USA-Swimming National Team member Josh Schneider has signed his first major sponsorship deal with swimsuit and equipment manufacturer TYR, according to GoldMedalMel. Schneider, who was the 2010 NCAA Champion in the 50 free, recently broke through internationally by taking a bronze medal in the 50 free at the 2010 World Championships in Dubai.
Schneider earned a spot on the National Team by way of his tie with SwimMAC teammate Cullen Jones at USA Swimming Long Course Nationals in the 50. The two will have a head-to-head swim-off at the UltraSwim Grand Prix in May to determine who gets to swim at the World Championships.
This sponsorship is especially exciting given that Schneider doesn’t qualify for the USA-Swimming stipend, or the newly passed Athlete Partnership Agreement, since his time of 22.21 was ranked t-23rd in the world as of the September 7th date of record, which is outside of the mandatory 16th to earn the stipend. Schneider was the champion at the 2010 Tiburon Sprint Classic, which carried with it a $10,000 prize.
Schneider joins National Team teammates Mary DeScenza-Mohler, Matt Grevers, Nick Thoman, Amanda Weir, and Ariana Kukors in an increasingly impressive stable of talent on the TYR payroll.
No information is available about the value of the agreement.
Congrats Josh!
Josh and I went to the University of Cincinnati together. We both participated in sports, Josh, swimming, myself, track and field. This contract is direct result of his hard work he has put in. He loves the sport and is eager to make it mark on the swimming community in a big way! Keep it brother.
http://www.barefootalex.com
when Mission Viejo switched 5 years ago i knew something was up.
Is TYR a good company to work with? I have noticed a lot of big teams and coaches switching away from the shoe crew and the speedo. Why has have so many changed their loyalties?
More opportunities. I think that when the supersuits came out, other brands started to grab some name-recognition. Competition is always a good thing, and these other companies are finding more money to spread around.
TYR started with a big triathlon push. They’re sort of the “Speedo” of Tri’s at this point, with Chrissie Wellington and Andie Potts on their lineups. It’s a logical move for them to push into the swimming market, and they’ve managed to snap up athletes like Nick Thoman and Ariana Kukors before Speedo gets to them.
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