ExxonMobil becomes latest sponsor to sever Iditarod ties

ExxonMobil has confirmed that the oil giant will drop its sponsorship of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, according to Anchorage Daily News.

The move came after ExxonMobil, which has been a race sponsor since 1978, received pressure from one of its shareholders and the race’s biggest critic, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

The loss amounts to $250,000, PETA said, but ExxonMobil could not immediately confirm the sponsorship amount. In 2009, ExxonMobil committed to giving the Iditarod $1.25 million over the ensuing five years.

The Iditarod normally starts in Willow, about 50 miles north of Anchorage, and takes mushers and their dogs nearly a thousand miles over rugged Alaska terrain to the finish line in Nome. However, this year’s race has been scaled back to about 860 miles and will start and end near Willow.