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Sanya Richards-Ross, one of America's top track stars, said in a recent Twitter posting, "This is my 3rd Olympics! Haven't been pd yet! Def not my motivation!!!" "Also wanted to be clear that one of the major issues isn't just funding athletes through revenue earned at events like the Olympics," she said. "But also changing regulations to allow athletes to receive private sponsors and display logos on our jerseys." The issue came up in a more high-profile context earlier this year when NBA stars Dwyane Wade and Ray Allen suggested Olympic athletes should be paid and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban agreed. "If you look up stupid in the dictionary you see a picture of the USA Dream Team playing for free for corporate America so the U.S. Olympic Committee can make billions of dollars," Cuban said. "So, if you come up with something that you own that you can give to me for free so I can make billions of dollars, I want it." While NBA stars have lengthy and often lucrative sponsorship opportunities, the average American Olympian has a much narrower window for cashing in. In April, 18 Olympians, including Eric Shanteau and Jessica Hardy, sued an Olympic sponsor, Samsung, that used their names and images in a promotion before getting permission. The USOC, which originally told athletes they had to opt out of the program, changed its policy and said they had to opt in. The USOC viewed the project as a chance to increase athlete exposure, while the athletes looked at it as another way the USOC was infringing upon their marketing rights. "Their holier-than-thou attitude that the Olympics is their creation doesn't give them carte blanche to violate those who enjoy the opportunity to go," said Evan Morgenstein, an agent for some of those who filed the lawsuit and a consistent thorn in the side of the USOC and IOC. "They've created this opportunity for so many people. OK, so now you're going to take advantage of that? What kind of rationale is that?" Of the 530 athletes who made the U.S. team, Morgenstein estimates only about 5 to 10 percent get direct contributions from Olympic sponsors. Some, then, go outside the Olympic family of sponsors, where athletes can market themselves, but with no references to the Olympics or its markings. Of course, when a viewer sees Phelps or gymnast Nastia Liukin on a Subway commercial, the connection is obvious, even without the Olympic rings. The USOC calls this "Ambush Marketing," and says anything that devalues the Olympic brand hurts all athletes. "I understand their frustration," Blackmun said. "But the answer is not to remove restrictions, because if we do, we can't support athletes collectively at the level we do today." Morgenstein's response: "Of course it's ambush, because it's the only logical way for these athletes to get paid." The athletes -- at least the few who are successful enough to make some money on the side
-- understand what the Olympics has done for their careers. Still, they defend their right to make a living. "It's my job at the end of the day, but at the same time, you have to remember that's not necessarily why you're doing it," said Liukin, the 2008 all-around gold medalist. "I'm doing it because I have a love for the sport. I think a lot of people can cross those two paths and get caught up in making as much money as they can. But for me, it's about having a well-rounded group of sponsors who support me and give me what I need to be at my best."
[Associated
Press;
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