7 Olympic athletes brands should watch after the Beijing Games
Examining the endorsement potential for Eileen Gu, Chloe Kim, Nathan Chen and other Winter Olympics standouts.
Aliver
Athletes that made a splash range from snowboarder Chloe Kim to figure skater Nathan Chen. Freestyle skier Eileen Gu has gotten a lot of publicity this Winter Games for her performance as well as broader national ties. (Gu has been at the center of complicated geopolitical conversations regarding the U.S. and China after allegedly giving up her citizenship for the former to compete for the latter.)
Other athletes, meanwhile, have received an onslaught of criticism from audiences: China’s figure skater Zhu Yi–who also allegedly switched her U.S. citizenship to compete for China–was heavily criticized on Chinese social media after falling, and Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva is at the center of a doping investigation.
Still, there is a substantial list of athletes who managed to stay relatively uncontroversial with audiences while boosting their image.
Below, seven stars whose stock is rising that brands should keep an eye on.
Eileen Gu
1.2 million followers on Instagram
Freestyle skier Eileen Gu’s name is everywhere this Olympics, particularly after she twice won gold. China’s Twitter-like platform Weibo reportedly crashed as users rushed to discuss her victory. After allegedly giving up her U.S. citizenship to compete for China (Gu is mixed Chinese and white-American), she has been treading a diplomatic line between the two countries as geopolitical tensions rise. Feelings around Gu are complicated: she is well-known and widely loved in China although not without criticism, while in the U.S., some feel resentful about how she has switched to compete for China.
According to data from audience intelligence company Shareablee, Gu’s total social media engagement on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram grew by 9,845% compared to the same period last year. She has a modeling contract with IMG Models and has more than 20 brand deals with both Chinese and U.S. companies, according to Shanghai-based media outlet Yicai Global and the South China Morning Post, among which are Cadillac, Tiffany, Victoria’s Secret and Apple’s Beats by Dr. Dre.
Although it’s clear that Gu could enjoy significant marketing success, there are still “some questions she’s struggling to answer,” said Carlisle, which could affect her brand opportunities in the U.S. According to Carlisle, a lot of it depends on how she educates the general public about why she chose to compete for China.
Chloe Kim
904k followers on Instagram
American snowboarder Chloe Kim, who competed for Team USA, was the youngest woman snowboarder to win gold at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Then Kim took a break to go to college. She has since spoken about feeling burned out and has been open about how factors such as race and mental health have affected her.
Now 21, the Long Beach, California native is on the comeback trail, winning her second gold at the Beijing Olympics–a combination of past momentum and renewed recognition that will likely mean "the opportunities will come to her," said Carlisle. Shareablee data shows that Chloe Kim’s social engagement grew by 490% in 2022.
Kim is already associated with several brands listed on her Instagram including Monster Energy and Nike. Data from audience insights platform Helixa shows Tesla, Apple, Patagonia, Chipotle and Walt Disney among brands that could benefit from partnering with Kim. The company’s data shows that Kim’s audience also most commonly connects with these brands. She also launched Togethxr, a media and commerce platform focusing on covering women in sport with a group of other national and Olympic athletes.
Nathan Chen
582k followers on Instagram
American figure skater Nathan Chen won gold this year after coming in 17th in 2018 while also winning a bronze in the team event. “He is the current face of American figure skating, especially in the absence of a star on the women’s side,” said Brian Quarles, chief creative officer at sports marketing agency rEvolution.
Chen enrolled at Yale in 2018, taking leave to compete in 2022’s Winter Olympics. He’s been called the “Quad King” after becoming the first Olympian to do six quadruple jumps at PyeongChang’s Olympics. He has experienced 170% growth on social media according to Shareablee’s data, and has long-term endorsements with 11 brands including Visa, Nike, Toyota and Bridgestone, according to Forbes.
Figure skating is a high-profile sport, said Carlisle, which will also allow Chen to pursue more commercial opportunities.
Ayumu Hirano
799k followers on Instagram
As long-standing three-time Olympic gold snowboarder Shaun White completed his last Olympic run, he framed Hirano–who got the gold in the same run–as the one to take over. “It’s your turn,” said White to Hirano after the competition, according to the New York Times.
Skateboarder and snowboarder Hirano, snowboarding for Japan, landed his gold after a judging controversy where viewers alleged that he was misjudged. “It’s an awesome story that will be remembered by a lot of people,” said Carlisle. Given the huge industry and opportunity for activation in snowboarding, said Carlisle, Hirano has “a huge commercial future ahead of him” if he chooses.
Hirano, a brand ambassador for Uniqlo, is the only athlete who participated in both skateboarding and snowboarding in all three consecutive Olympics in East Asia from 2018 to 2022.
Lindsey Jacobellis and Nick Baumgartner
Lindsey Jacobellis: 325k followers on Instagram
Nick Baumgartner: 28.6k followers on Instagram
On the other end of the spectrum are the oldest–old by Olympics standards, at least–athletes to win an Olympic gold medal. Baumgartner, 40, and Jacobellis, 36, won gold together in mixed-team snowboard cross, a new event. “To pull this off in such a youth-oriented sport is even more inspiring,” said Wojcik.
Jacobellis lost the chance to win gold in 2006, and has now made a return, winning two golds in the 2022 Games (she won women's snowboard cross, plus the mixed-team win with Baumgartner). “It’s a great feel-good story. It has perseverance and redemption,” said Wojcik.
Jacobellis’ story is “phenomenal,” particularly given her name recognition in the U.S. and could provide opportunity for a book or a movie, “but that takes work,” said Carlisle. Jacobellis’ story could benefit from an aggressive advertising approach that forces conversations about her journey to getting her gold.
Nick Baumgartner, an American snowboarder, doesn’t have the same name recognition even though he previously participated in three Olympics with no medals. But Quarles called him “someone for brands to rally around, especially from an older demographic/family perspective.” He doesn’t have any significant sponsors, according to Axios, and is a concrete worker from Michigan.
Erin Jackson
55.6k followers on Instagram
Jackson, 29, could be viewed under a handful of firsts–the first medal for American speedskating this Winter Olympics, the first African American woman to get a medal in Olympic speedskating (she won gold) and the U.S.'s first medal in an individual speedskating event since 2010 in the Vancouver Games, according to NBCOlympics.
She has a science background, graduating from the University of Florida with a degree in mechanical engineering and materials science, according to the New York Times. “I just always hope to be a good example, especially with helping kids see they don’t have to just choose one between schools and sport,” said Jackson, according to NBCOlympics.
Jackson also opens up speedskating to a new market in Florida, where she is from, said Carlisle. But she will have to create her opportunities for marketing, as it is unlikely that brands will come to her, he said. According to Jackson’s Instagram, @speedyj, she is associated with Toyota and Bont Inline Skates.
