Athleisure Challenge Active Wear Design Competition Winners Announced
The winners of the national “Athleisure Challenge Active Wear Design Competition”, organized by 10 textile and ready-to-wear garment exporters’ associations and coordinated by the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) with the support of the Ministry of Trade: Republic of Turkey, have been announced.
In the competition hosted by Uludağ Textile Exporters’ Association (UTİB), ReCos team became the first, Gen A team became the second and Loop team became the third. Athleisure Challenge Active Wear Design Competition, one of the leading competitions in the active wear world, brought together young textile engineers and designers who wanted to showcase their superior design skills. The final ended with the award night where creative collections were presented.
With the organization of the Athleisure Challenge, it was aimed to contribute to the emergence of functional and aesthetic design ideas and the commercialization of products.
The award ceremony which hosted by Pınar Taşdelen Engin, Chairman of UTİB and Nüvit Gündemir, Chairman of Uludağ Ready-to-Wear and Apparel Exporters’ Association (UHKİB), many guests attended the event such as: Mustafa Gültepe, President of TIM , İbrahim Burkay, Bursa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BTSO) , Chairman Presidents of Textile and Ready-to-Wear Exporters’ Associations across Turkey, UTİB and UHKİB Board Members.
Engin “The competition shows the importance of talents with a promising future”
Pınar Taşdelen Engin said that “Athleisure fashion, which consists of the words ‘Athletic’ meaning athletic and ‘Leisure’ meaning leisure activity, has become an increasingly popular trend that combines style and comfort. In this competition, I was proud to see how our teams turned this trend into innovative and sustainable designs. The unique collections, the technical skills and bring a breath of fresh air they bring to fashion show how important up-and-coming talents are for the industry,”
Burkay: “You have proved what you are capable of achieving”
İbrahim Burkay, President of BTSO congratulated the young contestants and said: “The textile sector is a field that continues its development rapidly and where intense competition is experienced. You have the qualifications to keep up with these changes and shape the structure of the sector. In this competition, you have proved what you can achieve with your passion and self-confidence. I congratulate each and every one of you for your determination and hard work.”
In his speech, Mustafa Gültepe, President of TIM, said that the slogan of the competition, ‘Together We Are Stronger’, expresses Turkey. He stated that many competitions has organized so far, but the Athleisure Challenge brought a very different dimension.
Fatih Doğan,President of ATHIB, İbrahim Uzunoğlu, Vice Chairman of DENIB, Recep Burak Sertbaş, President of EHKIB, Muzaffer Turgut Kayhan, Board Member of ETHIB, Ahmet Fikret Kileci, President of GAIB, Necat Altın, Board Member of ITHIB, Nüvit Gündemir, President of UHKIB and Pınar Taşdelen Engin,President of UTIB wished success to the young designers.
Final Presentations Hosted by Butekom
Athleisure Challenge Active Wear Design Competition Final Evaluation Jury Meeting was hosted by BUTEKOM, presence of competition moderator Ufuk Batum and Competition Mentor Mustafa Demiralay. İhsan İpeker, Board Member of UTİB, Ali Erge, Board Member of UHKİB, Veli Ulusoy and Ali Rıza Hasoğlu Board Members of ATHİB, Yaşar Mete Akcan, Board Member of GAİB, Muzaffer Turgut Kayhan, Board Member of ETHİB,Tuğba Hazar,Board Member of EHKİB, Bünyamin Yevlal,Board Member of İHKİB and Sultan Tepe, Board Member of İTHİB took part in the meeting. The jury including Arzu Kaprol, Emre Pakel, Fırat Neziroğlu, Gizem Kiracı, Gülin Girişmen, Şebnem Günay and Şiyar Akboğa evaluated the collections of the finalists.
A total of 99 students, 48 from textile engineering departments and 51 from textile and fashion design departments of 19 universities in Turkey, applied to the competition. Six teams of 37 talented textile engineers and designers went through a long process of training and pre-selection to present their impressive collections. Through the trainings and meetings organized throughout the competition, the teams were offered the opportunity to benefit from the experiences of the leading names of ‘Athleisure’ fashion. The finalist teams visited the companies they are associated with during the production process and closely followed every stage of their designs. The exciting collections that emerged from this process were showcased in the fashion show on the final night. Models took to the podium with designs that reflect the spirit of Athleisure fashion and combine functionality and aesthetics. The first 3 teams, determined by the jury members, won Design Registration and the opportunity to take part in the Kappa Collection. In addition to this, they were also entitled to a visit to the fair and the opportunity to apply for training at internationally recognized centers abroad for a maximum of one year. In addition to these awards, the winning team members also received a 6-month online English language training and a computer.
