Note: This article originally appeared in 2013 in the INSIGHT section of Finweek magazine.
Is 13 an unlucky number? The year 2013 has gotten off to a rocky start in world sport. First Lance, now Oscar.
Even if nothing else goes wrong, it’s already an annus horribilis. So what’s happening to our heroes, and why? These are crucial questions for the $750bn sports industry. But perhaps the most important
question is how did it happen to our boy?
The upside
Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius was born in Sandton, in 1986. Pistorius grew up in a
Christian home with an elder brother,Carl, and a younger sister, Aimée. Due to
a congenital absence of fibulae, both legs were amputated halfway between his knees
and ankles at 11 months of age. He attended Pretoria Boys High and played water
polo and tennis at provincial level. He also participated in wrestling. In June 2003 he
suffered a knee injury and began runningto aid rehabilitation in early 2004 at the
University of Pretoria’s High Performance Centre. Ampie Louw was and remains his
coach. That same year Pistorius competed in his first Paralympics (in Athens) where
he won a gold and bronze medal.In August last year Oscar Pistorius
became the first amputee to compete at the Olympic Games, which brought his fame
to its zenith as it reached a worldwide audience.“As I came out of the tunnel, I saw
my friends and family, including my grandmother with the South African flag,”
he said. “On the blocks, I didn’t know whether I should cry or be happy.”
He came second in the first heat of the 400m (in 45.44, a season’s best), but finished
last in the semi-final (46.54 seconds).In the 4 × 400 metres relay race final on
10 August, SA’s relay team finished eighth out of nine in a season’s best time for the
team. Pistorius ran the final leg in 45.9 seconds. He carried the country’s flag during
the closing ceremony.
Following appearances on Letterman and Larry King Live, Tom Hanks began
bidding for the film rights to the “Blade Runner” story. Later in the same year Time
magazine included Pistorius in its list of the World’s 100 Most Influential People.
By the end of 2012 the young South African had set up a compelling tale. He was
enjoying worldwide popularity and sufficient financial security to splurge on a
R3.5m McLaren, which he described as “a Christmas present”.
The UK’s Guardian website called Pistorius “the golden boy with an edge of
steel”. Together with his glamorous girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, some Brits
described the couple as “South Africa’s answer to Posh and Becks”.
The downside
In 2002, Pistorius’s mother Sheila died as a result of adverse medical complications
related to an incorrect diagnosis. Her son credited her as one of the greatest influences
in his life and a major driving force behind his success. “There wasn’t much
scope for me to think about my disability as a disadvantage or to pity myself.” Instead
of introspection, Pistorius seemed to go overboard as an extrovert – fighting for a
place in the sun, dating a string of beautiful women, pushing aside potential rivals and
driving (and crashing) fast boats, cars and motorbikes.
In 2009 he survived a speedboat crash, which required 172 stitches in total. After
that he was in a motorbike crash. In his biography Blade Runner Pistorius is also
revealed to have crashed his car after falling asleep behind the wheel (en route to a
girlfriend after a fight). In 2009 he was arrested and charged with common assault
after an incident at a party (involving Cassidy Taylor-Memmory), and spent the
night in the local jail.
Following his ascendancy at the Olympics proper, Pistorius’s star began to fall as
early as September last year, when a Brazilian rival beat him into second place, leading
to a furious outburst. Realising he’d tarnished his squeaky clean image, Pistorius
quickly backtracked and issued an apology.
Later that month he appeared on thebeaches of the Seychelles in the SABC3
magazine show Top Billing with Samantha Taylor. But a New York paper appeared to
show a dalliance with a Russian model, Anastassia Khozzissova, while Pistorius
was in London.
Three months later, and back in SA, Pistorius threatened to break the legs of
former soccer player and Supersport commentator, Mark Batchelor, a friend of
Clifton Shores producer Quinton van der Burgh, when Pistorius discovered that
Taylor had cheated on him with Van den Burgh while he (Oscar) was at the Olympics.
But Taylor later said: “Oscar is certainlynot what people think he is.” In November he arrived at the SA Sports Awards in Sandton with law graduate and FHM model Reeva Steenkamp. Both were cagey about
whether they were in a relationship or not. “It’s just a coincidence that we’re sitting
at the same table and arrived in the same car,” Steenkamp demurred. At the end of
the evening they left together.
Taylor (who felt she was in a relationship with Oscar during the sports awards - and Taylor and Pistorius had in fact gone together to Sun City the previous week) also revealed that Steenkamp was dating a friend of Pistorius’s (Francois Hougaard).
