BIRMINGHAM, England (Reuters) – World, Olympic and European champion Yelena Isinbayeva said her record sponsorship deal with Chinese sportswear firm Li Ning would not distract her from breaking more pole vault records.
Several sources told Reuters earlier this month the agreement was worth $1.5 million a year for five years, unprecedented for a track and field athlete.
“I have no details yet but the contract is signed and I hope it will start in the summer,” Isinbayeva told Reuters ahead of her participation in the Aviva Grand Prix on Saturday. “It’s nice to be first again.
The agreement, worth $1.5 million annually for five years according to a person with knowledge of the offer, is significant because of the amount of money and the entry of a Chinese company into the athletics marketing world with a high-profile athlete.
“There is no athlete on the track circuit that earns that kind of money,” said a person familiar with the negotiations.
That includes the base contract for Jamaican double sprint world record holder Usain Bolt, the source said. “It is out of synch in regards to the track market.”
STEVE HOOKER will use a heavier pole in an effort to break Sergey Bubka’s world record vault in Boston this weekend.
While a lighter pole gave him Olympic gold and helped him set a new personal best last weekend in New York, Hooker has made the switch for the Boston Indoor Games.
The Australian missed breaking Bubka’s mark of 6.14 metres by what onlookers say was the length of a leg hair at Madison Square Gardens last week. Hooker had three attempts at 6.16m in New York in his first competition since Beijing.
His coach, Alex Parnov, said he expects his charge to again go close to the world record and that the heavier pole could be the key to conquering the “big goal”.
“In this short interview from the spring of 2008, [American Record Holder] Jenn Stuczynski talks about how she views competition (win first, then height second) and about the privacy of goals and criticism. Good, thoughtful stuff. The interview was shown during the 2008 Reebok Grand Prix meet in New York City and aired on CBS Sports Network.”
