Five-time Olympic gold medallist, Ian Thorpe, is the official brand ambassador for Fox ESS. After swimming his way to 23 world records, Thorpe is now focused on helping Australians understand the benefits of transitioning to clean energy.
Widely regarded as one of Australia’s greatest athletes, Ian Thorpe became a world champion in competitive swimming at 15 years old, before winning his first Olympic gold medal at 17 years old at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. Therefore, it comes as no surprise why he is dubbed ‘The Thorpedo.’
“If you have a more powerful physique, it’s only natural that the onset of fatigue happens quicker. And so, I had to work around it. My stroke had to be as efficient as possible,” Thorpe says.
That focus on efficiency now shapes his perspective on clean energy, and closely aligns with the philosophy behind Fox ESS’s 2026 Champion’s Choice campaign.
At the core of the campaign is ‘higher, faster, lighter’ residential storage systems, representing Fox ESS’s latest efficiency, faster installation and lighter-weight system design. According to Thorpe, those qualities are becoming increasingly important as Australian households look for energy systems that are not only powerful, but practical and easy to integrate into their everyday life.
“Australia has one of the highest rates of rooftop solar adoption globally. In states such as South Australia and Queensland, midday solar generation can exceed local demand, creating voltage management challenges and tightening export limits. As a result, attention is shifting from generation capacity to system optimisation,” Thorpe says.
He sees great opportunity for Australians to transition from traditional fossil-fuelled electricity to solar-powered and battery-stored clean energy.
“We have an abundance of natural light in Australia and opportunities to integrate into the grid. If we had a higher uptake of solar on residential homes, we could provide almost all of the energy required to power the nation,” Thorpe says.
“If we were to cover 1.6 per cent of the country, we would have seven times the amount of electricity required for the Australian economy.”
While theoretical, Thorpe’s point is that the distributed energy resources and technology required for Australians to switch to clean home energy is not the constraint, home energy integration and system management is.
That systems-level thinking about the importance of making a positive societal impact has evolved over time. After retiring from competitive swimming in 2012, Thorpe transitioned into a career as a sports commentator for the Olympic Games and appeared on a series of popular television shows, before he began to uncover his deep passion for philanthropy.
As the Founder of the Fountain for Youth charity, Thorpe has supported Indigenous education and children’s health for more than a decade, alongside initiatives focused on the mental health and wellbeing of young people. Those experiences have shaped how he views long-term societal challenges, and how he can make an impact, specifically towards a more environmentally sustainable future.
“I became the brand ambassador for Fox ESS at the end of last year. It was a natural extension of my passion for conserving our natural resources,” Thorpe says.
“With offices in Sydney and Melbourne, Fox ESS’s presence in Australia is something that’s here to stay. It’s clear Australians trust their clean home energy systems. That’s a significant reason why I chose to be the face of Fox ESS.”
Fox ESS launches Champion’s Choice
Distributed energy resources, including rooftop solar, batteries and electric vehicles, is central to Australia’s energy transition. However, the grid is evolving from a centralised system into a decentralised network of connected assets, where households play an active role in generation, storage and export.
The Fox ESS Champion’s Choice campaign for 2026 is focused on building awareness among households about seeing solar and battery storage as a high-performance investment, drawing parallels with elite sport.
“Just as athletes select the best equipment to maximise performance, households and businesses are increasingly choosing premium energy systems to optimise reliability and long-term value,” Thorpe says.
“Australia has a highly competitive home rooftop solar and battery energy storage system market… so it’s important for companies like Fox ESS to provide the right information to make an educated decision on what technology to install, how it works and how they can assess its benefits,” Thorpe says.
The Champion’s Choice campaign reframes electricity from a fixed cost into an active asset. Solar and storage systems are positioned as tools that can generate returns, respond to changing conditions and provide greater control over energy use.
“For forward-thinking Australians, you’re setting yourself up with an investment that will give you a return,” Thorpe says.
That return can take multiple forms.
“Through installing Fox ESS home energy storage systems, households can create an energy surplus that you can sell back to the grid or significantly reduce what you’re currently paying for electricity because you become your own kind of little power plant,” Thorpe says.
This reflects a broader shift in how energy systems are valued, where performance is increasingly tied to how they respond to tariffs, peak demand periods and network constraints.
“A well-designed system can store excess solar generation during the day and deploy it during evening peaks, when electricity prices are higher. In some cases, exports can create additional revenue streams,” Thorpe says.
Beyond financial outcomes, the Fox ESS Champion’s Choice campaign highlights the ethical dimension of transitioning to clean home energy.
“For many families, the decision to transition to clean energy is influenced by younger generations, who are more engaged than ever about environmental issues,” Thorpe says.
“At the same time, Fox ESS’s Champion’s Choice campaign shows how improvements in technology and policy support are making clean home energy systems more accessible. Costs have declined, government incentives have strengthened, and system design has advanced greatly.”
Advances in system design include integrated inverter and battery systems that combine generation, storage and energy management into a single platform.
Modular architecture is another important advance in technology. Systems can be expanded over time as energy needs change, rather than requiring full replacement.
“Because of this design, you can have your home energy systems adjusted to fit your specific capacity needs,” Thorpe says.
This adaptability is particularly important in Australia, where clean energy captured and stored depends heavily on each state’s weather patterns, which vary greatly. Therefore, households and businesses are beginning to no longer see solar and storage as standalone technologies, but as part of an integrated system that interacts dynamically with the grid.
“I hope as the recognisable face of Fox ESS and the driver of the Champion’s Choice campaign, I can make learning about and contributing to the clean home energy transition more accessible and engaging,” Thorpe says.
Since the 2000s, Thorpe has been engaged in several projects such as documentaries and educational online videos about climate change and the health of the world’s oceans.
“Being the face of Fox ESS as a trusted provider of clean home energy technology was a natural next step for me,” Thorpe says.
“In the transition to clean energy, Australia is arguably leading the way in the western world. I’m proud to be aligned with Fox ESS in driving that.”
This article was featured in ecogeneration magazine (June 2026 edition).
