How much cash did Andrew Wheating make? Anyone else hear he was paid $750,000 / yr when he 1st signed?

Ain’t no way he was getting $750k/yr. The biggest names in track are lucky to make $75k in a good year.

$750K is way off. He actually made $750m.

If he was getting 750K a year he should have kept competing until the 2028 Olympics to try to end his career at the Olympics in the USA, heck if that is what they make, competing into the 40's age wise would be the norm not the rare exception like Lagat.

With an Oregon Degree he would probably start at 35-50k , so he is likely to have a huge pay cut without the running, I would have kept going as long as they were paying 750k and even if it got lower (Even 25k, which is lower than the Degree route) I would keep going rather than getting a regular 9-5 job.

As for the tweet saying some resented the deal, people should be happy for him, life can be hard, be happy when a person does well.

$750k ... So upper-middle class. Not even enough to qualify for the Elite Singles dating site.

Too high. Closer to the situation than most of you. He had/has a good agent though. Check with Mark.

AintNoWay wrote:

Ain’t no way he was getting $750k/yr. The biggest names in track are lucky to make $75k in a good year.

Said the poster without a clue. Top athletes make big money. However, it falls off quickly once you're not a podium contender.

If he was paid that much in any year of his career then Nike got ripped off big time. That was a big fat mistake.

AintNoWay wrote:

Ain’t no way he was getting $750k/yr. The biggest names in track are lucky to make $75k in a good year.

10/10

hyperbole and hyperbolier wrote:

$750K is way off. He actually made $750m.

m = per month

an honest assessment wrote:

If he was paid that much in any year of his career then Nike got ripped off big time. That was a big fat mistake.

Not based on his potential at the time and his marketability... it's chump change for Nike.

It could have been 750K as the total of a multi year contract. Maybe 3 years at 250K or 5 years at 150K.

This is actually what I had heard. If I remember correctly the initial contract was for 3 yrs.

snow blow wrote:

It could have been 750K as the total of a multi year contract. Maybe 3 years at 250K or 5 years at 150K.

sdfghdgdgf wrote:

an honest assessment wrote:

If he was paid that much in any year of his career then Nike got ripped off big time. That was a big fat mistake.

Not based on his potential at the time and his marketability... it's chump change for Nike.

Mo Farah was perhaps the only distance runner worth that kind of money. Wheating was unlikely to reach that level so if they offered him $750K it was a big fat mistake and they got ripped off.

3 years at 250k/year makes more sense. In hindsight that money was still flushed down the toilet, but at least that bet could have been rationalized at the time.

an honest assessment wrote:

sdfghdgdgf wrote:

Not based on his potential at the time and his marketability... it's chump change for Nike.

Mo Farah was perhaps the only distance runner worth that kind of money. Wheating was unlikely to reach that level so if they offered him $750K it was a big fat mistake and they got ripped off.

3 years at 250k/year makes more sense. In hindsight that money was still flushed down the toilet, but at least that bet could have been rationalized at the time.

Ok I agree, but everything is relative. At the time we all thought Wheating had a shot at becoming an all-time great like Mo Farah (and again, Wheating is far more marketable to American and international audiences).

By the way, do you not think Bekele's contract was worth a million a year?

The 750k figure was likely including all the bonuses he could hit. Meaning if he wins an Olympic gold and runs some fast time he would make 750k in one year.

Either way it would be an interesting paper to get access to pro runner contracts. It might not be too difficult. Just reach out to agents and ask for salaries, bonuses, times ran, etc. just block out the names and I don’t see a problem. If you randomize say 5000 runners it would be impossible to match up a salary with a name but it would tell us something about how fast you have to be to make a certain amount of money.

I love how in denial many you posters are. It pains you to think someone could make THAT much money just in base salary (not including bonuses, prizes and appearance fees).

Americans who aren’t even in the top 10 make 100k (companies see big potential from an NCAA champ). Guys who haven’t even won an NCAA title but look like they could make a team often make 80k.

It’s very believable that a guy who looked like a gold medalist at 21 and made an Olympic team at 19 would make 750k a year base.

You may not believe it, or don’t want to, but some athletes are 1000x more generically gifted than you and make big money to run. :)

Whether gifted or not, I thought generic products were cheaper. You learn something new every day...

Insider info wrote:

You may not believe it, or don’t want to, but some athletes are 1000x more generically gifted than you and make big money to run. :)

an honest assessment wrote:

sdfghdgdgf wrote:

Not based on his potential at the time and his marketability... it's chump change for Nike.

Mo Farah was perhaps the only distance runner worth that kind of money. Wheating was unlikely to reach that level so if they offered him $750K it was a big fat mistake and they got ripped off.

3 years at 250k/year makes more sense. In hindsight that money was still flushed down the toilet, but at least that bet could have been rationalized at the time.

Umm, ever heard of Jordan Hasay?