Dick's Sporting Goods reached an agreement to serve as the first official sporting goods retail sponsor to the USOC and Team USA for the 2016 summer games in Brazil. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.
Though most official sponsors were signed years ago, the USOC particularly liked Dick’s SG’s offer to provide jobs to athletes.
The in-store employment opportunities, under Dick's Team USA Store Ambassador Program, will provide U.S. Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls with flexible work opportunities in Dick's stores to accommodate their training schedules. Dick’s SG said the athletes “will be able to share their passion and in-depth knowledge of their sport with Dick's customers.”
“Dick's support of Team USA athletes, including opportunities for employment in the communities where they live and train, opens up new pathways for America's elite athletes to achieve their dream of competing on the biggest stage in sport,” said Lisa Baird, USOC chief marketing officer.
The sponsorship also includes sporting goods equipment donations, as needed, to the U.S. Olympic Training Centers. Sporting goods equipment from their stores will also be offered to several Team USA athletes.
Three-time U.S. Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings, four-time U.S. Olympic medalist Summer Sanders and U.S. Paralympic world record holder Lex Gillette were on-hand at the retailer's corporate headquarters for the partnership announcement.
“I was a U.S. Olympic hopeful at one point,” said Jennings. “A lot of people helped me on my quest to make Team USA, and Dick's will be a huge help to these athletes.”
