USA Rugby Partners with Thorne Research

Today, USA Rugby announced that it has signed a multi-year agreement with Thorne Research to be their exclusive nutritional supplement partner, providing its national team members with effective and safe nutritional supplements to support athlete health.

As part of the NGB partnership, Thorne Research will provide USA Rugby athletes with the highest quality nutritional supplements, baseline nutritional level testing through WellnessFX, educational materials, and risk protection. In addition, athletes will have access to reliable health information from Mayo Clinic, which has been compiled for easy access on the Thorne Research website. This content helps athletes evaluate supplement usage and understanding of supplement labels, manufacturing and regulations, all provided by an objective resource. Thorne Research also is embarking on several clinical research studies at Mayo Clinic including the effect of nicotinamide riboside on brain NAD+ in collegiate football players, the effect of nicotinamide riboside on altitude acclimatization and team cohesion during a Mt. Kilimanjaro ascent, and a study of the microbiome in elite athletes.

Currently headquartered in Lafayette, Colorado, USA Rugby is charged with developing the game on all levels and has over 115,000 active members. USA Rugby oversees four national teams, multiple collegiate and high school All-American sides, and an emerging Olympic development pathway for elite athletes.

In 2009, Rugby returned to the Olympic movement. In 2011, USA Rugby became a full sport member of the United States Olympic Committee and is now recognized by the USOC as the governing body for Rugby in the USA. Rugby Sevens will now be played at the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games for both men and women.

"We are extremely proud to have entered into this partnership with Thorne Research," said USA Rugby CEO Nigel Melville. "As we prepare our men and women for their respective Rugby World Cups, Sevens Series and the Summer Olympic Games, we will need the support of advanced research and nutritional supplements to help them perform at their best. While working with Thorne, we will be confident that our athletes are taking the best supplements to help them achieve their goals and stay in top health."

As athletes reach the highest levels of competition and become more efficient in their sport, they stress specific groups of muscles day in and day out. This daily process of stress and repair requires that their bodies receive very specific ranges of vitamins, minerals, and botanicals in order to perform optimally. For example, competing in a high-stress environment requires nutritional supplement products such as amino acid supplementation that has been shown to decrease fat synthesis and promote energy production, lean muscle mass, and muscle strength.

"USA Rugby has become the fastest growing sport in the United States, and is improving rapidly on the world stage." Said Thorne CEO, Paul Jacobson, who added, "Thorne is extremely excited to be able to work with these athletes, coaches, and nutritionists on their health and wellness regimens, as they aim for the highest levels of global achievement in their sport."

According to Nutrition Business Journal, it is estimated that 70 percent of Americans take nutritional supplements on a regular basis. Prevalence in elite athletes is assumed to be higher, making Thorne Research’s participation, in collaboration with NGBs’ coaches, doctors, and sports science specialists, integral to the health and wellness programs within these prestigious governing bodies.

Thorne Research will also be partnering with several other national governing bodies beyond USA Rugby "We think there is tremendous value in direct partnerships with the national governing bodies and are happy to see Thorne Research support so many athletes working to earn a place on Team USA," said Lisa Baird, USOC Chief Marketing Officer.

About USA Rugby

Established in 1975, USA Rugby is the governing body for the sport of rugby in America and a Full Sport Member of the United States Olympic Committee. Currently headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, USA Rugby is charged with developing the game on all levels and has more than 100,000 active members, with more than 35,000 playing collegiate rugby and 35,000 playing senior club rugby. USA Rugby oversees four national teams, multiple collegiate and high school All-American sides, and an emerging Olympic development pathway for elite athletes. It also hosts more than 30 national playoff and championship events each year as a service to its members. In October 2009, the International Olympic Committee announced Rugby Sevens (the seven-a-side version of the game) will appear in the 2016 Olympic Games to be held in Rio de Janeiro. Visit www.usarugby.org for more information.

About Thorne Research, Inc.

Thorne Research is a personalized health solutions company dedicated to improving individual outcomes through science and technology. For 30 years, Thorne Research has led the nutritional supplement industry in providing researched-based, high-quality natural products, including foundational vitamins and minerals, therapeutic-focused nutritional supplements, and soon to include botanical drugs. By leveraging cutting-edge research and personalized data through affiliate WellnessFX, Thorne Research offers customized preventive health solutions for practitioners, their patients, and athletes. Thorne Research is a majority shareholder in WellnessFX, a San Francisco-based personalized wellness company providing home kit testing and actionable recommendations from the analysis of blood chemistry, genetics, and microbiome. Thorne Research is headquartered in New York City, with a manufacturing facility in Sandpoint, Idaho. Further information on Thorne Research is available at Thorne.com.

For more information, please contact:

Nick Sero | Manager, Communications and Digital Media | USA Rugby | nsero@usarugby.org

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