The Chinese Olympic surf team, along with coach PT and the San Clemente surf team. An Electric afternoon!
By now you know that surfing is in the Olympics. You’ve probably got some kind of opinion about it–either you like it because you like sports, hate it because surfing is not a sport, or, if you’re like me, don’t care much either way because caring, for the most part, is a pretty useless endeavor.
And since surfing is in the Olympics and the Olympics are happening in Tokyo, China is putting together a surf team. If they approach surfing the same way they approach all the other Olympic sports, the Chinese surf team is going to be a force to be reckoned with and (insert something feel-good about stoke crossing all borders here). That’s why Electric is sponsoring them… but also because something like 1.3 billion people live in China and not very many of them surf (yet). Talk about an untapped market!
“The Electric brand is proud to play a role in expanding surf culture to new geographies,” said Eric Crane, the CEO. “The opportunity that the Olympics will bring to the sport goes far beyond the competition. The lifestyle, and feeling of stoke that comes with surfing is a truly an international language.” (There’s the feel good thing about stoke!)
The Chinese surf team recently landed in Orange County to pick up their Electric swag and have a friendly contest against the San Clemente High School surf team, which, if the teens surfing around San Clemente are any indicator, is much better than should be allowed.
China, meet Orange County. Orange County, China. Photo: Electric
Guess who’s the coach of the Chinese Olympic surf team? Peter Townend. Yeah! Surfing’s first-ever world champ and co-founder of the Bronzed Aussies (who, according to Matt Warshaw’s Encylopedia of Surfing, “were ridiculed after turning up at contest sites in matching Bronzed Aussie velour jumpsuits”) is the man who will lead the Chinese surf team to Olympic gold. Bede Durbidge is the man tasked with leading the Australian surf team to Olympic gold. Hopefully, he chooses velour as the tracksuit material, because that would be both comfortable for the athletes, hilarious for the viewers, and might work as a head-game against PT.
“Having Electric come on board to sponsor the team for our Camp California is great for the China Surfing Team, and the team kids love the sunnies,” Townend said. “This is their first support from a brand in the United States. This team is showcasing the sport of surfing in the Chinese market as we head towards surfing in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Electric will be right at the forefront of that!”
