Four-hundred-meter hurdles world record-holder and Olympic champion Karsten Warholm has been signed by the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC) to promote the country’s seafood in international markets over the next two years.
Warholm, who grew up in the coastal town of Ulsteinvik on the west coast of Norway, will work together with the NSC to promote the benefits of eating more-sustainable seafood and the value of the Norwegian origin story for the country's seafood.
“We’ve dreamed about working with Norwegian seafood for a long time. It’s a fantastic product, and of vital importance for Norway as a nation, and something our entire team is very invested in. I’m looking forward to working with the Norwegian Seafood Council and developing a common platform,” Warholm said. “Our country is built on the values that come from our seafood industry. My ancestors worked at sea themselves with all kinds of fishing and harvesting, and I have always had a great love for Norwegian seafood. Seafood is of course also an important part of my diet and absolutely necessary to deliver the results that I do.”
NSC CEO Renate Larsen said the athlete and the council “are very well-matched.”
“Through promoting the Seafood from Norway origin mark, the Norwegian Seafood Council's vision is ‘together we will win the world for Norwegian seafood.’ Through this collaboration, we gain a new team member who actually has won the world. I am incredibly proud that Karsten Warholm is going to work with us to achieve our vision,” she said. “We have a common goal of increasing knowledge and awareness of seafood from Norway. Increasing seafood consumption is not only important for the country's income and jobs, but also for delivering on the U.N.'s sustainability goals.”
In 2020, Norway’s seafood exports totaled 2.7 million metric tons (MT), valued at NOK 105.7 billion (USD 11.7 billion, EUR 10.4 billion), which was the second-highest annual trade value in the country’s history.
Photo courtesy of the Norwegian Seafood Council
