I agree with Jeremy because....

Try figuring that out with a boxing agent's take. More like going home with 75,000.

well, i'd get rid of the agent and keep the coach. jeremy doesn't strike me as a bright guy but how hard is it to be the best in your event and ask for a satisfactory appearance fee?

Former pro wrote:

I agree with Jeremy on this one. I ran professionally for many years and the percentages that are taken are crazy.

Here's a breakdown:

agents - 15 % - 20 %

coach - 0 % - 10 %

Uncle Sam - 28 % - 35 % plus your state tax(Jeremy is definitely in the highest)

If the above percentages are correct if Jeremy makes 1 million per he goes home with 300k. I know that's still some good bank but I understand why he's trying to cut costs for services.

Well...

1) By using the worst percentages you provided, Jeremy would take home $350,000, not $300,000, AND...

2) Quit complaining about taxes. We all pay them. If someone has a salary of $100,000, THAT'S how they think of it. The don't think of it as taking home closer to $65,000.

Now, to the point, since Clyde Hart coached Wariner to pretty much win everything, I agree with him, "He has won everything out there and I just could not understand why there would be a cut in my pay."

Damn straight! Clyde Hart is right. It's all about respect man. I don't know Hart's financial situation, but when someone you've coached has won everything in site and you've done the best possible job, how is it right to reduce your pay? No person, no matter the realm in which they dominate, does it all on their own.

I see this as greedy pure and simple on Wariner's part.

Flagpole Willy wrote:

1) By using the worst percentages you provided, Jeremy would take home $350,000, not $300,000, AND...

and if he invested that money for 30 years with a CONSERVATIVE rate of return of 9%, he would ......

What if you made 100k and took home 30 - 35,000. You go to school get a great degree make $100,000 out of school but you have to pay 10% on top of the other percentages to a professor that helped you during your whole college experience. You may do it because your such a loyal person but it would be tough to swallow.

I know people have helped him including Clyde but should he also give his parents,teachers,high school coaches,AAU coaches,gym teachers etc. a percentage. Clyde helped but so did many others.

I think NIKE should step up even more and pay the % for Jeremy. They should know that this could kill his chances of winning GOLD especially with this going down less than 6 months until Trials and less than 9 to the SHOW.

He runs for Adidas.

My dad died at 58 of a sudden stroke. 30 years may never come. Bad argument!

my bad! Adidas needs to pay!

Flagpole Willy wrote:

Former pro wrote:

I agree with Jeremy on this one. I ran professionally for many years and the percentages that are taken are crazy.

Here's a breakdown:

agents - 15 % - 20 %

coach - 0 % - 10 %

Uncle Sam - 28 % - 35 % plus your state tax(Jeremy is definitely in the highest)

If the above percentages are correct if Jeremy makes 1 million per he goes home with 300k. I know that's still some good bank but I understand why he's trying to cut costs for services.

Well...

1) By using the worst percentages you provided, Jeremy would take home $350,000, not $300,000, AND...

I see this as greedy pure and simple on Wariner's part.

i think that you'd be able to deduct the fees to your agent and you coach from your income, unless you did no advance tax planning whatsoever.

so you start with 1,000,000 in this example, deduct 20% for agent, so 800,000 left, then 10% for coach, so 700,000 left (10% of 1,000,000, not 10% of 800,000), then apply the tax rate. as discussed before on this site, using your top marginal tax rate to estimate total taxes significantly overestimates taxes. nevertheless, i'll do so for this example for simplicity. wariner is in texas, so he won't have state (income) tax liability on his earnings, for the most part (other states may try to tax him on winnings from meets in those states). so lop off 35% of 700,000, and you end up with $455,000. use a more realistic federal income tax amount and you're probably closer to $500,000.

is it great to think you're making 1,000,000 and actually make 500,000? no. but the shopkeeper or the sole practitioner lawyer or any other businessperson has employee and other expenses. it's the same thing for an athlete. their competition is their "business" and there are costs associated with it - coaching, access to facilities, medical care, etc.

in sum, i'm with FW's last comment. it's greed. and maybe a little misplaced pride (thinking he can do just as well or better on his own). if he struggled last year, i'd understand it. with his recent record of success, i don't understand taking the risk over a relatively small amount of money.

Former pro wrote:

What if you made 100k and took home 30 - 35,000. You go to school get a great degree make $100,000 out of school but you have to pay 10% on top of the other percentages to a professor that helped you during your whole college experience. You may do it because your such a loyal person but it would be tough to swallow.

I know people have helped him including Clyde but should he also give his parents,teachers,high school coaches,AAU coaches,gym teachers etc. a percentage. Clyde helped but so did many others.

