TOP FIVE FRIDAYS: NOVEMBER 4, 2022
Lead Image: Ever since the first Winter X Games in 1997, ESPN’s action sports competition has been a staple in the annual event calendar. Last week, ESPN sold majority ownership to a sports investment company, ushering in a new era for the series. More on that below! Image: X Games on Facebook
#1: U.S. Alpine Ski Team Lands Title Sponsorship from Stifel Investment Bank:
Image: U.S. Ski and Snowboard Team
Hello, and welcome to Top Five Fridays, the November 4, 2022 edition! Unfortunately, due to cancellations, we don’t have any FIS event results to recap this week, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have any FIS news. In fact, quite the opposite, as we start this week with a substantial headline for the U.S. Alpine Ski Team as it’s just been announced that Stifel Investment bank has entered a massive, four year agreement to become the title sponsor of the U.S. Alpine Ski Team. As such, the U.S. Alpine Ski Team will officially be known as the Stifel U.S. Alpine Team, for at least the next four years. In return for being the title sponsor for the team, Stifel is contributing to the team in several significant ways. First and most obviously, Stifel will be contributing financial support for athletes on the team, from the development level all the way through the A team. While we don’t know specific details here, our assumption is that this will likely mean Stifel will cover the bill for a significant amount of the travel, room, and board costs associated with competing. Additionally, Stifel will provide support for both the NorAms circuit and the National Championships, even being named the title sponsor for the NorAm tour as well. In other words, Stifel bank is pouring a ton of resources into bolstering both the main developmental pipeline for U.S. Alpine skiing in America, as well as the World Cup tier of the sport. Beyond their financial support, Stifel is also providing financial counseling to all team members, helping to prepare themselves for financial success beyond their time with the Stifel U.S. Alpine Team.
All in all, this is a massive win for both the U.S. Alpine team, and USST President Sophie Goldschmidt who we highlighted just last week. Over the course of this past summer, we spent a number of weeks discussing ways to “fix” Alpine skiing’s talent pipeline, courtesy of an excellent series published by Vail Daily. Some of the top suggestions on that list included things like increasing the visibility of World Cup ski racing by hosting more events on U.S. soil, breaking down financial barriers, and providing more opportunities for the success of athletes within the developmental circuits such as NorAms. With this week’s news, as well as this year’s FIS schedule which is set to host the most races on U.S. soil ever in the history of the sport, it’s safe to say that Goldschmidt appears to be guiding the U.S. Alpine team towards success. Of course it’ll be almost four years before we can truly evaluate the success of these efforts, assuming we use the Olympics as the ultimate measuring stick, but for now, the current trajectory of the sport is encouraging. To learn more about this week’s announcement, check out the press release from the Stifel U.S. Alpine Team.
#2: U.S. Women’s Speed Coach Jeff Lackie Questions FIS’s Early Schedule Amidst Multiple Race Cancellations:
In the wake of multiple cancellations, delaying the start of the women’s FIS schedule by nearly a month, U.S. Women’s Alpine speed coach Jeff Lackie wonders if it’s time the FIS considers shifting the schedule to be later in the season. Image: SkiRacing.com
In other FIS Alpine racing news this week, we caught an article from SkiRacing.com that gives us a read on the pulse of the Stifel U.S. Women’s Team amidst a slower than expected start to the season. As you know, the FIS women’s season has yet to get underway as their initial race in Solden was canceled due to snow and weather conditions, as was this weekend’s downhill race at Zermatt Cervinia. As a result, their first chance to race would be next weekend, at a parallel slalom event in Lech / Zuers. Looking even further ahead, while it’s too soon to call it, the upcoming giant slalom and slalom events scheduled for Killington at the end of November are also likely making event organizers nervous as it’s currently 58 degrees here in Vermont, with daily highs forecasted to be above 46 degrees for the next 10 days in Killington. With all of this in mind, U.S. speed team coach Jeff Lackie wondered aloud to SkiRacing.com this week whether or not it was time to start thinking about shifting the World Cup schedule to start and end later in the calendar year, saying, “With the climate changes we are experiencing, it may be better to push the schedule deeper into the ski season… I acknowledge that weather will always be a part of ski racing, but early-season races seem more and more difficult to execute. It may be better to extend into the spring rather than bank on the early season.” In addition to the obvious frustrations of the team who was excited to race in the inaugural downhill event at Zermatt Cervinia, there are also financial and logistical considerations to be made in regards to scheduling. This year, the women’s team left their training grounds in Chile to travel to Europe, first for the races in Soelden, and then the downhill in Zermatt Cervinia. As a result, some athletes traveled from Chile to Europe a full 3-4 weeks ahead of their first race, spending considerable resources to do so. Still, despite the delayed start to the season, coach Lackie reports that the team is as excited as ever to get the season underway. Hopefully that will finally happen next weekend, and we’ll have more FIS event coverage to recap the following week. Until then, check the pulse of the Stifle U.S. women’s ski team via this article from SkiRacing.com.
