Citi Launches #StandForProgress in Support of Team USA for 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games

Citi's #StandForProgress campaign wants to inspire Americans nationwide to set goals alongside America's elite athletes. By using #StandForProgress, the public can share the small or big steps they want to take this year or recognize others who support and inspire their efforts – from new jobs to saving up for a vacation to buying a home or starting a new business. Citi will capture these goals and take them to USA House in Rio to motivate America's Olympians and Paralympians.

As part of the program, Citi invited six athletes from Team Citi -- Olympic Gold Medalists Gabby Douglas, Kerri Walsh Jennings and Nathan Adrian, Paralympic Gold Medalist Rudy Garcia-Tolson, Olympic Hopeful Carlin Isles and Paralympic Hopeful Scout Bassett – to meet students from around the country and explore how they define progress.  The college students were selected from Citi Foundation's Pathways to Progress, a three-year, $50 million initiative to prepare 100,000 young people for success. The video content will be released on Citi's YouTube channel throughout the spring and summer.

"At Citi, enabling progress and growth is our business," said Edward Skyler, Citi's Head of Global Public Affairs and Chairman of the Citi Foundation. "For some Americans, that means reaching the Olympic or Paralympic Games -- while for others it can mean attending college, owning a home, or starting a business.  In the video series launching today, we are excited to pair several Team Citi athletes with college students who have participated in Citi Foundation's Pathways to Progress to discuss how they define, achieve and motivate others to realize progress.  To date, Pathways has enabled nearly 4,000 youth to have summer employment opportunities, provided access to more than 325,000 hours of mentorship and facilitated the start of 70 small businesses by young people. These stories are inspiring and uplifting examples of Americans who are pursuing their ambitions."

Two inspiring stories launch today with a window into how resilience and a focus on helping others propel people forward.

Kerri Walsh Jennings Meets University Student Abigail Hamilton 
Kerri Walsh Jennings, three-time Gold Medalist in beach volleyball, meets Abigail Hamilton, an undaunted college student who already runs her own business. Hamilton shares how she persevered through a devastating personal loss and why she co-founded a business which takes family photographs for members of the military.

"Progress isn't always easy," said Walsh Jennings, who worked in a shoe store and had other jobs to earn money for training in her early years. "Spending time with Abigail reminded me of the everyday hopes and dreams young people have today and how we need to be cheering each other on. It's uplifting to think about all the goals people have and how every success can lift a family, a community – or collectively the country."

Rudy Garcia-Tolson Talks About Giving Back With Student Alex Torres 
In the second story, four-time medalist Rudy Garcia-Tolson talks with Alex Torres, who hails from New York City, who reveals how education became his ticket to a better life, becoming a first-generation college student. They explore a passion for giving back to the community -- Rudy helping other athletes with physical disabilities see what is possible and Alex educating young adults by raising awareness on mental health issues and opening the conversation to how it can have a huge impact in education, business, and life.

"You can spend your life either focused on your limitations or work hard to overcome them and reach your full potential," said Garcia-Tolson. "I'm inspired by encouraging others to take on a challenge. I love to prove people wrong. Alex and I each share a lot of personal satisfaction from overcoming obstacles and then using those lessons to inspire young people to dream big."

Supporters can follow all the #StandForProgress videos and the progress of Team Citi's athletes as they train for Team USA and Rio this summer @Citi on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Citi
Citi, the leading global bank, has approximately 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 160 countries and jurisdictions. Citi provides consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, transaction services, and wealth management.

Citi Foundation
The Citi Foundation works to promote economic progress and improve the lives of people in low-income communities around the world. We invest in efforts that increase financial inclusion, catalyze job opportunities for youth, and reimagine approaches to building economically vibrant cities. The Citi Foundation's "More than Philanthropy" approach leverages the enormous expertise of Citi and its people to fulfill our mission and drive thought leadership and innovation. For more information, visit www.citifoundation.com.

Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com | Twitter: @Citi | YouTube: www.youtube.com/citi | Blog: http://blog.citigroup.com | Facebook: www.facebook.com/citi LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/citi

Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAQu96dqLk0

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160512/367200

SOURCE Citigroup Inc.

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