US Speedskating Unveils New Brand

KEARNS, UT (May 6, 2011) - As the national speedskating team athletes return to training for the 2011-2012 season this week, US Speedskating is excited to unveil a new brand identity for the federation today.

The innovative new logo - created through a collaboration between US Speedskating athletes, stakeholders and US Speedskating’s creative agency and sponsor StruckAxiom - has been designed with a nod to the sport’s long-standing tradition of excellence and patriotism, while also articulating the speed and grace of its athletes.

"Entering a new Olympic quadrennium brings the opportunity to break out in a new direction," said US Speedskating Executive Director and two-time Olympian Mark Greenwald. "Our brand is about world class performance. StruckAxiom, along with our marketing staff and a team focused individuals, worked together to articulate and elevate our brand, helping to place a new face on the organization and our new direction. The new logo incorporates a great many aspects of our sport, including the turns of a skating oval, and the "s" for speedskating, but I like to think of the "s" image on the shield standing for success."

The new brand, created around the powerful theme of a shield, and incorporating the patriotic color palate of red, white, blue and silver, also allows for a unique team identity for both the long (blue palette) and short (red palette) track disciplines. Please visit US Speedskating's YouTube site to view our new brand identity video.

"We created a bold new look that meets a complex set of needs in a simple, graphic way," said StruckAxiom Design Director Tosh Brown. "The mark incorporates the long and short tracks, the "U S S" letterforms, and the skating oval. The logo looks forward without neglecting the tradition of the sport, and speaks to the speed and grace of the athletes and the patriotism of the fans."

The new logo and brand identity was made possible by US Speedskating sponsor, StruckAxiom. StruckAxiom is an award-winning creative agency with offices in Salt Lake City, New York, Los Angeles and Portland. In addition to the new brand, StruckAxiom will be integral in the design of US Speedskating’s new website, apparel and will work closely with US Speedskating to grow its brand as the organization and its athletes prepare for Sochi 2014.

"Working with a company like StruckAxiom is really exciting because it opens doors to a new logo and website which can only help our sport get better," said 2010 Olympic Silver and Bronze medalist and 2011 World Champion Katherine Reutter (Champaign, IL). "I love how the logo differentiates between long and short track, and I am looking forward to US Speedskating starting fresh with a new look for 2014."

US Speedskating’s new brand will be showcased on team apparel and fan merchandise, and will incorporated into the organization’s collateral materials and event signage which will debut over the next several months. The 2011-2012 US Speedskating season begins October 1-2, 2011 with the Short Track American Cup I in St. Louis, MO.

For more information, contact: ljager@usspeedskating.org.

As a service to our readers, Around the Rings will provide verbatim texts of selected press releases issued by Olympic-related organizations, federations, businesses and sponsors.

These press releases appear as sent to Around the Rings and are not edited for spelling, grammar or punctuation.

Your complete source of news about the Olympics is www.aroundtherings.com, for subscribers only.