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Four emerging Kiwi athletes have been selected for a new action sports development programme aimed at equipping young talent with skills required for a potential elite career.
Promising young Kiwi snowboarders Keani Wilson, 17, and Brooke Hansen, 17, and downhill mountain bikers Quinn Ravenwood, 13, and Indy Deavoll, 16, all based in Queenstown, are the first teenagers to be selected for the RISER programme, a unique sponsorship partnership with tourism pioneers AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand.
The new programme aims to help young athletes competing at the highest level by opening the door to access important resources, such as performance development, social media training and financial support – skills needed to springboard the athletes’ existing talents towards a potential elite career and prepare them for international sponsorship opportunities.
AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand co-founder and managing director Henry van Asch says RISER will provide aspiring Kiwi athletes with a supportive pathway to really hone their talents further.
“We have been wanting to do this for years after receiving a lot of requests for sponsorship from athletes, nationally and internationally,” he says. “We’re excited to officially launch RISER and have Quinn, Brooke, Keani and Indy as the first ambassadors. They truly embody our ‘live more, fear less’ mantra and are already on the road to becoming some of NZ’s promising sporting talent.
“For me, this programme feels like it’s coming full circle,” Henry explains. “In my 20s, I represented New Zealand in European Speed Skiing and competed internationally in downhill mountain biking, so I understand the challenges aspiring high-performance athletes encounter.
“We believe it’s important to support young Kiwis on their journey to achieving excellence in their respective disciplines, with the overall goal of helping them to be noticed by global brands. If we can help our RISER athletes to get noticed by big players like Red Bull, for example, then we have done a good job.”
Young Kiwi athletes that are competing in any action sport discipline at the highest level nationally or internationally, with aspirations of taking their sport to the elite level, are eligible to apply for the annual RISER sponsorship programme.
RISER athletes will receive a personalised gear kit, containing branded apparel – a hoodie, t-shirt, cap – a bespoke helmet, as well as some financial support to assist with competition costs. Other wraparound support such as mindset coaching is currently being developed. Mountain bike athletes will receive elite support from Queenstown-based Onward MTB Coaching.
Additionally, the athletes will have access to a digital marketing coach – focusing on enhancing the athletes’ online profiles to improve the chances of being noticed by international brands – as well as ongoing education about professional sponsorships.
Athlete Indy Deavoll says she’s stoked about the opportunity to be part of the first intake of RISER athletes.
“The support this programme gives me, in the way of coaching and travel costs, will really help to grow me as an athlete,” she says. “I think it’s really cool that this local Queenstown business is giving back to the community and helping young athletes.”
