Echoing what Oaktree Financials’ David Tanner told us this week (namely that Quiksilver’s snowsports presence in Europe is very healthy following the merger with Billabong), Quiksilver announced out of its global headquarters in France that it had signed prolific American freeskier Sammy Carlson to its global team. Carlson joins Travis Rice, Mat Crepel, Bryan Fox and Austen Sweetin as the only skier on the squad.
The move is an interesting one given that Quiksilver had long staked its ski claim on Candide Thovex, one of the most innovative freeskiers in the history of the sport who left Quik in 2016. With Thovex having moved on, Carlson fits into that vein of hyper-creative athlete that exited the competitive realm to specialize in film.
“He’s a great fit for Quiksilver,” said Quik’s Global Head of Sports Marketing, Miky Picon in an industry press release. “We’re amazed by everything Sammy has accomplished both in and out of competition. His approach to skiing is one-of-a-kind and his values are perfectly in line with everything that Quiksilver stands for.”
Read Sammy Carlson’s interview with The Inertia during the relase of his Sammy C Project, here.
