SCARPA Embarks On Third Year Of Athlete Mentorship Initiative

SCARPA, the leading manufacturer of footwear for performance mountain sports, this month launches the third year of its successful SCARPA Athlete Mentorship Initiative (SAMI). Based on a commitment to supporting athlete growth and helping to create a more inclusive and diverse outdoor community, SAMI embarks on another year of empowering the next generation of outdoor athletes.

Created by SCARPA, and run in conjunction with brand partner and technical apparel manufacturer Mountain Hardwear, the SAMI program is designed to create more access, support and opportunity for outdoor athletes from historically marginalized communities. The program will again pair aspiring athletes who are from the BIPOC, LGBTQ and Adaptive communities with mentors from SCARPA or Mountain Hardwear’s athlete teams.

For the 2024 program, SCARPA and Mountain Hardwear introduce the newest class of 12 mentees, a talented group of athletes in disciplines including climbing, mountaineering, running and skiing. During the SAMI program, mentees meet with athlete mentors and SCARPA and Mountain Hardwear staff to work on individual projects and goals. This year’s class was chosen from hundreds of applications for the SAMI program.

"As we enter the third year of SAMI, we’re humbled to see this program has become such a success that we received such an extraordinary number of applications from a range of extraordinary athletes,” said Melanie Hood, Director of Marketing and Communications for SCARPA North America. “That speaks not just to the value of an effort like this working to try to broaden outdoor participation, but to the commitment and excitement that our brand athletes have shown for this program.”

This year's mentees are Zivia Berkowitz, Brittney Butler, Sarah Carriere, Joshua Harper, Jay Louie, Davis Ngo, Adam Pawlikiewicz, Carlin Reynolds, Ellie Rubin, Gabrielle Tourtellotte, Lindsay Valero and Noah Wheeler. They will be paired with SCARPA athlete mentors, who include Kitty Calhoun, Nathaniel Coleman, Sam Elias, Tim Emmett, Will Gadd, Joshua Jarrin, Gabe Joyes, Shelma Jun, Andrew King, Alex Puccio, Erin Spong and Graham Zimmerman.

The 2023 SAMI class saw some incredible milestones, including the first deaf female and deaf American male to summit Mount Everest, along with a handful of films and video projects, including Guerreras, a film following female Latina climbers.

"The Scarpa Athlete Mentorship Initiative was the push of inspiration I needed to create Escaladores Unidos,” said Xavier Bravo, a 2023 mentee and founder of Escaladores Unidos. “Not only did I develop confidence in my objectives by having so many individuals believe in my vision, but the connections I made with other SAMI mentees, industry leaders, and inspiring individuals

will last for years to come. If nothing else, it is quite comforting to know that I will always be part of the SCARPA and Mountain Hardwear families and part of a cohort of athletes that are shaping the future of the outdoor industry for the better."

For more information about SCARPA and the Athlete Mentorship Initiative, please visit https://us.scarpa.com/community/index.php/athlete-mentorship-program.

The SCARPA Athlete Mentorship Initiative presented by Mountain Hardwear has been created to connect and engage the SCARPA and Mountain Hardwear Athlete teams with accomplished athletes from historically marginalized communities aspiring to take their sport or career to the next level. The mission of this program is to connect mentors with mentees focused on the sports we serve to provide participants with opportunities for personal, athletic and career development with the goal of helping to create a more inclusive and diverse community of athletes.

SCARPA is reaching out to historically marginalized populations including, but not limited to:

• BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color)
• LGBTQ
• ADAPTIVE/Disabled
• Communities of climbers, skiers, mountaineers, and runners who are looking to evolve their skills and sport to a new level of excellence.

Chosen mentees will be paired with a SCARPA or Mountain Hardware athlete who can help guide them towards achieving their specific goals. This program will help mentees develop the skills they are striving for, focusing on improving their athletic skills but also touching on, growing their social media following, establishing connections in the industry, building brand partnerships, transitioning their athletic interests to careers, creating or guiding non-profits or outdoor organizations. The program will also encourage all who participate to give back to others in their community.