PR: Vans Secures Largest TV Board Sports Deal
ESPN will air worldwide coverage of Vans' Triple Crown Series.
Edited by John Stouffer
(6-19-98)

(Press Release, June 19,1998)—Vans, Inc., the premier Southern California- based alternative sport and lifestyle footwear, snowboard boot and apparel manufacturer, has announced that it has secured year-round worldwide ESPN television coverage of the Vans Triple Crown Series. This is the largest television distribution package ever for this type of board sports contest series which includes skateboarding, snowboarding, surfing, and wakeboarding.

The Vans Triple Crown Series, co-sponsored by G-Shock watches and Mountain Dew, consists of the Vans Triple Crown of Skateboarding, Snowboarding, Surfing and Wakeboarding (a cross between water skiing and snowboarding-the fastest growing water sport today). The events include top level, sanctioned competitions with world-class athletes competing for the biggest prize purses in the sport. Each sport includes three stops at various locations across the country, with the final stop culminating as a World Championship event.

Todd Richards awarded first place by Vans' Steve Von Doren at the Vans World Championships of Snowboarding at Kirkwood. Photo: Sedway

All twelve stops of the Triple Crown series will receive a dedicated one- hour show, airing in over 180 countries to over 200-million households worldwide. ESPN2 will carry the shows in the U.S., while the ESPN International Network will air the series in Asia, Australia, Latin America, Africa, and Middle East. The series will also air on Eurosport in Europe and on TSN in Canada. ESPN will begin airing the series with the G-Shock Pro, the first event in the Vans Triple Crown of Wakeboarding on July 6.

"We have combined the four board sports together and packaged them in a way that appeals to ESPN. This program will offer Vans and its co-sponsors year- round consistent coverage and more importantly, exposure for these sports," says Jay Wilson, vice president of marketing for Vans. "This is a great step for the industry and will be very positive for the sports as a whole. This was a challenge, but these sports deserve exposure like traditional sports and we are now on the way."

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