Brampton NBA star Tristan Thompson named Special Olympics global ambassador

Cleveland Cavaliers centre and Brampton’s own Tristan Thompson has been named as a global ambassador by the Special Olympics International.

The news broke on Tuesday that Thompson will help promote inclusion through sport with local, national, and international branches of the Special Olympics as a global ambassador.

Thompson, whose brother Amari was born with disabilities, will bring his personal experience and star power to the role saying he’s “excited and honoured” about the partnership

“This is a great opportunity to support an amazing organization, but also use my platform and voice to help support athletes with intellectual disabilities,” said Thompson.”

“As a global ambassador, I will help inspire others to be more inclusive and take action to help change the stereotypes that exist for people with disabilities.”

The Brampton basketball star attended St. Marguerite d’Youville Secondary School before moving to the U.S. for his sophomore year.

He was drafted fourth overall in the 2011 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers and has since gone on to play for the Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings, and now the Los Angeles Lakers.

With over 3.9 million followers on Instagram, 32-year-old centre/power forward from Brampton has achieved celebrity status and can reportedly earn $64,736 per sponsored post, ranking him the third highest-earning Canadian athlete on the platform.

Thompson has also been featured on the reality show The Kardashians and made tabloid headlines after cheating on his partner Khloé Kardashian while the reality TV superstar was pregnant with the couple’s first child.

The two have had an off-again-on-again relationship for years and had a second child through a surrogate in 2022.

– With files from The Canadian Press