Nick Symmonds prepared to miss worlds over contract language

Symmonds, the longtime Springfield resident engaged in a high-stakes game of chicken with USA Track & Field, competed Saturday in the Flotrack Throwdown, a festive little meet staged in the leafy surroundings of Portland’s Duniway Park. Someone else handed him a can of Budweiser, which he promptly chugged.

“I went on social (media) today and put it out there that I want to be on this team and I want to come to a compromise”, Symmonds said. Later, though, a hint of resignation crept into his voice as he reflected on the likely outcome of his fight.

In a statement, USATF said the organisation “respect(s) Nick and whatever decision he makes”, but added: “It is the industry standard across all sports that there are certain requirements for when a team uniform and apparel must be worn”. “That (ticks) me off, because I earned that”.

The two-time Olympian, a graduate of Willamette University and a former Eugene resident, won his sixth USA Track & Field 800-meter title in June, which qualified him for the U.S. team to the World Outdoor Championships later this month in Beijing.

Whenever Symmonds or other team members have free time that is not an official Team USA event, they should be allowed to wear other apparel brands, such as Brooks.

But he’s doing this because he thinks runners who make the national team deserve a salary. “If they wanted to, they could say I have to wear Nike from the moment that I make the team at USAs, and then all of a sudden they’re buying up the entire season”. He has signed a version of the USATF contract at least eight times.

“Nike is a proud partner and sponsor of USATF”, the company said Monday in a statement.

Symmonds is sponsored by Brooks, and he refused to sign a contract stating all USA Track and Field athletes are required to wear Nike during the event, as Nike is USATF’s official sponsor. Beyond the principle of the matter, he says the contract is poorly worded and vague, lacking clear definition of what athletes are obligating themselves to do.

“I’ve invested a lot of time, money and energy into preparing for Beijing”, Symmonds said.

“I think we all can agree that the way the statement of conditions is written right now is just a real dog turd”. Geer, however, said that USATF has an electronic signature on the document from 2014. Leading up to the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials, Symmonds sold advertising space on his shoulder to Milwaukee-based advertising agency Hanson Dodge Creative, but was forced to cover up the temporary tattoo during competition or risk disqualification.

Nick Symmonds is a professional athlete, not an indentured servant.

Nike has signed an extension to sponsor USA Track and Field through 2040 for what has been estimated to be $20 million a year. If being a runner, entrepreneur and showman was a way for Symmonds to build a successful career in a sport that awards wealth to only a small percentage of its competitors, more power to him. “Now he looks at this competition as bigger than a race”. “At best, it will result in more substantive talks about sharing more revenue with the athletes”. “Those specifications may vary from sport to sport, but all sports and teams have them”.

A separate letter that Symmonds said he received several weeks ago from the USATF seems to include broader language. “I’m still training and proceding as if I’m going to compete”. “I’m going to have to figure out what I am going to do because I am not going to sit there and watch that 800 meter final from my couch, knowing that I can go out there and win a medal, knowing that I am passing up on potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in earnings… that stinks”.