Grass roots initiative launches, helping female amateur athletes access pinnacle international competitions.
Like minded individuals and fellow Ironman athletes Joe Sutheran and Brittney Litton, today launch a trial fundraising initiative aimed at supporting female amateur athletes to access the pinnacle international Ironman competition; KONA World Championships.
Brittney Litton, having recently qualified and accepted a spot at the World Championships, found that a number of her fellow female athletes were unable to accept a spot because of the huge financial implications of competing overseas; which in total can cost north of $10k NZD.
“Collaboratively we saw the need to better support women athletes, and our community, compete at the highest levels internationally. We know participating in these sports is quite cost prohibitive and women still face a range of economic inequalities to be able to achieve equitable participation. So we wanted to trial a way to set up a fundraising opportunity that could help get more women to the start lines of these pinnacle events for our best amateurs and budding pros” says Brittney Litton.
The pair approached LUPA Cycling Limited – a female sports brand and women’s specific athlete community based here in NZ – to come on board with the trial. The concept involves LUPA designing and donating a unisex cycling jersey which will be sold on the website – with 100% of the profits going to benefit members of the LUPA Crew community, which includes Brittney Litton.
To get the fund started, Aloha – the name of the 2023 donated designed cycling jersey, inspired by the dreams of competing at KONA, requires a minimum purchase of 100 units at $90. The pair confirm that 100% of the sales profits will be going into the fund with hopes that this will initially be around $3000. The fund will then be available on application and economic assessment to future LUPA Crew Members.
“New Zealand is full of impressive female amateur competitors across lots of sports – and those high level amateurs do so much to inspire other young women” adds Joe Sutheran. “My partner has been inspired by other female NZ athletes and is now playing her own part in inspiring others. In order for those women to continue being an inspiration, I believe we have a duty to do all we can to remove the barriers to women competing at the highest level. That’s why Britt, Marcel and I put our heads together on this initiative. Ultimately, the hardest and darkest moments of any athlete’s training are endured in the knowledge that on race day, your racing will do the talking for you. That’s true whether you’re a newbie or a professional – but it’s all for nothing if you can’t afford to go to the big races.”
The initiative is now open for members of the public and wider community to register their support and commitment to purchase the Aloha Limited Edition LUPA design premium race jersey.
“This initiative resonates deeply with our values to empower and support women to reach their best in their chosen sporting endeavours. I believe initiatives and partnerships like this can help alleviate the economic & socio-economic pressures that hinder our best female amateur athletes from accessing international pinnacle events; whether it’s KONA WC in triathlon, UCI Age Championships in cycling, Multisport world championships, Adventure Racing World Championships or iconic international marathons where our athletes have received invitational qualification. I want to see more of our amazing LUPA Crew Members shine on the world stage that they have worked hard to get to and keep being the inspiration for the next generation of girls” says Marcel Smithers, LUPA Cycling Limited Director.
To register interest or access more information about ALOHA Cycling Jersey – visit www.lupacycling.com/ALOHA or scan the QR code below.
