Press Releases

Tifosi Co-Founder Receives Prestigious “40 Under 40” Award

The SportsOneSource Group is pleased to announce the honorees for the fourth annual SGB 40 Under 40 Awards. This year's list again contains individuals from all corners of the sporting good industry who are recognized as leaders making a difference in their businesses and the market. The 40 recipients were selected by a panel of SportsOneSource analysts, editors and industry executives from more than 450 nominations received from around the sporting goods industry.

"These awards are a way to recognize the great work done by younger leaders in our industry," said James Hartford, president, CEO of The SportsOneSource Group, which publishes the SGB trade publication. "The extraordinary and diverse talent nominated this year made it difficult to narrow the list to just forty people. We drew very strong support from prior honorees and other industry leaders to select a prestigious group of individuals and it is our pleasure to honor the next generation of leaders." The SGB 40 Under 40 Awards event will be held in Chicago, IL June 24-26 and is open to other industry professionals, friends and peers to help honor the recipients.

The 2011 Honorees of the SGB 40 Under 40 Awards are:

1. Nate Alder, CEO, Klymit
2. Jeremy Andrus, President, Skullcandy, Inc.
3. Tripp Baird, Founding Principal and Director, Partnership Capital Growth
4. Varetta Banks, Buyer of Kids Footwear, Hibbett Sports
5. Jed Berger, Senior Vice President Marketing, Modell's Sporting Goods
6. Willy Booker, President, Nordica USA
7. Linda Brunzell, VP International, Wolverine World Wide
8. Kimberley Cayce, CEO, KALYX Technologies
9. Steve Cuthbert, VP Sales, Polartec LLC.
10. Kelly Dachtler, Co-President/Chief Communications Officer, The Clymb
11. Hoby Darling, VP Strategic Development, Volcom
12. Peter Davis, Director of Corporate Alliances, NCAA
13. Martin Dean, Founder & Creative Director, Cushe Footwear
14. Keith Duplain, General Manager, Dr. Scholl's Footwear, Brown Shoe Co.
15. Elizabeth Earley, Co-Founder, Tifosi Optics
16. Robert Farinholt, Principal, D.A. Davidson & Co.
17. Chris Farley, Owner, Pacers Running Stores
18. Vincent Ferrara, Founder and CEO, Xenith
19. Ronnie Fieg, David Z. Designer & Buyer, David Z
20. Brian Frank, President & Co-Founder, Rampage Sports Group
21. Joel Heath, Global Marketing Director, Deckers Outdoor Corp.
22. Jonathan Hirshberg, President, JR286
23. Robert Hough, Regional Manager of Loss Prevention, Audit Firearms Compliance, Dunham's Sports
24. Todd Kirssin, Head Buyer of Footwear, DTLR
25. Tim Knowlton, VP Field Sales, Saucony
26. Michael Martin, VP Sales Vibram FiveFingers, Vibram USA
27. Carie McAuliffe, Senior Licensing Manager, Reebok Brand, adidas Group
28. Jason McGibbon, U.S. Sales Manager, Mountain Hardwear
29. Peter Messana, CEO, Austin Canoe and Kayak
30. Melanie Mitchell, President, Poppy Sports
31. Chris Pappas, National Sales Manager, GRABBER
32. Robert Philion, President, COBRA-PUMA GOLF
33. Jesse Porter, Regional Sales Manager, Specialized Bicycle Components
34. Lance Richardson, VP Business Development, Arc'teryx Equipment
35. Darren Rovell, Sports Business Reporter, CNBC
36. David Schultz, VP Sales, Sport and Military, Timex
37. Marc Simon, Group Sales Director, PGA Merchandise Show
38. Lisa Thompson, President, Icebreaker USA
39. Craig Vanderoef, Global Apparel, adidas AG
40. Rob Will, VP/DMM, The Sports Authority

For more information go to www.sgb40under40.com