Nike has been one of the biggest players in the track and field world for decades. Usain Bolt’s contract with Puma, Noah Lyles’ contract with Adidas, and Nike’s ties with USATF have helped shape the sport in many ways. Thanks to such contracts athletes have garnered millions in net worth. However, while Nike has influenced the careers of many legends, it may not always have been an athlete-first approach, as Allyson Felix revealed.
As an eleven-time Olympic medalist, Allyson Felix is among the most successful athletes in U.S. track and field history. However, despite her renown, Felix revealed how she had to walk away from negotiations with the footwear giant. Felix revealed how Nike’s limited views on maternity benefits prevented her from setting a precedent and how the sudden change in the brand’s image has left a bittersweet aftertaste.
How Allyson Felix felt about the brand’s shift toward prioritizing women’s well-being in track and field
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Allyson Felix explained how she asked for time from the footwear manufacturer so she could rest and bounce back after pregnancy. And while Nike did give her time, they did so only because of Felix’s track record as a champion. “I walked away,” said the champion, as she hoped that the brand’s policy would be the same for all athletes, not just on a “case by case basis.”
However, despite the brand completely transforming its approach, Allyson Felix still can’t shake off her ordeal. “It’s been a hard pill to swallow. Like watching them launch their maternity line, watching them celebrate mothers. Like, to me, that is very hard to see,” Felix confessed in her interview on the SpringHill YouTube channel.
That’s because getting brands, such as Nike, to play a significant role in supporting athletes, who are also mothers, wasn’t an easy task. “It was a fight, you know, to be able to change this,” explained the seven-time Olympic gold medalist. It’s also tough for the veteran athlete because Nike never realized her efforts to bring change to policy years ago.
However, the track and field legend is also experienced enough to know that change is more important than recognition. “It’s hard. But that’s what change is. It’s never about you, and I think you have to be okay with that,” said the Olympian. This is also why Felix never stopped working to improve things for women, especially mothers, in sports.
How the track and field legend continues to bring change to Olympic sports
Allyson Felix wasn’t able to directly influence Nike to play a more positive role toward all mothers who are also athletes. However, the fact that now every brand, including Nike, has become far more progressive is thanks to the tireless effort of veterans such as Allyson Felix. After facing the hardships of being a world-class athlete and mother, Felix set out to change things for good.
“I want things to be completely different for this next generation and the things that they hopefully won’t have to struggle with,” the Olympic medalist explained during the interview. So, after returning from the sport as an athlete, Felix became an athletes’ representative in the International Olympic Committee. Using her position, the former champion brought some revolutionary changes to the Paris Olympics.
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In May 2024, the 39-year-old revealed that the Olympic Village will have a nursery for kids. She announced that the ICO would set up the nursery in the non-residential area of the village, making it easily accessible, and Pampers would sponsor the nursery. The IOC Athletes’ Commission Chair Emma Terho also supported the noble idea.
“Many athletes are balancing their sporting careers and family… I know how this feels, as I competed at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games as a mother with a young child,” said Terho. And while the initiative was a huge win for Allyson Felix’s cause, she hopes to continue the momentum, bringing further positive change.
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