Official Thread to Discuss Boris Berian's Contract

I feel like there's some back and forth we're missing here. If the New Balance contract didn't show reductions why would Nike have included them in their contract in the first place. To me as soon as they send over a contract offer with reductions that should have ended their right of first refusal since a contract containing reductions vs one that doesn't is clearly not a match.

They claim to have asked Boris's agent if there were reductions but if they didn't get a response on whether there was reductions they should never have sent the contract with reductions.

Either way this was handled completely unprofessionally by both sides. Nike comes off as trying to screw Boris into signing an inferior contract. Meanwhile even if Nike messed up by including reductions, Nike had clearly stated they intended to match the terms exactly. The professional thing to do on Boris's side would have been to inform them that since the contract Nike sent had reductions it wasn't a match and they needed to remove the reductions to be considered a match. Boris comes off as looking for any way to get out of the Nike deal.

I still think is probably some key piece of information or communication that we don't have but from what is available now the bottom line seems to see everyone acted like children here.

Savage Henry wrote:

messi wrote:

irregardless

CRINGE

double cringe.

I'm pretty sure USOC offers athletes $50k for a gold medal and a couple $k's for other medals to

Anybody else notice that Nike's counter-offer term sheet says that Berian can stay in the Big Bear Track club AND WEAR THE BIG BEAR TRACK CLUB OFFICIAL UNIFORM at any domestic meets? I thought that uniform is a New Balance uniform?

The New Balance term sheet was written so that it would be unmatchable by Nike.

El Keniano wrote:

I thought they paid way more for Olympic gold and, especially, world records. Maybe because he's lower profile and only just emerging? I wouldn't imagine Puma paying Usain Bolt anything less than high six figures. The same with Adidas for David Rudisha. At least it's a living wage because I heard MLS players make much, much, less.

Bolt is a superstar. He is worth a ton more. He can spend the week before the meet talking about setting a WR, have the TV crews talk about it the whole time, have his prescence in every promote for the event (wearing his gear), and so on. Berian is a hanger on.

That being said, set those olympic and WR bonuses a lot higher and buy some insurance policy to cover it. The odds of him doing either of them is well under 10%.

Usage of irregardlessIrregardless originated in dialectal American speech in the early 20th century. Its fairly widespread use in speech called it to the attention of usage commentators as early as 1927. The most frequently repeated remark about it is that “there is no such word.” There is such a word, however. It is still used primarily in speech, although it can be found from time to time in edited prose.

Savage Henry wrote:

messi wrote:

irregardless

CRINGE

mabernet wrote:

Do we know of any response to this request from Berian's group? If Nike was properly informed of a lack of any reduction clauses in the New Balance contract, then it would appear that they clearly have not matched the terms of the contract. However, if no such information was provided to Nike by Berian, it would seem to me that he is in the wrong and in violation of Nike's right of first refusal.

Just my $.02

You are assuming the it is up to BB to tell Nike how to write their offer. Nike has big-boy pants and should be able to write an offer without any help from a lowly runner.

Booed buddy wrote:

Up Side wrote:

In the real world if Nike makes mint on an athlete the athlete gets a pittance. That is how the real business world works: one-sided in the company's favor.

So don't sign a bad contract.

Or better yet get a job in the real world where you have ZERO protects. These pampered elites have no perspective on reality.

So, don't write a bad contract that is not enforceable because you left the language opened to interpretation.

PS. The reduction clauses were added by a manager. Lawyer would write the boilerplate. A manager edits to suit their purpose: meaning they would make up the value of the contract. A lawyer will not do that part.

Buddy Boo wrote:

Booed buddy wrote:

So don't sign a bad contract.

Or better yet get a job in the real world where you have ZERO protects. These pampered elites have no perspective on reality.

So, don't write a bad contract that is not enforceable because you left the language opened to interpretation.

PS. The reduction clauses were added by a manager. Lawyer would write the boilerplate. A manager edits to suit their purpose: meaning they would make up the value of the contract. A lawyer will not do that part.

i'm really trying to figure out if you are saying something or not.

Yeah, the lawyer would write the language and the manager would fill in the numbers. the lawyers writes a heck of a lot more than the boilerplate.

Properly Informed wrote:

mabernet wrote:

Do we know of any response to this request from Berian's group? If Nike was properly informed of a lack of any reduction clauses in the New Balance contract, then it would appear that they clearly have not matched the terms of the contract. However, if no such information was provided to Nike by Berian, it would seem to me that he is in the wrong and in violation of Nike's right of first refusal.

