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Tuesday, 17 June 2008 04:14 |
Junior Women's World Champion kayaker Emily Jackson is one of seven
athletes named to Crocs, Inc.'s squad of sponsored athletes in the
Inspiring Soles program. Inspiring Soles is a joint campaign between
Crocs and Outside magazine that celebrates athletes who dedicate their
lives to shattering boundaries and raising awareness for meaningful
causes.
Junior Women's World Champion kayaker Emily Jackson is one of seven
athletes named to Crocs, Inc.'s squad of sponsored athletes in the
Inspiring Soles program. Inspiring Soles is a joint campaign between
Crocs and Outside magazine that celebrates athletes who dedicate their
lives to shattering boundaries and raising awareness for meaningful
causes.
The deal represents the first major corporate sponsorship
for the daughter of reigning World Champion Freestyle Kayaker Eric "EJ"
Jackson.
For the past two years, 18-year-old Emily Jackson has
been dominating junior and senior women's pro freestyle kayak events.
Off the water, Emily is a generous philanthropist, donating some
$30,000 of her own prize money over the past three years to Soft Power
Health. Soft Power Health, founded and run by Jackson family friend and
fellow Inspiring Soles athlete Jessie Stone, focuses on prevention and
treatment of malaria at the headwaters of the Nile.
"Emily is an
ideal athlete for Inspiring Soles because of her remarkable success on
the water as well as her passion for motivating others through her
dedication to change in Uganda," said Tim Gray, Sponsorship Manager for
Crocs, Inc. "It is remarkable for an 18-year-old to have such
commitment to her sport and to others."
Jackson has already
identified Soft Power Health and American Whitewater as two of the
organizations she plans to support through Crocs' SolesUnited SM
program. SolesUnitedSM will contribute donation shoes to a mutually
agreed upon organization in Jackson's name. SolesUnitedSM is a
first-of-its-kind recycled footwear donation program, created by Crocs,
Inc. By taking back worn-out CrocsTM shoes, the unique CrosliteTM
material can be recycled and made into new shoes, which are then
donated to people in need around the world.
Jackson said she is
thrilled to support Crocs, a company she says, "goes beyond having
great product" and shares her concerns for the environment and being a
good global citizen. Jackson said she especially appreciates that Crocs
is "helping me accomplish my goals when it comes to giving back."
Recently
named the future of women's kayaking by veteran pro kayaker Tanya Faux,
Jackson has racked up an impressive array of credentials. In addition
to her World Championship title, she is reigning women's US National
Champion. At 15, she became the youngest female to paddle the legendary
Nile and Zambezi Rivers. At 16, she was named one of the Outdoor
Industry Foundation's inaugural Outdoor Idols as well as beating out a
field of hundreds of pro athletes for the Volkswagen Full Throttle
Award at Teva Mountain Games. Jackson has appeared in virtually all the
major teen girl magazines as well as garnering a cover story in Women's
Adventure magazine last summer. Earlier this year, she appeared on the
Today Show with her father after the two qualified for US Olympic Team
Trials in slalom.
The Crocs sponsorship is the most visible of
strides Emily has taken on the journey to establishing her own brand in
the immensely talented Jackson Kayak dynasty. Close on Emily's heels is
younger brother, Dane, who at 14 has already been taking the podium in
men's pro freestyle events as well as holding the title of US National
Freestyle Kayak Champ.
Emily took her first strides toward
independence last year when, at age 17, she bought what the family
refers to as her first "starter home," a Westphalia van.
Already
an astute businesswoman, the teen has also begun to take on other adult
responsibilities including managing the Jackson Kayak Fun Tour. The job
entails coordinating a dizzying array of dealer, club and kayak school
requests for visits by Team Jackson Kayak sponsored athletes.
For more about Jackson, visit JacksonKayak.com.
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