Madison Avenue Loves Lipinski Olympic Gold Medalist Will Need Forklift To Bring Mother Lode To Bank

Tara Lipinski, the surprise winner in the Winter Olympics figure-skating competition last month, brought home more than a gold medal and international acclaim from Nagano. According to industry experts, the 15-year-old Texan may reap as much as $20 million in endorsements during the next several years.

“Tara Lipinski is just that all-American girl that everyone would like to believe,” said Ron Dickson, a vice president of corporate marketing at Kodak, the Rochester, N.Y.-based film giant and Olympic sponsor.

Toy maker Mattel, which markets the hugely successful doll, may have saved a bundle when the company signed Lipinski to endorse its “Olympic-skater Barbie” before the Games. Campbell’s Soups has her, too, although they may have to increase her appearance fees for the Campbell’s Soups Champions on Ice tour.

A month ago, before the Olympics, the going price for a corporate appearance by U.S. skier Picabo Street averaged around $20,000.

Since she won the gold medal in the super-giant slalom, her price has soared to around $30,000.

Experts estimate that Street will boost her annual income several times, from about $500,000 currently to between $1.5 million and $2 million a year.

Street, the Idaho native with the Tiger racing helmet, came into the Games with a reconstructed left knee and an armful of old endorsements, including Chapstick, United Airlines, Nike, Pepsi and Rossignol skis.

After her unexpected win, she was such a hit as the “comeback kid” that she almost won the right to grace the cover of the Wheaties cereal box. According to one source, Street wanted about $50,000 from Wheaties, so the cereal company instead went with the U.S women’s hockey team, whose members passed up their endorsement fee. The players who still have college eligibility remaining were not allowed to participate without forfeiting the eligibility under NCAA regulations.

“There were a lot of strong feelings for Picabo because she’s so charismatic, so interesting,” said Jack Sheehan, a spokesman for Wheaties. “But when we weighed all the facts, we decided this was the first time women’s hockey played in the Olympics.”