The big hucker season opener is going down this weekend (December 3, 2011) as Oakley and Shaun White present the Beijing Air & Style stadium shredfest in China’s Olympic Birdnest. Click the link for all the details. Or on Saturday sometimes, click here to watch it live.OAKLEY AND SHAUN WHITE PRESENT AIR + STYLE 2011
2nd Year for Global Snowboarding Challenge in Beijing, China
FOOTHILL RANCH, Calif., December 1, 2011 – Oakley, Inc. announced the launch of Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style 2011, the highly anticipated snowboarding challenge co-presented with Shaun White, a superstar of the sport. This spectacle of progressive snowboarding features world-class riders, and in its second year, it continues to fuel excitement over the emerging Chinese market for action sports.
“Thanks to our partnership with Shaun, last year’s Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style was a huge success, and the world is looking forward to seeing top riders from around the globe as they bring their best to Beijing,” said Oakley CEO Colin Baden. “Shaun is a proud member of the Oakley family, and he has brought his insights to some of our greatest performance innovations in winter sports. He is also becoming an icon of style, and beyond serving as ambassador for revolutionary new inventions like our Airbrake™ snowboard goggles, he is spreading the word on Oakley’s well-earned authenticity in lifestyle designs. Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style 2011 will see the best of both worlds.”
Baden continued, “There is a cultural revolution happening with Chinese youth. Like young people all over the world, they are drawn to action sports, music and urban culture, and China has one of the largest and fastest growing middle-class demographics on the planet. That makes it a place of tremendous possibility, and Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style is a vital inroad for snowboarding and other action sport industries,” Baden concluded.
“It’s a huge honor to be back in China for a second year of Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style,” said Shaun White. “I remember thinking the ‘Bird’s Nest’ [the National Stadium in Beijing, host of the 2008 Summer Olympics] was the coolest venue, and now I can’t believe the competition will be there! I’m also looking forward to seeing the Oakley Rookie Challenge at Qiao Bo [Indoor Ski Resort], and meeting and watching some of China’s up-and-coming snowboard talent. It’s a privilege to be part of all this — to partner with Oakley and share all the excitement as China gets more and more stoked on the sport,” White concluded.
White has been a devoted Oakley athlete since his early teen years. He is currently serving as an Oakley ambassador to spread the word about the unrivaled advantages of the company’s revolutionary new Shaun White Airbrake™ snow goggle, a design that makes the process of lens changing fast and easy so athletes can take full advantage of Oakley’s premium array of performance lens tints. “Airbrake is revolutionizing the goggle industry,” commented White. “It lets me switch to the best lens tint in seconds, so my vision is totally dialed-in to the weather.”
White has collaborated with Oakley on lifestyle designs including Holbrook, sunglasses that reflect American Classic style in contours of comfortably lightweight O Matter® frame material matched with High Definition Optics® (HDO®).
An exciting pre-event, the Oakley Rookie Challenge will be held November 30th. Chinese snowboarders under the age of 25 will take part in the competition, and up-and-coming riders will have the opportunity to meet Shaun White and spend some time with the snowboard star.
The Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style 2011 main event on December 3rd will feature Sebastien Toutant (last year’s champion), Mark McMorris, Mikkel Bang, Halldor Helgason, Torstein Horgmo, Staale Sandbech and more world-class riders. All will vie for the coveted Ring of Glory and cash prize of US$100,000. Chinese stars in the sport (Da Yang Yang and Ye Qiao Bo) will take the spotlight at the event, and popular Chinese music artists will be featured. More than 20,000 spectators are expected.
Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style is part of the Swatch Ticket To Ride (TTR) World Snowboard Tour. TTR is a non-profit organization aimed at establishing snowboarding as a major global sport while providing quality competitive experiences for snowboarders. As a 6-Star competition of TTR, Oakley and Shaun White Air + Style is a top-level event that showcases the highest and most progressive level of riding.
Winner of the 2011 Winter X Games, Shaun White is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and 11-time Winter X Games gold medalist. Born in San Diego, California in 1986, White won his first amateur snowboard competition at age seven. Since then, he has filled his trophy case with medals earned in Slopestyle and Superpipe. His prowess in skateboarding is equally impressive, and today he is one of the most recognizable action sports figures of his time.
Visit Oakley.com to discover more about the company’s sport performance and lifestyle products, learn more about the revolutionary new Airbrake snow goggle, and see the special edition designs made in collaboration with Shaun White.