#3: ESPN Sells Majority Stake in X-GAMES to MSP Sports Capital:
Just over a week ago, on October 26, 2022, the X Games announced that they are officially under new majority ownership, ushering in a new era of the event. Image: X Games on Facebook
In other competitive news, we learned this week that ESPN has sold a majority stake in X Games to private equity firm MSP Sports Capital. Launched back in the summer of 1995, the X Games was ESPN’s response to the astronomical growth of action sports throughout the 1990’s. Since then, the games have become globally iconic, with multiple iterations of both the winter and summer games occuring at locations across the globe each year. Still, despite the growth of the games, some passionate spectators have come to wonder if they’ve begun to lose relevance in recent years as more iterations combined with more competing events such as the Dew Tour and FIS series have dimmed the spotlight that once showed exclusively on the annual X Games. While we don’t know whether or not the evolving landscape in action sports played a role in ESPN’s decision to sell the games, we do know that one of the leaders in sports investing, MSP Sports Capital, is the new majority owner of the games, while ESPN retains a minority interest.
So who is MSP Sports Capital, and what do they envision for the future of the games? Well, all in all, this development should be seen as exciting news as MSP has a proven track record as sports investors, most notably as the owners of McLaren Racing, as well as the owners of four Soccer teams. In other words, the new owners of X Games have both the financing and experience to take the competition series to the next level. Joining them in their effort is also the legendary Tony Hawk, who will claim a spot on the advisory board and act as a liaison of sorts between action sports culture and the world of sports investors. Between the two, the vision is to further grow the X Games brand by breathing new life into the games themselves as well as their presentation. What this tangibly means is yet to be seen, but we’re hopeful that new life can be brought to the most visible competitive annual event in skiing. Speaking of which, for those curious, this year’s iteration of the X Games is set to proceed as usual, with Aspen hosting the games from January 27-29th, and broadcasts available via ESPN and ABC. We’ll have to wait and see if MSP is ready to mix things up at their inaugural production, or if we’ll have to wait another year before any significant changes are made. Until then, you can learn more about this update by reading more on ESPN or on the X Games website.
#4: J Skis and Ski The East to Launch New Flagship Retail Shop, Bar, and Ski Lounge in Burlington, VT:
An early look into the new J Skis x Ski the East headquarters, bar, and lounge. Image: SevenDaysVT.com
Finally, we round out this week with a highlight that’s admittedly most relevant to us here in northern Vermont, although we think a number of you will find it interesting regardless. If you’ve been involved in the ski scene for any length of time, you probably know the name Jason Levinthal. If you don’t, here’s the scoop: Jason Levinthal is the original founder of Line Skis, having started the brand in his garage back in 1995. Since then, J Lev, as he’s colloquially known, grew and sold that brand to K2, oversaw the relaunch of Full Tilt boots (which is now also owned by K2), and has most recently launched his own direct to consumer ski company, J Skis. Somewhere along the way, he also created a new ski boot for Line, and attempted to launch a Line binding that could be easily mounted, unmounted, and remounted in order to be used across multiple pairs of skis. In other words, J Lev is what we’d call an innovator.
This week, it was announced that J Lev is teaming up with lifestyle brand Ski The East to launch a flagship store in downtown Burlington. As you might expect given J’s track record, the J Skis x Ski the East brick and mortar location doesn’t plan on just being your average retail experience. Instead, the vision for the space is more of a ski and snowboard themed lounge, with a bar serving up simple snacks and beverages for all ages. Additionally, the space will also feature a large screen tv and seating area, where guests can settle in to watch ski and snowboard flicks or play snow-themed video games. In the article sharing the news from Seven Days, J Lev says, “It'll be like hanging in the parking lot after a good day skiing, showing your friends what you just shot on your GoPro… We crack a cold one; you're good to go." While it’s yet to be seen whether or not guests will be able to actually play their GoPro footage on the big screen, we have to imagine that would be the finishing touch to really make this place feel like home to the local community. With an all-ages approach, it’s easy to see how the new flagship location for J Skis and Ski The East could quickly become the go-to place for Burlington skiers to meet, swap stories, and share footage after a day on the slopes. All in all, we just thought this was a cool story and an exciting move from one of the most innovative business people in skiing. To learn more about the plans for the new location, check out this article from Seven Days VT.