Quiksilver announced it will hold a 40th anniversary celebration in Paris, November 20-21, 2009. The event will feature two days of skateboarding, music, art and fashion at the historic Grand Palais–culminating in a Saturday night finale featuring The Quiksilver Tony Hawk Show, followed by a concert with Dead By Sunrise (Chester Bennington of Linkin Park with his newest band) and a late night with DJ Mix Master Mike.
“Quiksilver is very excited to kick off our fortieth anniversary in Paris with some of the world’s most celebrated athletes,” said Bob McKnight, CEO of Quiksilver. “It is amazing to think that we have been at this for over four decades. With the help of our athletes, we're proud to have built Quiksilver into a global company that helps define a lifestyle and culture around the world.”
This will be the first action sports event ever held inside the Grand Palais, with the largest vert ramp ever built in Europe and an immense street course open to skaters of all ages and skill levels-free of charge–for the entire two days. And a Street Contest Invitational will feature a prize purse of 20,000 Euros. This is a rare and unique chance for pros and locals alike to skate inside one of the city’s massive historic monuments-for the last 109 years its held boxing competitions and horse racing but never before has it been open to skateboarding.
While in Paris, Quiksilver will pay tribute to forty years of working with the world’s best athletes by bringing together its top global team in surf, skate and snow, including Kelly Slater, Todd Richards, Travis Rice, Danny Garcia, Alex Olson, Jérémy Florès, Mathieu Crépel, Robby Naish and Roxy’s Kassia Meador, Lisa Andersen and Torah Bright. Be sure to look for Todd Richard’s event coverage, Paris exploits and special interviews with athletes and artists alike in several upcoming “Todcasts” on quiksilver.com.
In addition to the insane roster of Quiksilver athletes, The Tony Hawk Show is bringing friends such as skaters Andy MacDonald, Kevin Staab, Sandro Dias, Jean Postec, Sergie Ventura, Jesse Fristch, and four of the biggest names in international skateboarding will be our very special guests: Christian Hosoi, Daniel Cardone, Javier Mendizabal and Omar Hassan.
The weekend’s events also include exhibition areas for art, music and cultural events. Special guest and renowned graffiti artist André will be transforming giant ramps into unique art, giving the public the exceptional opportunity to watch the notorious artist at work. Quiksilver has also assembled a 40 year fashion retrospective inside the venue.
Entrance is free to the public for the daytime events (10:00 a.m.- 6:00 p.m.). Saturday night’s performance is a ticketed event for 40 euros.
