Rivalry Series Preview: Canada vs. United States

NOTE: This story was first printed in August 2021. The starting has
been up to date with present data.

Quite a bit has occurred in Sarah Nurse’s life within the final 18 months.

On the ice, she received two IIHF Women’s World Championships and an Olympic
gold, setting data for factors (18) and assists (13) in a single Olympic
event. Off the ice, she is rising her presence on social media and
working together with her companions to provide partaking content material.

“I feel that I’ve advanced a lot in the previous few years,” Nurse says.
“Although I do have the identical pursuits, I’m simply seeking to proceed to
increase the bar as excessive as potential and preserve pushing completely different boundaries.”

One of her ground-breaking partnerships within the final yr was with EA
Sports. Last August, Nurse was revealed as a canopy athlete for NHL23 alongside
with Anaheim Ducks star, Trevor Zegras.

What’s higher than one cowl athlete?

Your two official #NHL23 cowl athletes @tzegras11 and @nursey16 ⭐️⭐️

See the total reveal tomorrow
➡️ https://t.co/QhoZN09ldb pic.twitter.com/06XIVh92ud

— EA SPORTS NHL (@EASPORTSNHL) August 24, 2022

“I wished to ensure that ladies had been authentically built-in into the
sport. I didn’t simply need to be used as a figurehead checking a field or doing
one thing completely different,” she explains. “[EA Sports] actually assured me that
they had been going to have Trevor and I on the identical degree as skilled
hockey gamers.

“I think all around, [the reaction to the cover] has been super positive.”

Nurse is worked up to work on extra significant collaborations as her profession
continues to evolve.

“I’ve had such great relationships over the last few years,” she says. “I
need to proceed actually to raise it and work with them in new and
alternative ways. I’m working alone precise private model, and with the
assist of my companions, I need to have the ability to do completely different collaborations with
them. They’re simply so supportive of every little thing that I do.”

Read the unique story about how Sarah is constructing her model on and
off the ice under.

Photo credit score: pam_tenwestphotography

A typical morning for Sarah Nurse begins with what you’d anticipate from
any high-level athlete. With hockey as her No. 1 precedence, she begins her
day with coaching after which hits the ice for a morning skate.

But her schedule after that’s probably completely different in comparison with different athletes.
The 26-year-old can have conferences to debate social media partnerships,
take part in video calls, movie completely different movies and plan future idea
concepts.

“I think social media is such a powerful tool,” she says. “It’s one thing
that we’re all on and it’s actually built-in into our every day lives.”

Creating content material has all the time been one thing Nurse has loved, too. In
faculty, she was typically enhancing movies and arising with completely different content material
concepts.

“It really started at a young age that I really like to create things,” she
says. “I simply love having enjoyable with it, being artistic. I take into consideration
content material in a way of what do I like to observe. If I like to observe
one thing, I need to recreate one thing that I want to watch as a result of
if it’s boring to you, it’s going to be boring to everyone else.”

Whether it’s exhibiting a day in her life, a enjoyable style look or one thing she
is captivated with, Nurse is making the most of the flexibility to share her
character on-line. Her capacity to community and join with individuals then
launched her to the world of brand name partnerships.

“When I began realizing that there are organizations and types and
completely different partnerships that will align with my values and my mission and
my targets, that’s one thing that I wished to dive into,” she says.

mother & dad simply out for groceries pic.twitter.com/pdrtL6H1gd

— Sarah Nurse (@nursey16) December 30, 2021

Although she is lively on a number of social media platforms, her favorite
proper now’s TikTookay as a result of it’s so artistic and entertaining.

“I feel like TikTok is just a place to let loose, have fun,” Nurse says.
“You can actually put up something you need, you’ll be able to go viral, there are so
many various individuals you can see and meet from around the globe. I
suppose TikTookay proper now’s the place to be.”

The love of TikTookay can be shared by lots of Nurse’s teammates. The purpose
why Emily Clark, who was a teammate of Nurse on the University of
Wisconsin, likes the app is as a result of she enjoys sharing her humour and
showcasing her character whereas making movies with Canada’s National
Women’s Team.

