Sergio Garcia Wins CRESTOR(R) Charity Challenge at PGA TOUR's EDS Byron Nelson Championship, Earning $50,000 for Salesmanship Club

Press Release

Posted 2004-05-17

DALLAS, May 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Sergio Garcia was named this week's CRESTORŽ (rosuvastatin calcium) Charity Challenge winner for his first-place standing entering the final round of the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. The CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge is a season-long weekly competition that recognizes the tournament leader entering the final round at most PGA TOUR events throughout the year. Through this first-of-its kind program, AstraZeneca and its CRESTOR product will donate approximately $3 million a year to designated health care and PGA TOUR charities. At each of the selected tournaments, a $100,000 contribution will be made.

With this week's contribution, AstraZeneca and the PGA TOUR, through the CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge, have donated $1 million to charity since the program began at the Ford Championship at Doral in March.

For Garcia's performance, AstraZeneca, on behalf of its CRESTOR product and the EDS Byron Nelson Championship, will donate $50,000 to the Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers, and $50,000 to the health-care charity of Garcia's choice.

Begun in 1920, Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers is the only charity sponsored by the Salesmanship Club of Dallas, a civic organization of 500 business professionals. More than 90% of the funding is provided by the funds raised at the EDS Byron Nelson Championship, enabling the organization to serve families and children experiencing emotional and behavioral problems regardless of their ability to pay. Nearly 3,000 people are served each year, and 93% report improvement in the problems that brought them to therapy.

"Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers is honored to be the recipient of the CRESTOR Charity Challenge," said Kent Skipper, SCYFC executive director. "This generous donation will allow us to continue to address the needs of Dallas area children. We're thrilled to partner with AstraZeneca to ensure that all children and families in our community have access to these critical services."

The CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge is the centerpiece of a multi-year PGA TOUR partnership with AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN - News) on behalf of its cholesterol- lowering medication, CRESTOR.

"Giving back is at the heart of the PGA TOUR and AstraZeneca is pleased to be able to support this by offering health education and recognizing local communities through the CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge," said Tony Zook, senior vice president, commercial operations, AstraZeneca U.S. "The CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge will not only add an exciting new twist to the PGA TOUR, it will also help the TOUR reach its milestone of $1 billion in charitable donations within the next few years."

CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge winners will be recognized during the network or cable telecast of each tournament. In addition, AstraZeneca and CRESTOR will sponsor the PGA TOUR year-end charity special, which is scheduled to air December 18 on ABC.

The PGA TOUR partnership also includes the CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge Pavilion, an on-site component at select tournaments featuring interactive exhibits designed to provide health and cholesterol awareness, educational activities, health screenings/assessments, and golf tips by teaching pros for fans.

Fans can log on to www.crestor.pgatour.com to take part in weekly contests, read about past CRESTORŽ Charity Challenge winners, and learn more about CRESTOR. CRESTOR also will be the official sponsor of TOUR Fantasy Golf at pgatour.com/fantasy.

About CRESTORŽ (rosuvastatin calcium)

CRESTORŽ (rosuvastatin calcium) is a once-daily prescription medication for use as an adjunct to diet in the treatment of various lipid disorders including primary hypercholesterolemia, mixed dyslipidemia and isolated hypertriglyceridemia.

CRESTOR is generally well tolerated. Adverse reactions have usually been mild and transient. In clinical trials of 10,275 patients, the most commonly reported treatment-related adverse events were myalgia, constipation, asthenia, abdominal pain and nausea.

CRESTOR is contraindicated in patients with active liver disease or unexplained persistent elevations of serum transaminases and in women who are pregnant or may become pregnant, and in nursing mothers. Rare cases of rhabdomyolysis with acute renal failure secondary to myoglobinuria have been reported with CRESTOR and with other drugs in this class. CRESTOR should be prescribed with caution in patients with predisposing factors for myopathy, such as renal impairment. Patients should be advised to promptly report unexplained muscle pain, tenderness, or weakness, particularly if accompanied by malaise or fever. It is recommended that liver function tests be performed before and at 12 weeks following both the initiation of therapy and any elevation of dose, and periodically (e.g., semiannually) thereafter.

Full prescribing and product information for CRESTOR is available by calling the AstraZeneca Information Center at 1-800-236-9933 or by visiting www.crestor.com.

About ASTRAZENECA

AstraZeneca is a major international healthcare business engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription pharmaceuticals and the supply of healthcare services. It is one of the top five pharmaceutical companies in the world with healthcare sales of over $18.8 billion and leading positions in sales of cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, oncology, neuroscience and respiratory products. In the United States, AstraZeneca is an $8.7 billion healthcare business with more than 11,000 employees. AstraZeneca is listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (Global and European) as well as the FTSE4Good Index.