KeepOurTanker.com Named Title Sponsor of American Open, Dec. 11-13 in Mobile, Ala.

(Colorado Springs, Colo.) - USA Weightlifting is pleased to announce that KeepOurTanker.com will be the title sponsor of the 2009 American Open, Dec. 11-13 in Mobile, Ala. 

"We appreciate the support of KeepOurTanker.com and are excited to partner with such a worthy cause at one of our most prestigious events," said USA Weightlifting CEO Rick Adams (Colorado Springs, Colo.)   

The American Open is an annual event that will draw more than 150 of the top lifters in the United States, including Olympians and World Team members to Mobile.

KeepOurTanker.com is supported by Mobile County. The site is designed to keep the public up-to-date on the U.S. Air Force's $40 billion aerial refueling tanker competition and to extol the superiority of the Northrop Grumman/EADS jet.  If selected by the Pentagon and Congress, Northrop Grumman and EADS would assemble the tankers in Mobile.

The competition has been headline news for years in and around Mobile where thousands of new jobs would be created as well as in Seattle, Chicago, and Wichita where competitor Boeing has a strong presence; however, in many parts of the country the competition has received little publicity.

"Sponsoring the weightlifting championship gives us an opportunity to expose the Web site and the tanker issue to all parts of the nation," said Mobile County Commission President Mike Dean. "Competitors will be here from all over the country and fans of weightlifting and Olympic sports worldwide will be following the results."

Mobile County Commissioner Merceria Ludgood agreed, stating: "This is a vital issue, not just for a few states, but for the entire country.  The Northrop Grumman tanker project would create 48,000 related jobs in all 50 states."

The Air Force has been trying for almost a decade to begin replacing their Eisenhower era fleet of tankers. In 2005, a lease-deal with Boeing was exposed as corrupt with a leading Boeing executive and high-ranking Air Force official sent to prison. In 2008, Northrop Grumman was awarded the contract before a Boeing appeal on procedural issues was upheld and a re-bidding ordered.

"People around the nation need to know what's happening here," said Mobile County Commissioner Stephen Nodine. "They need to understand the importance of putting politics aside and picking the better plane for the taxpayers and for our fighting men and women."

Tags: Rick Adams