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13-Year-Old Skateboarder Sky Brown Partners With CLIF Kid To ‘Sponsor,’ Support Kids Going Back To School

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As one of the youngest skateboarders to compete in the Tokyo Olympics, Sky Brown, 13, has amassed a worldwide contingent of devoted fans—most of them her peers. And it’s no wonder; the Olympic bronze medalist is known for her bubbly personality, infectious smile and intense drive to be the best women’s park skater in the world.

Now, Brown is teaming up with CLIF Kid to lend support to kids going back to school in the midst of the pandemic after a challenging year, as well as give them opportunities to celebrate their unique talents.

The “Sky’s the Limit” campaign features a custom badge with Brown’s personal motto, “Sky is the Limit,” printed on stickers kids can put on their water bottles or notebooks. It also encourages kids (or their parents) to show off their talents on Instagram, using a digital AR filter of Brown’s helmet that can be floated on a photo or video and three GIFs from the @CLIFKid handle.

“Our goal is to bring a little joy to the back-to-school season and fuel kids’ imaginations,” said Valerie Van Arkel, CLIF Kid brand manager. “In a recent survey, nearly all parents said they believe their kids could use additional support this school year. Now kids can head back to school with the confidence that comes with knowing people are in your corner.” 

Brown also becomes the first athlete to be featured on the packaging for CLIF Kid’s popular Zbar snack bar. CLIF Bars have already featured athletes in limited-edition packaging, including fellow skateboarder Jordyn Barratt. Brown is shown demonstrating her signature frontside air trick on the package of the Iced Oatmeal Cookie Zbar, one of CLIF Kid’s top-selling Zbar flavors and one of Sky’s personal favorites.

“It’s insane,” Brown says of being featured on the packaging. “CLIF is honestly the best. There are so many snacks that if they’re healthy, they don’t taste good, if they’re unhealthy, they taste good. But when I go surf or go on a hike, CLIF bars are so perfect. It tastes good and gives me energy.”

With a nutritionist mom and a demanding career, Brown is hyperconscious of what she chooses to fuel her body. “My mom puts lots of vegetables in my food,” Brown, whose favorite meals include sushi, ramen, and Italian food, said. “She makes really good food and she’s really healthy; she changes it up every day, I don’t have an everyday meal, she makes different stuff every day she thinks is healthy.”

The CLIF Kid Zbar is smaller than a CLIF Bar, at 1.27 ounces compared to 2.4, and contains fewer calories (130-150 compared to 240-260) and more whole grains.

As part of the partnership, kids can enter to win a a limited number of “sponsorship packs” containing Brown’s signature CLIF products. Each Wednesday throughout September beginning today at 9 a.m. EST, a limited number of packs will available on a special product landing page, CLIFKidSkyIsTheLimit.com.

The sponsorship pack includes two sticker designs, one with the typographical “Sky is the Limit” motto and the second of Brown demonstrating her frontside air, as well as a box of the Iced Oatmeal Cookie flavor Zbar featuring Brown’s limited-edition packaging.

Though she’s asked about it all the time, Brown doesn’t find it difficult balancing being a professional athlete with being a teenager. She goes to charter school three days a week and does the rest of her schooling online to accommodate her travel schedule.

Because she spends so much of her free time at the skatepark—“Some people think skateboarding is work for me, but it’s really a playground,” she says—she places a high value on school, because it’s where she gets to see her friends. She also skateboards and surfs with her nine-year-old brother, Ocean.

For any other kid who might dream about being a professional athlete, Brown has some words of wisdom from her personal experience. (Her perspective is no doubt useful for many adults, as well.) “Anybody can do it,” she said. “Definitely get off your phone, get outside, work out, move...24 hours is pretty long; you have quite a bit of time to get out.”

“Getting up early makes you feel like you have lots of time,” added Brown, who is also honing her surfing skills at a competitive level and wakes before dawn to get in the water. “It feels like you fit a lot in a day.”

Indeed, between training and qualifying for the Olympics—where, as the daughter of a British father and a Japanese mother, she chose to represent Team Great Britain—and competing in high-level events like Dew Tour and Tony Hawk’s Vert Alert (where, after Hawk, she was one of the athletes who drew the most fans), Brown found time to write and record an original song, “Girl,”—as well as a music video.

It may seem that there’s nothing Brown can’t do, but she believes firmly in the power of tenacity and a positive attitude.

As for kids who may be overwhelmed going back to school amid the pandemic or just need an extra boost of encouragement, the radiant 13-year-old has a message.

“Be brave, be strong, have fun, and do it because you love it,” Brown said. “Don’t let anybody stop you. Get out there, try it, believe in yourself. You can do anything.”

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