How the frick did Sam Parsons get an Adidas contract?

forgot about barrazza, I think he was Adidas before he joined the group.

He's marketable... that's all.

Parsons is running for Germany. Adidas is a German company.

He's run 3:37 & 13:22. His 3:37 is #2 in Germany and is almost identical to what Hunter ran.

His 13:22 is also #2 in Germany and is just about identical to what Hassan Mead ran last year.

You're surprised he got an Adidas contract??

Whats going on with you? wrote:

Parsons is running for Germany. Adidas is a German company.

He's run 3:37 & 13:22. His 3:37 is #2 in Germany and is almost identical to what Hunter ran.

His 13:22 is also #2 in Germany and is just about identical to what Hassan Mead ran last year.

You're surprised he got an Adidas contract??

This. Being one of the top runners in your country/region gives you more market value.

By the same logic as the OP - a bunch of nameless Africans would wonder why they are giving contracts out to Americans/Europeans that run 2:06+ for the marathon or 13+/27+ for 5/10k.

In some Asian countries where running is popular there are 67-70 minute HM guys with sponsorships because they are “national class”.

he hadn't run any of those times out of college. look at his college PR's. Adidas gave him the contract the first year out

sometimes you need to bet on your guy to become marketable. Parsons stood good chances at making Olympic team which helps adidas and they knew that he would be a good bet to make that team

same thing with drew tbh. Out of HS he was definitely the top guy but not someone you would call a lock to be a Olympian but adidas gave him that contract and then he continued to get better. Still is not a lock for olympics either

Contracts dont go to people who are locks for olympics. They go to others too and then the company is betting on their guy

yeah that makes sense. But it's wild that Adidas saw a 13:52 guy and figured he had a good chance to make the olympic team, regardless of country. the standard is the standard.

Sam was 45th in the NCAA his senior year in the 5k and though he had the 8th best time in the NCAA in the 10k he finished 15th at the outdoor meet. he was still a minute and 15 seconds off the olympic standard.

They do this all the time in the NBA draft, selecting for potential rather than strict numbers.

Whats going on with you? wrote:

Parsons is running for Germany. Adidas is a German company.

He's run 3:37 & 13:22. His 3:37 is #2 in Germany and is almost identical to what Hunter ran.

His 13:22 is also #2 in Germany and is just about identical to what Hassan Mead ran last year.

You're surprised he got an Adidas contract??

That's true, lots of runners are sponsored by Adidas in Germany, even ones that are a lot slower than Parsons. Adidas HQ are in Herzogenaurach, Germany and they can make decisions a lot quicker than their smaller US office.

Being sponsored isn't really only about times, it's about what value can the athlete create for a company in the respective target market. It's also about connections.

Parsons also worked for adidas. I believe in some marketing role.

LateRunnerPhil wrote:

Whats going on with you? wrote:

Parsons is running for Germany. Adidas is a German company.

He's run 3:37 & 13:22. His 3:37 is #2 in Germany and is almost identical to what Hunter ran.

His 13:22 is also #2 in Germany and is just about identical to what Hassan Mead ran last year.

You're surprised he got an Adidas contract??

That's true, lots of runners are sponsored by Adidas in Germany, even ones that are a lot slower than Parsons. Adidas HQ are in Herzogenaurach, Germany and they can make decisions a lot quicker than their smaller US office.

Being sponsored isn't really only about times, it's about what value can the athlete create for a company in the respective target market. It's also about connections.

This this this.

Letsrun posters in particular seem to think that companies should reward you for just being good at running. This is partly because they use their running ability to identify their self worth, and use running ability to determine the social status of others.

In reality, that is not what companies care about at all, and the quicker everyone realises that the better for the sport as a whole.

You need to be marketable, appeal to the public's interests, engage with the fans, use social media in a way that entertains your followers and makes the public aware that you exist.

If sponsorship was solely on times then the Africans would be millionaires and Drew Hunter wouldn't even be running.

whatevers wrote:

Parsons also worked for adidas. I believe in some marketing role.

This is the answer. He interned with Adidas and kept in contact with them. After graduation he took a few months off to travel through Europe. He met Hunter in Europe and got the itch to train again. He reached out to Adidas and moved to Boulder with the vision of starting a pro group with Drew.

This was before the Tinman Elite hype machine was born. It’s all about who you know.

He worked for them. He comes from wealth too so the contract doesn't really matter TBH.

I have the answer. He ran 28:43 in college. In 2017 that was the second fastest German. So yea, that's why.

Jordan Gusman is also Adidas sponsored as well.

All good answers above.

Also, we dont know the details of his contract. Most pro contracts include bonuses for specific times, teams made, championships reached medals, etc. Many also include increases and decreases based on longer term success.

So it is possible to start an athlete like Parsons, who signed when he was much slower, on a lower guaranteed amount. As he ran faster times, he presumably signed a contract with incentives that increase his compensation.

I know people who have pro deals that barely give more than shoes and gear, only a few thousand bucks a year. But placing a certain level at trials increased their salary. Another girl I knew signed when she had no real Olympic shot, bit ended up making a team. She said (I dont know exact details) that it resulted in not just a one time bonus, but overall increase for the next year.

Whats going on with you? wrote:

Parsons is running for Germany. Adidas is a German company.

He's run 3:37 & 13:22. His 3:37 is #2 in Germany and is almost identical to what Hunter ran.

His 13:22 is also #2 in Germany and is just about identical to what Hassan Mead ran last year.

You're surprised he got an Adidas contract??

Bingo. u got it correct.