Born in the Golden State of California on May 12, 1968, Tony Hawk received his first skateboard, a blue fibreglass Bahne, from his brother at the age of nine. By the age of 11, Hawk began entering local skateboarding competitions, and in 1982, at just 14 years old, he officially became a professional skater. He signed with the Powell Peralta professional team and starred in the famous Bones Brigade videos, marking the beginning of his illustrious sporting career.

The subsequent 23 years, saw Hawk win 73 competitive titles, including being named the ‘National Skateboard Association (NSA) Vert Champion’ for 12 consecutive years and earning 16 “X Games” medals. Hawk further cemented himself as an innovator of the sport by inventing more than 80 unique skateboarding tricks. Among these tricks are the ollie-to-Indy, the gymnast plant, the frontside 540-rodeo flip, and the Saran wrap.

In one of skateboarding’s defining moments, Hawk executed a 900 twist (2 1/2 turns) at the 1999 X Games, a feat that had never been performed before. In 2003, Tony officially retired from competitive skating.

Away from the deck, Hawk continued to grow the sport with a variety of successful partnerships and branding deals. In 1992, Tony founded Birdhouse Skateboards (originally Birdhouse Projects) with ex-Powell Peralta professional skateboarder Per Welinder. In 1998, Hawk and his family created Hawk Clothing, a line of children’s skate apparel, and in 1999, he founded the media company 900 Films. In 2002, he established The Skatepark Project (formerly the Tony Hawk Foundation), a nonprofit skateboarding organisation that helps communities build public skate parks for youth in underserved communities.

Tony Hawk’s most successful partnership came in 1999 when he teamed up with global gaming giant Activision to release Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. Activision went on to release 16 more video games under the ‘Tony Hawk’ name and reported a staggering $1 billion in sales, making it one of the most successful video game franchises of all time.

Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web in 1989 during his tenure as a software engineer at CERN, the renowned particle physics lab near Geneva, Switzerland. He saw the unrealised potential of millions of computers linked via the Internet and conceived the Web as a global platform for sharing information. The Web has since revolutionised the world, becoming the most potent communication tool in history. Although only a little over half of the global population is currently online, the Web has fundamentally changed how we teach and learn, buy and sell, inform and are informed, agree and disagree, share and collaborate and address issues ranging from feeding ourselves to curing diseases.

Peter Schmeichel MBE is an accomplished TV presenter and football analyst, working for the Premier League Channel, the BBC and Danish TV3+ .

He is an exceptional motivational speaker and global ambassador for Carlsberg, and brand ambassador for First & Tipico.

Regarded by many commentators as the greatest goalkeeper in history, he is best remembered for his most successful years at Manchester United, who he captained to the 1999 UEFA Champions League to complete the Treble, and for winning UEFA Euro 1992 with Denmark. He is one of the most decorated goalkeepers and footballers of all time with 23 major titles in his club career.

He is also the most capped player for the Denmark national team, with 129 games between 1987 and 2001. In addition to Euro 92, he played for his country at the 1998 FIFA World Cup and three additional European Championship tournaments. He captained the national team in 30 matches. He also represented Gladsaxe Hero, Hvidovre, Brøndby, Sporting CP, Aston Villa and Manchester City in a career that lasted from 1981 until 2003.

In 2003, Schmeichel was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his impact on the English game. In March 2004, he was named as one of the “125 greatest living footballers”, at the FIFA 100 celebrations. His son, Kasper, is also a professional football goalkeeper currently playing for Premier League side Leicester City and the Denmark national team. Peter is also a keen golfer and regularly plays in the British Par 3 Championships.

Carsten Koerl is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sportradar AG, a company which occupies a unique position at the intersection of the sports, media and betting industries. Since 2001, Koerl has driven the company’s growth from a tech-focused start-up to a global leader in delivering sports data. Prior to founding Sportradar, he was the founder of bwin and led the company through one of the most successful public listings ever undertaken on the Vienna stock market.