WSJ article on pro-runner salaries

FWIW, I always thought Skechers were shoes for kids or gimmick exercise shoes.

Based on Meb using them successfully, I would give the Gorun shoes a try.

I am thinking of trying them as well, I don't care what others think. My point was if they want to sell it to the general running population and have a successful brand they should have put the shoes under a different brand name. IMHO

Skechers and Meb's other sponsors expose him more to the public and it's paying dividends for all parties. Nike's philosophy tends more toward controlling their athletes and controlling USATF.

This is the case with virtually all individual sports. The very top tier can make a whole bunch of money, but the high wage earners are a pretty thin group with a whole bunch of athletes just below hoping/trying to break through and make a real living. That is why there are many very good professional bowlers driving from event to event in shitty RVs and many excellent golfers and tennis players returning home to give lessons to rich lazy fat women and men and their spoiled children. The golf and tennis markets are certainly better than track, but once you get a little bit down the list there are not all that many professional athletes in individual sports doing all that well. It is a tough way to go.

As others have mentioned, using an overall universal statistic in track is really rather misleading. It matters a lot what event you are in. The 10th best javelin thrower is probably not doing all that well (i.e. living in his mother's basement) but the 10th best 100 meter runner is probably doing a lot better. The road circuit completely changes the equation for distance runners.

They always use the same crude use of statistics when they talk about the value of higher ed. They always use a single medium number to show the value of a college degree when they need to distinguish between subject areas. People with engineering and computer science degrees benefit financially far more that people with liberal arts degrees. (Although the engineers and computer scientists tend to be soulless automatons.)

G_D

Nike sponsored the NY State XC and State Federation XC Championships- kids are buying Nike because of it. They gave them free stuff and now they're buying Nike.

One kid on my team is a huge Nike lover- he's educating other kids about the great Nike runners- most of the kids I coach now buy Nike.

Frankly I am getting tired of hearing stories regarding the meager incomes of the vast majority of post-collegiate American distance runners. So much of it smacks of jock entitlement -- the country owes them a middle-class living while they pursue their athletic dreams. Somehow it's unjust that they can't make a good living pursuing solely individual athletic goals that bring very little, if any, benefit to others. Get a clue -- your athletic development matters only to you, and unless you can display some worth to others, no one is going to hand you any money.

Weren't there plenty of track athletes in the 60s and 70s who competed at a high level while holding down full-time jobs, or studying towards advanced degrees? All of a sudden it is now impossible for athletes to train and remain competitive while earning an income some other way?

In the shoe buying demographic wrote:

FWIW, I always thought Skechers were shoes for kids or gimmick exercise shoes.

Based on Meb using them successfully, I would give the Gorun shoes a try.

Only that the Goruns you can buy in the store are not the ones Meb is running in. They don't have the bump in the middle

Anyone know how to find the Jack Wickens salary survey?

20% of top ten US athletes making 50K+ sounds high to me. I think they probably meant 20% of world top ten athletes FROM the U.S.

Interesting to read that Nike pays most of their athletes like they pay their garment workers.

ucb wrote:

Frankly I am getting tired of hearing stories regarding the meager incomes of the vast majority of post-collegiate American distance runners. So much of it smacks of jock entitlement -- the country owes them a middle-class living while they pursue their athletic dreams. Somehow it's unjust that they can't make a good living pursuing solely individual athletic goals that bring very little, if any, benefit to others. Get a clue -- your athletic development matters only to you, and unless you can display some worth to others, no one is going to hand you any money.

Weren't there plenty of track athletes in the 60s and 70s who competed at a high level while holding down full-time jobs, or studying towards advanced degrees? All of a sudden it is now impossible for athletes to train and remain competitive while earning an income some other way?

For the good health of athletics in this country these folk's should care "about their athletic development" as well:

USATF Mission Statement

The mission of USATF is to provide vision and leadership to the sport of track and field in the United States, and to promote the pursuit of excellence from youth to masters, from grassroots to the Olympic Games.

I agree. I'm going to sound like a broken record, but Yuki Kawauchi has run a marathon faster than any American who's ever run it except for 2 guys. He did it by running under 100mpw at sea level with while working somewhat of a full time job.

kanny wrote:

I agree. I'm going to sound like a broken record, but Yuki Kawauchi has run a marathon faster than any American who's ever run it except for 2 guys. He did it by running under 100mpw at sea level with while working somewhat of a full time job.

