatic approaches ensure that clients gain measurable value more quickly. Headquartered in Tokyo, ABeam’s more than 3,500 professionals serve more than 700 clients throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia. For more information, please visit www.abeam.com.