The Athlete's Foot Awards Denver High School Student Court Time With Denver Nuggets' Carmelo Anthony
Jasmine Warfield of Aurora, Colorado, Named National Winner of Retailer's 'In My Shoes' Contest
| Source: NexCen Brands, Inc.
DENVER, CO--(Marketwire - November 9, 2007) - Jasmine Warfield, a 16-year-old junior at Gateway High School in Aurora,
CO, knows how it feels to be an underdog. Last year, the small forward led
her varsity basketball team to playoffs only to lose in the first round.
At the time, Jasmine was working hard to motivate a very young varsity team
made up of all sophomores in an extremely competitive 5A league. She hopes
to continue encouraging her team this basketball season and has a new tool
up her sleeve to help inspire them -- court time with
Denver Nuggets' Carmelo Anthony, which she won
through The Athlete's Foot
(TAF) In My Shoes back-to-school
contest. Jasmine has been named the national winner by the footwear
retailer and will meet Carmelo Anthony on Sunday, November 18, in her very
own high school gymnasium where her family, classmates, friends and team
can cheer her on from the sidelines and join in the fun.
"It is truly an honor to culminate the In My Shoes contest by giving a very
motivated student athlete like Jasmine the opportunity to learn from a
world-class professional athlete who shares her passion for the sport of
basketball," commented Robert W. D'Loren, President and CEO of NexCen Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ : NEXC ), parent company of TAF. "This campaign has given us the opportunity
to meet 11 students nationwide who have exhibited aspiration, achievement
and excellence. We are proud to help them reach new levels of performance
by introducing them to pro athletes who have provided helpful advice and
guidance, as well as to our local franchise owners who strive everyday to
empower customers to achieve their performance goals."
The Contest Entry
Jasmine learned of The Athlete's Foot In My Shoes contest from her high
school's security guard, Henry Williams, who is also a member of the TAF
retail team at the 16th Street Mall in Denver. A fellow student in her
Essay Research class, Ta'ran Leopold, was the regional winner of the
footwear retailer's contest and experienced a meet-and-greet session with
Denver Broncos' Brandon Stokley in October. The two students had a
friendly rivalry about which might win the contest. To their surprise,
both students earned experiences of a lifetime.
Jasmine's winning contest entry read:
"In my shoes...I will run faster, jump higher, and score more points. I
will cross my defender and drive hard to the basket. I will create plays
on offense and move the ball to the open man. I will be a team player! In
my shoes...I will protect my goal like a lion protects the jungle. I will
take a charge, be big in the paint, and I will forever have my hands up on
defense! In my shoes...I will practice like a champion, and I will play
like a champion. I will leave it all on the court. I will walk in the gym
with confidence and walk out with humility. And the next time I step to my
opponent, she will not be ready for me...in my shoes!"
Jasmine's entry was selected because it most clearly described her desire
to aspire, achieve and excel this school year.
"I am very excited to meet Carmelo Anthony on my home court," commented
Jasmine Warfield, when notified of her prize. "I always try to keep a
strong head and encourage my basketball team and I really believe Carmelo's
visit to our school will help inspire all of us to work hard this upcoming
basketball season."
Carmelo Anthony
As a small forward for the Denver Nuggets, Carmelo Anthony has worked very
hard in his career to be an outstanding athlete. In 2004, Carmelo was
chosen as a member of the USA Olympic basketball team. Among numerous
other awards, Carmelo was most recently named to the 2007 NBA All-Star
team. Off the court, he is active in the Denver community as a spokesman
for Family Resource Centers and opened the Carmelo Anthony Youth
Development Center in Baltimore, MD -- the city where he grew up.
The Event
Jasmine Warfield and Carmelo Anthony will meet on Sunday, November 18, at
Gateway High School located at 1300 S. Sable Blvd. in Aurora, CO. There,
Jasmine will take to the court with Carmelo from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. She
will be joined by some teammates for drills and enjoy shooting tips from
Carmelo during a friendly game of "TAF" (inspired by the traditional
playground game "horse.") Other event features include a Q&A for Gateway
basketball players with Carmelo, food and musical entertainment.
