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adidas Canada announces Hockey Diversity Alliance co-founder Akim Aliu as national brand ambassador

Akim Aliu Akim Aliu
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adidas Canada has announced the official signing of a long-term partnership with Akim Aliu, professional hockey player and co-founder of the Hockey Diversity Alliance.

A passionate social advocate and driver of change, Aliu is the latest to join adidas Canada’s roster of ambassadors. The sports apparel giant will work with him on various diversity and inclusion initiatives. His goal is to “remove barriers and bring about transformative change” as the partnership marks another step in the brand’s commitment to equality.

Aliu has been an outspoken force in the fight against racism in hockey, particularly during a time where the sport has struggled with it the most. He has continued to demonstrate his commitment by being involved in various diversity and inclusion outlets and the establishment of the Hockey Diversity Alliance, an organization driven to eradicate racism and intolerance in hockey, while also introducing more BIPOC players to the sport.

The HDA, founded by Aliu in tandem with other players including Minnesota Wild defenseman Matt Dumba and Calgary Flames center Nazem Kadri, works independent of the NHL. The organization has been vocal with its criticism of the diversity policies of the league and its teams in the past.

“I couldn’t be more excited to partner with a global brand such as adidas, that continues to empower athletes around the world to speak truth to power,” said Aliu. “We share the same core values in uplifting marginalized communities and improving access to sport. I have all the faith in the world that this partnership will drive change both in sports but more importantly in society.”

Aliu has also helped to establish a first-of-its-kind BIPOC hockey team in Toronto through the athlete’s Time to Dream Foundation, and recently signed a deal to publish a book on the battle with racism in hockey. Aliu said adidas will support those efforts as part of this deal.

"It's going to be heavily tied into the work I'm doing with the HDA and my Time to Dream Foundation. Swag for the programs and the kids involved in them,” Aliu told ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski. “We're also going to do a lot around mental health, which we're shooting some content for over the next couple of weeks.”

Alim Dhanji, president of adidas Canada, said "the impact Akim has made to push for transformative change to address intolerance and advocate for change is truly inspiring, and we're excited to support diversity and equality initiatives together as partners."

It’s been a long road up to this point for Akim Alim. His humble beginnings to make it to pro hockey, along with the racial adversity he faced throughout his time playing are what fuels his desire to better not just the sport of hockey, but to use it as a tool to enrich the lives of others within his community and future generations through his work. It’s something he’s reflected on as he pays it forward.

"Being born in Africa, growing up in Ukraine, coming here and living on welfare for years ... I have a hard time believing this to be true. This is just absolutely surreal for me," Aliu said to ESPN. "I've always taken pride in making sure my partnerships are authentic and organic, but I always bring it back to what we're doing for the community and the next generation."