Read on Twitter
I know a lot of my followers aren’t super familiar with professional track & field so I’m doing a quick thread on why what @benfblankenship did for today’s @americantrack meet is so cool
https://twitter.com/benfblankenship/status/1355973390314561539
https://twitter.com/benfblankenship/status/1355973390314561539
Despite track & field being the most popular U.S. high school sport and running being one of the most popular “fitness activities” around the world, professional track & field remains incredibly underfunded and is considered a pretty niche sport to follow (2/?)
That can be chalked up to a lot of things that I won’t get into right now, but part of being a professional athlete in a niche/low-funded sport means a lot of your contract pay-out comes from bonuses you get from hitting times, making teams, prize purses, etc. (3/?)
That’s why, over the past year, there have been so many small meets and things like the Marathon Project popping up all over the place — athletes gotta eat. (4/?)
Unfortunately, small meets + tight timeline + niche sport + strapped budgets due to the pandemic = very little incentive for a title sponsor to come on board
So, what little cash most of these meets scrape up goes to operating costs and not production value or marketing (5/?)
So, what little cash most of these meets scrape up goes to operating costs and not production value or marketing (5/?)
SO after seeing this for nearly a year and specifically after last week’s @americantrack meet, @benfblankenship called up the meet director @TrackDiddy to see what he could do to help (6/?)
Ben donated funds and in return had his name on today’s women’s mile AND a spot on ESPN2 (s/o Travis Thompson’s company Elevation 0m for the above vid)
Ben’s an Olympian and still-competing pro athlete, saw an opp to help the sport and his fellow athletes, and took it (7/?)
Ben’s an Olympian and still-competing pro athlete, saw an opp to help the sport and his fellow athletes, and took it (7/?)
Should the onus be on the athletes to fund their own sport?
imo no, but I talk a fair amount about athletes being the most marketable asset of any sport so it’s dope and ballsy to see it when it happens (8/?)
imo no, but I talk a fair amount about athletes being the most marketable asset of any sport so it’s dope and ballsy to see it when it happens (8/?)
Also is Ben the first athlete to do this?
I doubt it, it’s just the biggest splash I’ve personally seen recently. (10/?)
I doubt it, it’s just the biggest splash I’ve personally seen recently. (10/?)
Anywho, that’s where things seem to be today.
Will track & field find its funding? Since we’re so hot on talking about investing lately, anyone know a VC or someone who wants to provide it?
jk, kind of
-fin-
Will track & field find its funding? Since we’re so hot on talking about investing lately, anyone know a VC or someone who wants to provide it?
jk, kind of
-fin-