“While we’re making it, we’re having a blast,” Clark says. “I feel it’s a
enjoyable manner for individuals to sort of see the friendships on the staff, too. We’re
a lot greater than teammates, so to have the ability to see that household and good friend
bond that all of us have, I feel it is fairly particular to share.”

The bond between Clark and Nurse is obvious on their TikTookay profiles. The
two forwards have began a collection known as “On the Mini Mic with 20 and 26”
to carry followers behind the scenes on the 2021 IIHF Women’s World
Championship.

“She called me into a room one day and she was like, ‘I got this mini mic,”
Nurse explains. “I used to be like, ‘I’ve one at house. Should we do one thing
humorous?’”

Both Nurse and Clark are excited to evolve the video collection all through the
event, whether or not that’s together with extra of their teammates and even attempting
to get their coaches on the mini mic.

“It’s just a fun way for us to share our platforms,” Clark says. “People
appear to love it, so that you’ll be seeing much more of 20 and 26 on the mini
mic.”

As the duo continues to create content material collectively, Clark says she is studying
rather a lot about how she will enhance her personal presence on-line. She actually admires
Nurse’s confidence and willingness to place herself out on social media.

“It’s a true skill and you got to put work into it,” she says. “I feel
Sarah is tremendous forward of our time within the sport with that stuff. She truthfully
teaches me rather a lot about alternative ways you’ll be able to create content material, completely different
alternatives that may come for it, how one can join higher with individuals,
[all] by placing slightly bit extra time into it.”

When it involves partnerships, Nurse says she makes use of a intestine feeling to know if
she ought to give the inexperienced mild to working with a brand new model. One of her
favorite partnerships she has labored on was with Tim Hortons and Barbie.

“When the Tim Hortons and Barbie partnership was delivered to me, I used to be so
excited,” she says. “They advised me they’re going to make a Barbie appear to be
me. That was fairly cool, as a result of that’s one thing that as slightly lady, I
might have by no means ever dreamed of.

“To mix two issues that I like was actually particular. There had been so many
instances the place I’ve been put in a field as an athlete and advised that I can’t like
pink or I can’t like Barbies, as a result of that’s not what athletes like. Seeing
my two worlds sort of merge and collide was actually particular.”

Proud to encourage women in hockey with the assistance of @Barbie, @nursey16 and @pou29. Pick up a Tim Hortons Hockey Barbie doll, donut or reward card at a collaborating restaurant close to you. pic.twitter.com/Cu5hkZbq9E

— Tim Hortons (@TimHortons) November 12, 2020

A one-of-a-kind Barbie doll was additionally made particularly for Nurse to maintain
that she says, “looks exactly like me.” The partnership additionally aligned
seamlessly together with her aim of being a job mannequin for the following technology and
particularly for younger Black hockey gamers.

“When children put these limiting beliefs on themselves, it’s as a result of they
don’t see themselves in one thing,” she says. “Obviously illustration is
so necessary. You have to have the ability to see your self in one thing and so if I
could be that determine for one baby, that makes me the happiest. I actually hope
that as we undergo the following few years, subsequent few a long time with hockey,
there are going to be so many younger Black women who’re getting concerned.”

For Nurse, one of many thrilling components of social media is the elevated
connection she has together with her followers. Years in the past, athletes had been restricted to extra
conventional types of media, like newspapers and tv, to speak
and present their personalities. With social media, Nurse says it’s an
alternative to point out the world who you might be.

“I need to present folks that sure, I play hockey. I like hockey. But I additionally
love different issues.”

From hockey to style to magnificence, Nurse has loved constructing relationships
with followers via feedback and messages. The most necessary factor for her
is to remain genuine and real it doesn’t matter what she posts on her journey
with social media.

“With social media and with content, I just want to have fun,” she says.
“If we expect it’s humorous, our teammates suppose it’s humorous, it will get despatched
across the group chat, that’s a win.”