Who controls who?

Recently, a very well-known professional track & field athlete auctioned off a body part on eBay. Rest assured, he is still intact! Nick Symmonds, an 800 meter runner and Olympian, offered to wear a temporary tattoo of the highest bidder’s Twitter name on his left shoulder for all of his 2012 competitions, which will include the London Olympic Games. Symmonds also promised to tweet a message of support to the winning bidder on the 1^st of each month in 2012. With almost 6,000 followers on Twitter and the millions who will watch the Olympic Games in August, his left shoulder could prove to be very valuable advertising space. The reserve price was $14.50, and the winning bid was a whopping $11,100.

I wasn’t sure if I should applaud Symmonds for capitalizing on his individual ability to be great advertising space, or agree with those who refer to this as “selling out.” This situation sheds light on how much control sponsors have over athletes, specifically track and field athletes. Is this “just the way it is?”

One unfortunate circumstance in the world of track and field is that, in general, no sponsor means no paycheck. Whether it is as an individual athlete or as part of a club, being a medium by which a sponsor can showcase their logo is crucial to maintaining financial livelihood. Track and field events, even the largest races, fail to draw the huge amounts of money that a professional baseball or basketball game would. And although some road races provide prize purses, they are usually very small. Professional T&F athletes have no other way of generating income unless they are an “emplunner” (employed runner). Additionally, sponsors often want the athletes who generate results and win races to wear their logos; they will not hesitate to drop athletes who are not performing up to par or who are injured. The environment is high pressure requiring demanding training and fast times. It is a cruel relationship, with sponsors essentially controlling the athletes with money and using them as an advertising medium, and the athletes working very hard for very little other than the love of the sport.

Adding insult to injury is that the IAAF and USATF have rules about the size and placement of sponsor logos on an athlete’s body and clothing. Lauren Fleshmen, a professional distance runner, was required to literally scrub off 3 temporary tattoos of her small energy bar company, Picky Bars, 8 minutes before the start of the 2011 ING New York Marathon. Why? Because they were not one of the race’s sponsors.

It makes sense from the business standpoint, especially for companies like Nike and Asics who sponsor high caliber athletes. Their athletes do well, consumers such as myself recognize that Deena Kastor runs for Asics and Shalane Flanagan for Nike, and want to be outfitted in that product. But, I can’t help wonder if these companies are just puppeteers with the athletes as the puppets. It continues to irk me how much control media and corporations have on sport.  

Gisele Schaaf - LT 22

KIN 577