A limited number of tickets will be made available to the public for $15
each. Proceeds from ticket sales, which will earn buyers a complimentary
commemorative t-shirt, will benefit two causes -- the Gateway High School
Athletic Department and Achilles Kids. Tickets can be purchased at the
Gateway High School Book Keepers Office from 10:30 a.m. -- Noon daily,
while supplies last.
Throughout the course of the In My Shoes campaign, TAF has been raising
funds for the Achilles
Kids program, a division of The Achilles Track Club which empowers
young people with all types of disabilities to participate in mainstream
athletics in order to promote personal achievement, enhanced self esteem
and the lowering of barriers between people. Proceeds from memorabilia and
autograph sales from In My Shoes athlete appearances around the country
will be presented to representatives of Achilles Kids during a courtside
ceremony on the 18th.
The TAF In My Shoes campaign, which the retailer launched in late July,
invited students ages 13 to 18 nationwide to submit written or video
(YouTube) entries stating their performance goals for the new school year.
Local winners, selected from participating TAF stores, received a $75 TAF
gift card.
The ten regional events connected winners with pro athletes from their
communities, including:
-- Lovell Jordan III, running back for his high school's football team, met
Atlanta Falcons running back Warrick
Dunn
-- Ka'Ron Wilson, a 15-year-old freshman working hard to make his school's
basketball team, met Carolina Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward
-- Kimberly Essary, who idolizes Chicago White Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle so
much that her email address begins "kimbuehrle," met him face-to-face
-- Ta'ran Leopold, running back for the Gateway High School football team,
met Denver Broncos wide receiver Brandon Stokley
-- Hannah Hackbardt, who credits her faith in God as the reason she excels
in sport and in life, met Detroit Lions quarterback Jon Kitna
-- Israel Adedipe, a true academic and sports fan, met Houston Texans
running back Ahman Green
-- Todd Crawford, a young football player who experienced the impact of
Hurricane Katrina, met New Orleans Saints receiver Marques Colston
-- The Grand Street Campus Wolves, a motivated high school football team in
Brooklyn, met New York Knicks forward David Lee
-- Brandon Norwood, a high school football player aspiring to play in
college, met Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Reggie Brown
-- Dakota Umbel, an avid runner for her high school's track and cross
country teams, met Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis
About The Athlete's Foot (www.theathletesfoot.com)
The Athlete's Foot® (TAF) is the world's first franchisor of athletic
footwear stores and is recognized today as the world leader in athletic
footwear franchising. Robert and David Lando opened the first The
Athlete's Foot store in 1971 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the first
athletic footwear specialty store of its kind in the United States. Soon
thereafter, TAF began franchising domestically, with the first franchise
store opening in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The first international franchise
store opened in 1978 in Adelaide, Australia, the beginning of TAF's
expansion into over 45 countries. In June, 2007, NexCen Brands launched a
global re-branding effort for TAF. Plans for reinvigorating the 36 year-old
brand to include an innovative new modular merchandising system, new
in-store design, a modernized company logo, and a line of TAF branded
apparel.
About NexCen Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ : NEXC ) (www.nexcenbrands.com)
NexCen Brands, Inc. is the premier 21st century vertically integrated
global brand acquisition and management company focused on assembling a
diversified portfolio of intellectual property-centric companies operating
in the consumer branded products and franchise industries. The Company
owns, licenses, franchises and markets a growing portfolio of consumer and
franchise brands including The Athlete's Foot®, Bill Blass®,
MaggieMoo's®, Marble Slab Creamery®, Pretzel Time®, and
Pretzelmaker® and Waverly®. The Company licenses and franchises its
brands to a network of leading retailers, manufacturers and franchisees
that includes every major segment of retail distribution from the luxury
market to the mass market in the U.S. and in over 50 countries around the
world, and consists of more than 1,500 franchised stores. NexCen, through
its information technology, franchisee support systems and advertising,
marketing and public relations team, markets its brands to continually
drive greater consumer awareness and brand equity for each of its brands.
NexCen touches nearly every aspect of a consumer's lifestyle from the food
they eat to the furnishings in their homes and the clothes and footwear
they purchase.