Maclay Murray & Spens LLP (MMS), the UK-wide commercial law firm, has teamed up with elite athlete, Keri-anne Payne, a highly successful open water swimmer and winner of a clutch of Olympic and World championship medals. The move, in which Keri-anne becomes an ambassador for MMS, sees the firm support her throughout the Olympics and the various competitions leading up to Rio.

Keri-anne Payne won a silver medal in the open water 10K event at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, followed by gold in the 2009 and 2011 World championships.  She was the first British athlete to qualify for the 2012 Olympics.

Kenneth Shand, chief executive of MMS, said: “Keri-anne’s determination, focus and winning instinct have seen her become an accomplished athlete. Her experience in setting and achieving high personal goals are valuable lessons for everyone. We look forward to supporting Keri-anne in her quest to deliver on her Rio ambitions, and to sharing some of that insight, inspiration and enthusiasm with our own teams and clients.”

As an ambassador for MMS, Keri-anne will be involved in MMS’ recruitment projects and the firm’s Knowledge, Learning and Development programme.  She will also be active in the firm’s promotional and client communication initiatives and support MMS’ work in the Lex Mundi international network of law firms, where MMS is the sole UK-headquartered firm.

Keri-anne Payne said: “This sponsorship will make a huge difference and allow me to fund my training and competition programme in preparation for Rio. However, I’m looking forward to my partnership with MMS being more than financial support. Learning in the water is a huge part of my programme and I think business has many lessons it can teach sports people and vice versa. I hope we will be learning from each other and I look forward to sharing my story and supporting the firm.

“My main goal is to be at the top of the podium at Rio in 2016 and I’m working towards this as part of a three year cycle. Before Rio, my biggest competitions will be the World Championships this summer, which is the Olympic qualifier, and I need to be top ten in the world to qualify.”

“Every single thing I do is building up to ensuring that, on race day, I am as prepared as I possibly can be, to go out and win. My career now is all about the small details and marginal gains. Concentrating on these will make a big difference to my performance. I’m constantly learning and re-evaluating, which has clear parallels to the kind of focus required to stay ahead in a competitive legal market.”

Keri-anne’s training regime sees her train six days a week, with ten sessions in the pool, topped up with three sessions on land, a total of 30 hours a week. Based in Edinburgh, in 2012 she joined Warrender Baths Club, one of the UK’s oldest swimming clubs and the base of some eight former and current Olympic and Paralympic medallists.

Keri-anne Payne works with Red Sky Management, a business which advises people in the business and sporting worlds, identifying their skill-set, converting their potential and ensuring their continual, exceptional development. Red Sky identified parallels in competitiveness, efficiency and drive for excellence inherent in the approaches of both MMS and Keri-anne Payne, which makes the partnership an obvious fit.

MMS’ sponsorship of Keri-anne Payne follows the firm’s long-standing commitment to working with organisations and individuals of exceptional talent. Some 25 partners and staff are currently involved in coaching sports organisations and individuals as part of the Work Out for Sport initiative, Scotland’s workplace volunteer programme, with the firm also sponsoring the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre and backing the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open 2014.