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Olympians Not Pursued Lipinski Appears To Be The Exception When It Comes To Endorsements

Bloomberg News

Figure skater Tara Lipinski might be the only U.S. Winter Olympian that will be able to turn her gold into coin on Madison Avenue, advertising analysts and executives said.

Lipinski, 15, the youngest figure skater ever to win an Olympic gold medal, was a rare bright moment for the U.S. in a lackluster Winter Olympics. CBS struggled with the lowest television ratings in 30 years.

The low ratings and lack of attention generated by the Winter Olympics means most athletes returning from Nagano will have memories - not endorsement checks.

“The general apathy was surprising,” said Fred Fried, executive vice president of Integrated Sports International, a sports marketing firm that represents athletes. “I don’t think there’s anyone in our business that wasn’t surprised by that.”

Lipinski likely will be the exception.

She had an endorsement contract with Campbell Soup Co. before the Olympics and is adding to her portfolio. She has signed contracts to endorse Mattel Inc.’s Olympic skating Barbie doll, a line of children’s active wear by Donna Karan International Inc. and General Motor Corp.’s Chevrolet division - even though she isn’t old enough to drive.

“In addition to her athletic ability, her on-camera interviews showed remarkable poise and maturity for someone her age,” said Brian Murphy, publisher of the Sports Marketing Letter, which tracks the industry.

She could earn $2 million to $3 million in endorsements this year, Murphy said.

“She has a wonderful voice and communications skills and is bubbling over with youthful enthusiasm,” Murphy said. “Those are very, very useful qualities that sponsors are eager to find.”

Lipinski’s gold medal could be worth as much as $20 million during her career with income from skating tours and endorsement contracts, said Bob Williams, president of Burns Sports, a company that arranges endorsement agreements for athletes.

“Product endorsements will provide a very handsome income for her the next few years,” Williams said.

Even with plenty of endorsement offers, Lipinski shares a risk encountered by most Olympic athletes - being pushed out of the limelight by athletes in other sports.

Ryan Schinman, executive vice president of marketing for Worldwide Entertainment & Sports Corp., said, “It’s a small window of opportunity for these people. There are so many sports and so many superstars out there, they should jump on the opportunities that present themselves.”

While the endorsement outlooks for this year’s Olympic team is poor, it could be worse for the group heading to Salt Lake City in 2002. The lower-than-expected TV ratings might make companies shy away from Olympic athletes when looking for endorsers.