Tuesday was Tax Day in America, and Masters athletes will have shipped off their returns with a mixture of relief and regret.
One deduction we won't be listing is the expense of our sport. Entering meets, traveling to sites and staying overnight can be a big bite. We do this willingly, of course -- the price of participation. But what if we had a sugar daddy who paid our way to meets?? Wouldn't that be cool?
For 24 members of Sprint Force America, that fantasy will soon become a reality.
A New York-based Masters track club, Sprint Force America has just come into possibly the biggest chunk of change in Masters track history. A corporate sponsor is pledging to underwrite one year (with an option for a second year) of competition at major meets for at least 24 athletes, some in their 70s. The sponsor is the Swiss-based drugmaker Ferring Pharmaceuticals, whose U.S. arm is pushing an injectable treatment for knee arthritis called Euflexxa.
SFA President and co-founder Ed Gonera, a world-champion masters sprinter, provided details of the sponsorship in a phone call last week. With the help of Bob Gray, Frank Schiro and Saladin Allah, Ed wrangled a big time sponsorship.
Under a deal that Ferring hasn't made public yet, Sprint Force America would get expenses for six sprinters in each of four age groups: 40-49, 50-59, 60-69 and 70-79. The money would send these sprinters, mainly relay teams, to the Penn Relays, the National Senior Olympics (and qualifying meets), the USATF masters nationals and perhaps to Lahti, Finland, for the WMA world outdoor championships in 2009.
Currently committed to SFA are some of the best masters sprinters in America -- from as far away as California, Oregon and Texas.
Ed Gonera, Sal Allah and Frank Schiro are among the sponsored athletes. Others on board so far are Bob Bowen, Neil Steinberg, Greg Pizza, Marty Krulee, Ray Blackwell, Anthony Searles, Archie Glaspy, Rich Rizzo, Larry Colbert, Bob Lida, Wayne Bennett, Gary Sims, Mack Stewart, Dick Camp, Corey Moody, Steve Nearman and Rod Jett.
For its part, Ferring would film these sprinters in competition (wearing uniforms with the Euflexxa logo) and use their images in ads marketing the pain medicine. In fact, a film crew already is set to tape the SFA teams at Penn this month.
Although USATF frowns on "national clubs" in Masters track, they exist under a loophole in which athletes from any association can join a club in any other association if they get permission from their "home" association.
Ed vigorously rejects the notion that SFA is "poaching" America's top sprinters from other clubs, saying: "I just want to showcase good athletes. . . . I'm not going after anybody -- (especially if) they're already attached to another team. I don't care if it's Michael Johnson."
Ed, who turns 56 in mid-May, is particularly proud of the fact M70 sprinters will be sponsored. These include Lida of Kansas, Camp of Maine, Sims of Oregon, Stewart and Bennett of Texas, Rizzo of New York and Colbert of Maryland. These gents already have teamed for several world records. And they expect more to come.
At the moment, women aren't in the mix. But Ed hopes that Ferring will eventually underwrite champion female sprinters as well.
Ed has been running Masters track since 1994, when he was 42. He's won 10 medals at worlds, including five golds, and taken 17 national championships. He claims eight world records, two American records and considers a highlight a 48.8 in the 400 at 43 in 1995 "before I cracked my pubic bone two weeks later ouch!"
Ed says he's on the road back from three herniated discs, an arthritic back and foot, stenosis and "fatness."
"I still have goals," says Ed, who competed in the 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001 and 2005 world masters meets. "Got to keep working and deal with the setbacks."
Ferring, which in 2005 had "turnover" of 688 million Euros, telegraphed its intent to be a big-time player in American Masters sports by becoming the title sponsor of Euflexxa GeezerJock of the Year awards through Masters Athlete magazine.
It appears that FerringUSA is looking for new folks to be the face of Euflexxa, perhaps becaus its current spokesman, 1976 Olympic decathlon champion Bruce Jenner, has gotten involved in a reality TV show with his stepdaughters (called "Keeping Up with the Kardashians").
Alex Drigan, who works in Ferring's marketing department, said that characterization of Jenner and Ferring parting ways was "inaccurate." Drigan said, "...We did decide as a company to look at other opportunities to find new 'faces.' Jenner was a great spokesperson for Euflexxa as he totally embodied the spirit of athleticism (at any age). Hence we have decided to look at other sponsorships like Sprint Force America, Geezer Jock of the Year Award and are now looking at another Masters event in another sport."
Ed tells me that over the years he's approached dozens of potential corporate sponsors. But Ferring is the first to promise big bucks. Although Ed has budgets in mind for each event SFA attends, he doesn't have a grand total to tout.
In any case, this is big.
Now the only question is: How will Sprint Force America athletes report this on their taxes a year from now?
Tags: Sponsorship