I think NIKE should step up even more and pay the % for Jeremy. They should know that this could kill his chances of winning GOLD especially with this going down less than 6 months until Trials and less than 9 to the SHOW.

Teachers, HS coaches, gym teachers etc... do get paid for the work they do. They get paid separately and they no longer work with Jeremy. They do not get a share of what he now makes. They chose there careers and I'm sure they are not complaining about it.

Seems like if he wants to maximize his profits he should reduce his agents percentage. Who helps you win races, your coach or your agent?

In the end, he could lose more money than he gains by this change.

The answer will determine itself on how much the coach is worth, on whether or not Warner can win without him.

Great points but where do you draw the line. I'm sure he's worked with many different coaches,strength coaches and nutritionists over the years that played a huge part in his development so does he pay them as well. I don't think it's greed. I think he realizes his day in the sun is closer to the end than the beginning and he wants to put as much money in the bank as possible.

pretty shoddy argument former 'pro'

the big difference is that clyde was still tutoring the pupil and every part of jw's success. once you graduate, is the professor still helping you? yes, his teaching might have helped you get that first job and that wonderful entry level salary, but after that, every promotion is from what you do, not what the prof did! maybe wariner should fire mj as that should have been something he considered when setting up the adidas contract. flynn got it done for webb...

I will be cheering against Jeremy in the Olympic Games. I believe that he is cheating Clyde and I hope that it costs him.

I would continue this but I have to go to work coaching kids to land my next big fish so I can rip him off when he becomes good!

in every interview, Jeremy credits coach Hart for his success.

show me an interview where Jeremy doesn't say Coach Hart this or Coach Hart that.

There is a special relationship between those two at least in the public eye. It is kind of like Rupp deciding to dump Salazar and run for Hanson.

It is just a shock. No one cared that Allyson Felix has jumped around various coaches.

Former pro wrote:

What if you made 100k and took home 30 - 35,000. You go to school get a great degree make $100,000 out of school but you have to pay 10% on top of the other percentages to a professor that helped you during your whole college experience. You may do it because your such a loyal person but it would be tough to swallow.

I know people have helped him including Clyde but should he also give his parents,teachers,high school coaches,AAU coaches,gym teachers etc. a percentage. Clyde helped but so did many others.

I think NIKE should step up even more and pay the % for Jeremy. They should know that this could kill his chances of winning GOLD especially with this going down less than 6 months until Trials and less than 9 to the SHOW.

Dude, that's the nature of professional athletics. He has to have a coach for sure, and unless he wants to work extra hard, an agent too. You sound like a greedy S.O.B. just like Wariner. Wariner's parents and teachers weren't employees. His COACH is an employee. You don't take away money from an employee when that employee is doing well, especially when the company (Wariner) is continuing to do well. Besides, when I was in college I PAID the professors in the form of tuition WHEN I WAS USING THEM -- just like Wariner is using the benefits of a coach.

In your example of Wariner taking home $350,000, I say boo hoo brother. In 2008, 95% of American HOUSEHOLDS makes LESS than $200,000 per year. The average in 2006 for American HOUSEHOLDS was just a shade over $40,000. I know you'll say that he can't make that kind of money forever. Well, so what? If I started out in my 20s and took home that kind of money for just 4 years I'd have set myself up for life.

Math time:

Remember that you took out the taxes already, so he's taking home $350,000 a year. Could he live on $70,000 of that TAX FREE? I say EASILY. That's then $280,000 that he can invest. Do that for 4 years at 9% interest. You end up with $1.4 MILLION DOLLARS. NEVER add to it again and in 10 years it's worth $2.3 million dollars; in 15 years it's $3.6 million; and in 20 it's $5.5 million dollars.

To be concerned whatsoever about the finances of a guy who takes home more than 10 times what the average US household takes home is crazy.

I'm not sure why fans of track and field always think that Nike should step up and pay more money for some athlete. Did YOU ever buy a Nike product because one of their athletes did well? I never have.

This is why FP is a socialist.

serial repeater wrote:

This is why FP is a socialist.

Absolutely NOT! No way am I a socialist. That would mean I'd be for everyone making the same, and I'm NOT for that AT ALL. If people can get big coin doing something they are good at then I'm all for it. I'm very happy living in a non-socialist society and in fact I believe government should be in our lives LESS than they are. I will retire a wealthy man, and that would not have been possible if I believed in socialism.

BUT, there's a difference between striving to be set financially and flat out greed. Kaitainen said it correctly -- it's amazing that he's throwing this athlete/coach relationship away for such a small amount of money. Greedy people never win in life, and in my experience not with money either. Unless Wariner comes out to explain his decision in a way that is other than money, he's lost a fan with me. He's very talented and will still probably win the Gold, but I won't be rooting for him.