Gold rush begins as sponsors eye up Yorkshire’s Olympic Games hopefuls

At a recent press conference to promote an athletics meet in Sheffield, Jessica Ennis was quizzed on all manner of sporting topics, from mental preparation to the form of her gold medal rivals.

So when a question came from the back of the room from a lifestyle magazine correspondent about her choice of make-up, it took the seasoned, smug sporting hacks by surprise. But not the eloquent Ennis, who went from talking high jumps to high heels in less time than she will take to run the 100m hurdles in this year’s London Olympic Games.

The 26-year-old heptathlete has grown accustomed to all aspects of her life being thrown open to the wider world. She is one of the faces of Britain’s flagship track and field team at this summer’s Games, despite having never competed in an Olympics

Sponsors have been hanging onto her coat tails ever since she won a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games of 2006, and have not let go as the journey reaches a crescendo at London 2012.

Ennis is sponsored by global brands such as Adidas, BP, British Airways, Omega and Jaguar among others, using precious days off to fulfil outside commitments and, for the inquisitive lifestyle correspondent, her choice of cosmetics comes courtesy of an association with Olay.

She has even been invited as a guest on The Jonathan Ross Show, an opportunity she turned down because it clashed with her training schedule.

For therein lies the hook. Ennis, like all her fellow Olympians and advisors, knows that these sponsors, lifestyle magazines and celebrity opportunities will only multiply if and when she wins an Olympic title this summer.

There is no sporting occasion as big as an Olympics and no greater opportunity than a home Games to turn gold into money.British Olympic athletes stand on the verge of fame and fortune. Superstars will be born at London 2012.

“I’m enjoying it, it’s a nice position to be in,” says Sheffield’s Ennis, who is one of Britain’s most bankable sporting stars. “Lots of things have come up, photoshoots, being on the front cover of Marie Clare, which was really surreal. I would like to do everything that has come up but I just can’t do them all. There’s plenty of things to do after the Olympics and hopefully I can do those after.

“I’d kick myself if I did everything and looked back and thought I had a great time doing all these things but didn’t perform when it mattered most.”

While Ennis could make millions if successful in the Olympic Stadium this summer, another Yorkshire female who could transform not only her image, but also her sport at London 2012, is Nicola Adams.

The 29-year-old from Leeds is one of three Britons who will enter the ring to fight in the first women’s Olympic boxing tournament.

Surprisingly dainty for a medal prospect in a sport that is as brutal as boxing, Adams has already shown the qualities that will have cameras clicking.

The boxer has enjoyed bit parts in soaps such as Emmerdale and Coronation Street, and with her sporting career better suited to the amateur game given the absence of a women’s professional boxing circuit, a gold medal in the ring could pave the way for a lucrative sideline in acting.

“You never know what the future might hold if I get that gold,” says Adams, who is a three times world silver medallist.

“I’m just taking everything as it comes, trying to enjoy every moment because in a few years’ time it will all be gone, so I want to be able to look back at these memories and think I really enjoyed what I was doing at the time and made the most of it.

“Right now in the lead up to the Games it’s a balancing act, it’s a tough job to juggle everything.”

When it comes to fairytale endings, the Brownlee brothers, Alistair and Jonny, could feasibly write the most magical of scripts at this year’s Games.

The two Leeds siblings, 24 and 22 respectively, are the best triathletes in the world and favourites to win gold and silver in the same race.

Their fame is growing. Since Christmas they have been on our screens in a BT infinity advert, and they also benefit from a lucrative partnership with BMW that sees both brothers driving the latest off the production line from the German car maker.

Crossing the line first and second, in front of thousands of fans at Hyde Park and millions more watching on television, would make these young men very rich indeed.

However, for every athlete who will embrace the adulation, there are those who prefer to remain in the shadows.

Rotherham sailor Paul Goodison and Barnsley-born cyclist Ed Clancy are two men who already have the Olympic gold medal, if not the notoriety. Their feats in Beijing, remarkable as they were, did not change their lives to the extent that a successful title defence in London could do.

Both have long-held sponsors that they have stayed loyal to and have stuck by them in lean times, that take priority.

“The more sponsorship and opportunities you get the better programme you can deliver and Volvo have been amazing to me,” says Goodison, who has been a part of the car manufacturer’s Olympic programme since 2003.

“I wondered after my failure in Athens (Goodison came fourth) if they would still be around but they have stuck with me through thick and thin and we’ve had some great experiences together.

“It’s not just the sponsorship they’re good at, they’re very much involved at grass roots.”

Clancy is the life and soul of track cycling’s all-conquering team pursuit squad, but not a man to seek out the camera to promote individual interests. Very much a team player, he is as likely to deflect attention as he is to crave it.

His agent, Andy Digweed of Mission Sports, is, like many in his field, experiencing a boon in the industry because of the interest in the London Olympics.

“When a gold medal is put to your name that changes things and obviously generates interest in the media, from national, regional and even international sources,” says Digweed.

“Ed wouldn’t be one of your high-profile stars who is doing individual adverts because he keeps his mind on the track. If something came along we would suggest it to Ed, but it’s a mutual decision. If he doesn’t want to do it, no matter what the money or the opportunity, we wouldn’t force him.

“We might start to see more of Ed when the action on the track stops. And in general, the industry still has no idea what impact a home Olympics will have on not only Ed, but all the athletes.

“We would hope it will continue beyond London in this fashion.”

Commercial gains for an Olympic champion are nothing new, but London 2012 is set to redraw the boundaries significantly and the figures likely to be bandied about for those who win a place on the podium could be eye-watering for former athletes who competed before the sponsorship gold rush began.

Even as recently as the 2000 Games in Sydney, such fame and attention was a long way from coming to fruition, even for a photogenic and articulate champion like Jonathan Edwards.

“Sport is much, much more professional than it was even 12 years ago,” says the triple jumper who won every honour. “There is much more money in it, without question.

“We’re seeing it now with a home Games that the focus on the athletes and the commercial opportunities are much greater than they would be if the Games had been in Paris, or as they will be in four years’ time, in Brazil.”

For Britain’s Olympians, a gold medal this summer will change their fortunes for ever.

Benefiting by association

As well as the opportunities on offer for athletes, companies also recognise the financial gains that can be made by association with the Olympic brand.

McDonalds, Coca-Cola and Visa have spent billions sponsoring the Games and getting on board with the athletes is just as enticing. Catherine Bayley, London 2012 sponsorship manager for finance firm Deloitte, said: “We are backing the Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme which supports disabled athletes through education.

“We give athletes a financial bursary of around £3,000 a year which they can use for anything they need, be that physiotherapy, accommodation or travel.

“Already a lot of our athletes are focussed on Rio (2016), not just London.”