Nick Symmonds is a five-time national track champion in the 800 meters, but when his contract with Nike expired at the end of 2013, he was left without an apparel sponsor. Well at least temporarily.
Symmonds had a new deal in the works with another company, and let's just say he did a clever job of teasing the announcement on Twitter.
For the first time in 7 years I am without an apparel sponsor. Forced to workout in the nude till a deal is signed pic.twitter.com/FFLHNFOjV6
— Nick Symmonds (@NickSymmonds) January 1, 2014
That deal came with Brooks, and he went to the company's headquarters in Seattle on New Year's Day to make it official.
I enjoyed training in the nude, but prefer this beautiful new singlet. I am now partnered with @brooksrunning! pic.twitter.com/LO8iwBvpTr
— Nick Symmonds (@NickSymmonds) January 2, 2014
Symmonds, who dedicated his silver medal in the 800 meters at the World Championships in Moscow to his gay and lesbian friends to as a protest against new Russian laws, said Brooks is a better fit for his sensibilities.
"I'm a champion for athletes' rights," Symmonds told Runner's World. "The way that Nike is currently writing their contracts, I think, pretty much strips the athletes of all their rights, their ability to market themselves to potential other sponsors. The reduction clauses that they had were harsh and unnecessary."
But during his time as a Nike athlete, Symmonds also had some fun with the concept of running naked, so it is interesting to note that he chose the same theme theme to publicize his departure from the company.
Perhaps Symmonds' appreciation for being naked (and generating publicity) ought not to be surprising, considering that he once scored a date with Paris Hilton.
