UK based tri team, Team Freespeed, has finalised an agreement with Skechers Performance Division that sees the Skechers run brand become the team’s new headline sponsor. With immediate effect, the team name will be Team Freespeed Skechers Performance and new team kit is being produced to reflect the rebranding.
Skechers Performance Division had been a product sponsor of the team last year and during extensive testing with team athletes the overwhelming reaction was that the Skechers GoRun range of shoes ‘surpassed expectations’.
The partnership was seen as a great success for both parties and at the end of the season discussions took place to work closer together going forward.
Richard Melik, Team Manager, said “We could not be happier than to represent a brand as engaging and forward thinking as Skechers Performance Division. We have also stayed very true to our core philosophy of only working with products that we 100% believe in. Ultimately, that belief comes from performance – the Skechers Performance shoes are designed for speed and in our experience have delivered on that promise.”
Commenting on the sponsorship, Skechers UK & Ireland Managing Director Pete Youell said “We are extremely excited about the partnership with Team Freespeed for 2014. The Team Freespeed Skechers Performance partnership is ideally suited for our long-term Skechers Performance Division strategy and cements our continued commitment to the performance footwear category.”
As in previous years, Kona will be the main focus for Team Freespeed Skechers Performance, with athletes aiming to qualify at M-Dot races in South Africa, Lanzarote and France. Other major events on the team calendar will be Ironman Mallorca 70.3 and Ironman UK 70.3.
Virgin Active, following three successful years as headline sponsor, remains ‘very much involved with the team’ as do The Trilife, Clif Bar, Compressport, Skinfit, H2Pro, Speedfil and Lezyne. blueseventy wetsuits have also been added to the roster for 2014.
According to a release from Team Freespeed Skechers Performance, ‘It is fair to say that the team had approaches from most of the top wetsuit brands for this season and so the decision was discussed with the athletes and blueseventy was the brand that everyone, especially the faster swimmers wanted to use.’
The team will be swimming in the blueseventy Helix throughout the season and PZ3TX swimskin in Kona, as well as testing new products as they become available.
The team has also announced a partnership with Yurbuds. Anyone who has been to Kona will have probably have brought back a pair of these sports earphones. The team notes that ‘they are the most snug fitting earphones you can buy and are perfect for running with sound quality to match.’
The following athletes will represent Team Freespeed Skechers Performance in 2014:
- Stuart Anderson
- Tim Bishop
- Declan Doyle
- Jenny Gowans
- Sam Baxter
- Matt Molloy
- Richard Hobson
- Alison Rowatt
- Charlie Pennington
- Jamie Hinton
The team is looking to add two new members to the squad for 2014 and is taking applications for athletes keen to join.