Great. But:

Is he getting the most out of his talent?

Will that plan help most people get the most out of theirs?

What plans have the fastest people ever followed?

Nutella1 wrote:

Only that the Goruns you can buy in the store are not the ones Meb is running in. They don't have the bump in the middle

I personally know Meb, am a sponsored athlete myself, and after talking to him about the shoes (which yes, his have the bump) I actually went out and bought a pair. They're comfy, light, flexible, and supportive. The upper is fantastic, and the shoe is a bit like the Nike Frees, except for the midfoot support. You kinda have to get used to them at first, but they feel quite good.

kanny wrote:

I agree. I'm going to sound like a broken record, but Yuki Kawauchi has run a marathon faster than any American who's ever run it except for 2 guys. He did it by running under 100mpw at sea level with while working somewhat of a full time job.

Kawauchi is supported by his federation (to some extent) and is a citizen of a country that totally embraces marathon runners. He does not have a need to be motivated by money.Many of our athletes do to survive.

I thought like Weldon that the Skecher's PR person came off looking like a genius. Nike which spends tens of millions if not hundreds of millions looks like a fool and sckechers comes across as a white knight by sponsoring one guy who is already in the top 1% by pro running standards to the tune of a couple hundred thousand each here.This quote to me is worth discussing

WSJ wrote:

Even for top track and field stars, it can be harsh going financially. Steeplechaser Ben Bruce is in the U.S. top 5 in his event and has made three World Championship teams. Yet in 2010, his best competitive year, he had no base salary and earned $20,000, partly from prize money at road races. At the time, he had an exclusive apparel agreement with Nike Inc., which also contributed to his housing and medical insurance.

"I was on food stamps," said Mr. Bruce. "I was having to scrap for everything on my own while [Nike] sat by with the means to help me but chose not to."

When weldon was trying to make it as a runner, I thought it sucked no one would sponsor him and hence LRC was started. So I can relate to bruce being pissed off that he was struggling to get by.

But couldn't his comment of others "With the means to help me chose not to" apply to virtually every company in the world and the entire letsrun.com audience? I mean i could chip in $500. Apple certainly had money. His parents, minister gf, etc.

The thing about the extra sponsors logos to me isn't that big of a deal. I mean yes, maybe a local company throws in 1 or 2k to help a local kid out but if these guys can't get sponsorships from a shoe company, then does anyone really thing a non-shoe company is going to pay a lot?

I think one of these guys ought to put himself up on kickstarted. Say a 2nd logo will go up on my jersey with 1 of 10 donors who give 1k to me.

Rojo, Isn't that basically what Nick Symmonds did? I doubt Nick was in financial dire straits but he did make a point that non shoe company sponsors are out there.

Speaking of a pyramid, here's something on how little some minor-league baseball players get: http://goo.gl/dNNzw

WSJ wrote:

Even for top track and field stars, it can be harsh going financially. Steeplechaser Ben Bruce is in the U.S. top 5 in his event and has made three World Championship teams. Yet in 2010, his best competitive year, he had no base salary and earned $20,000, partly from prize money at road races. At the time, he had an exclusive apparel agreement with Nike Inc., which also contributed to his housing and medical insurance.

"I was on food stamps," said Mr. Bruce. "I was having to scrap for everything on my own while [Nike] sat by with the means to help me but chose not to."

Newsflash: Nike isn't a charity for middling distance runners. Nike does support a lot of charities, but they are actual charities that do things in the world for other people. A lot of the charity money Nike puts out is to low-visibility organization as well, so it's not all about the marketing. However, sponsored athletes are not charities. If they want more money they should win more races. As the 5th best steepler in the US, it sounds like Bruce is earning about the right amount of money for his talent level, actually.

Hodgie-san wrote:

Kawauchi is supported by his federation (to some extent) and is a citizen of a country that totally embraces marathon runners. He does not have a need to be motivated by money.Many of our athletes do to survive.

Interesting.

What kind of support does he get from Rikuren?

How much do runners from other countries get paid before they run world-class times?