Just my $.02

You are assuming the it is up to BB to tell Nike how to write their offer. Nike has big-boy pants and should be able to write an offer without any help from a lowly runner.

The intention here is not for Nike to write a new contract, but to "match" what New Balance has already offered. That cannot be done unless material terms such as reduction clauses (or lack thereof) that are not disclosed on a term sheet are disclosed to them.

I know for a fact (and I know how little that means on letsrun message boards), that Matthew Centrowitz's Nike contract includes $1 million bonus for Olympic gold.

I assume he has a bit lower base salary and earns most of it through bonuses, i.e. USA wins, world rankings, time bonuses, and Olympic/world podiums.

I guessed 100,000 (but only because the rojos failed to black out the comma in the base salary figures, so you could tell it was six figures).

Really does make me wonder how much Brenda Martinez/Jenny Simpson/Emma Coburn make. It has to be more, right?

mabernet wrote:

Properly Informed wrote:

You are assuming the it is up to BB to tell Nike how to write their offer. Nike has big-boy pants and should be able to write an offer without any help from a lowly runner.

The intention here is not for Nike to write a new contract, but to "match" what New Balance has already offered. That cannot be done unless material terms such as reduction clauses (or lack thereof) that are not disclosed on a term sheet are disclosed to them.

But why would Nike send Berian a contract with a reduction clauses in the first place if they didn't know if they were included. All information regarding the New Balance contract would have had to be disclosed to Nike before the time period in which Nike had to match the offer began. In the context of what we've been told Nike's actions make no sense. Even if Nike thought the contract might contain reductions they would still need to know what would trigger reductions and how much the reductions were. Like I said before it seems to me there is some conversation or piece of information we are missing.

It seems like this was handled in a very amateur manner all around.

Booed buddy wrote:

Yeah, the lawyer would write the language and the manager would fill in the numbers. the lawyers writes a heck of a lot more than the boilerplate.

Not necessarily. Lawyers do not write all of the language. You know absolutely nothing about contracts. I have written (adapted), negotiated, and signed over 100 contracts. Only a few times was a lawyer involved, and only then to comment on acceptability of edits to terms; such as reduced term of holding liability insurance after a contract was completed. Most edits were accepted by contracts managers.

Primo Numero Uno wrote:

mabernet wrote:

The intention here is not for Nike to write a new contract, but to "match" what New Balance has already offered. That cannot be done unless material terms such as reduction clauses (or lack thereof) that are not disclosed on a term sheet are disclosed to them.

But why would Nike send Berian a contract with a reduction clauses in the first place if they didn't know if they were included.

Because it is a new set of requirements Nike wants to impose on all new contracts. Berian's would be subject to them, and Nike would say no to removing them. It would set a bad precedence.

Knowing the above--that reduction clauses could be easily removed--then Nike's competitors--those who do not care about the clauses--would have a field day. Nike would be forced to drop the clauses for every matched contract. Competitors would know this and use ti their advantage against Nike.

Once again, Nike would says no to removing reduction clauses because they have set them as a standard they want every contract to include.

Really mate. wrote:

As a contractor you have to pay for many things employees take for granted. $125k you pay agent, buy medical, and fund your own 401k. You also have to pay ~7.5% self-employment tax; the companies part of the social security/medicare contribution.

And suddenly that low-six figures is middle-five figures.

Meanwhile, the USATF claims to spend $15 million on athletes, yet somehow national elite talent is working at McDonalds and being litigated for declining a Nike contract.

Sbeefyk1 wrote:

I am intrigued at the travel allotment. Only $5,000 would seem to indicate he will be paying out of pocket some serious money if he spends any time in Europe. Which he will.

If there are appearance fees, housing is probably in there. Low six-figures isn't what it works out to be at all. The reality is he's middle-five figures after self employed expenses.

I'm very Happy for Boris. Hard work pays off. A mutually beneficial relationship indeed. Congratulations!

WORLD INDOOR CHAMP makes $125 a year, yet some random golfer on the PGA Tour makes $1M? Absurd. How do golfers get paid more than track stars? Golfing is just a game.

pop_pop!_v2.2.1 wrote:

Really mate. wrote:

As a contractor you have to pay for many things employees take for granted. $125k you pay agent, buy medical, and fund your own 401k. You also have to pay ~7.5% self-employment tax; the companies part of the social security/medicare contribution.

And suddenly that low-six figures is middle-five figures.

Meanwhile, the USATF claims to spend $15 million on athletes, yet somehow national elite talent is working at McDonalds and being litigated for declining a Nike contract.

As much as idiots like you get all butt hurt by the USATF. It has nothing to do with this.