Pistorius’s circle of friends, based on social media photos etc, seemed to include an
interesting “bad boys’ club”: the ex-con Gayton MacKenzie, rugby player Francois
Hougaard, South African professional boxer Kevin Lerena and Justin Divaris
(CEO of a luxury car retailer). The underlying theme to these friendships: fast cars,
big muscles, creepy tattoos, glamorous parties and beautiful women.
In an interview with Rapport, Taylor was “prepared to reveal what (Pistorius) made me go through”, but subsequently withdrew what she had said. In November 2012 The Star reported a charge of defamation
had been laid against Pistorius, who had in turn laid charges of intimidation against the former soccer player Marc Batchelor.
By the beginning of 2013, when Pistorius purchased a R3.5m sportscar, friends were worried that his insomnia and risky behaviour were getting worse. A visiting writer from The New York Times perhaps
came closest to uncovering the “other” Oscar, when he described Pistorius as “more than a little crazy”, citing a skittish, gun-loving insomniac with a “frenzied need to take on the world at maximum
speed and with minimum caution”. Pistorius alludes to his insomnia in the very same The New York Times magazine article by Michael Sokolove, describing a visit to an all-night tattoo parlour from 02:30 to
about 08:30 and a pattern of sleeping disorders.
The contents of the article itself probably did nothing to soothe Pistorius’s anxieties, especially this paragraph:
“The most provocative aspect of Weyand and Bundle’s argument – and clearly the biggest affront to Pistorius – is their calculation that the Cheetah blades, over the length of 400 meters, or once around
the track, give him an 11.9-second advantage.
That would make him no better than an average high school runner.”
Having to constantly fight for a place to race (and then also defend his achievements), rooming with an MMA fighter, and trying to be one of the boys would have exacted a constant, heavy toll. But
shooting at the local range was a questionable form of stress relief. One of the officers investigating the Silver Lakes crime scene is reported to have said, that in terms of the Domestic Violence Act, Pistorius
should not have been allowed to possess any firearms. He had seven pending
licences, including one for a semi-automatic.
Note: At the time of writing it was speculated, following the discovery of steroids and signs of heavy drinking in Pistorius’s house, that these might have fuelled “roid rage” and could partially explain how Pistorius may have woken up at 03:00 and mistaken Steenkamp for an intruder. These allegations were later dropped.
The result
Pistorius’s arrest is of course rock bottom for the sports marketer. While Pistorius’s agent Peet van Zyl assured the media that his client was still enjoying “overwhelming support” from “a lot of fans”, Van Zyl also
admitted that recent events were “from a management side… a tragic circumstance”.
He added: “We can only give Oscar our support at this point in time.”
But Oscargate is a nightmare of entirely different proportions to Lancegate. In fact while Armstrong’s prospects appear bleak, one can still see Lance maintaining a fanbase and continuing to compete and
enjoy public support. The same is a lot less clear with Pistorius, whose meteoric rise is based far more on public perception than actual performances.
It is perhaps surprising then that up to now some of Pistorius’s sponsors have yet to formally break ties. Ironically, Pistorius’s South African partner, M-Net, appears to be the first to have cut and run. Within
hours of the shooting at the upmarket Silver Lakes estate, M-Net was pulling down its billboards and dismantling its entire “Oscar Night” campaign with immediate effect. But Nike’s sponsorship of Pistorius,
thought to be worth $2m, is already under fire. The online ad for Nike featuring the unfortunately worded tagline “I am the bullet in the chamber” was quickly removed from Pistorius’s website, although it’s not the first time Nike has associated itself with the idea of gear-as-weaponry; in fact it is fairly common in competitive sport.
The US’s aerodynamic cycling rim maker ZIPP uses the tagline “Speed Weaponry”. At the time of writing the logos of Össur, BT, Oakley, Nike and fashion house Thierry Mugler (Pistorius’s five main sponsors) remain visible at www.oscarpistorius.com. Nike and co remain tight lipped and are, for the moment,
standing by their man.
[Note: All sponsors subsequently dumped Pistorius.]
Interestingly, while Nike no longer sponsors or endorses Lance Armstrong, and remains on the fence on the Pistorius case (“pending the police investigation”). Nike continues to endorse Tiger Woods.
Clearly, celebrity brand endorsement is a perilous journey, not only for the brand but for the athlete who stands to lose everything overnight. Can the brands that are associated with Pistorius afford to wait for
the case to be heard? One director of a sports sponsorship company says that “even if … found innocent, he is damaged goods.
Brands need to act quickly to distance themselves from him… It’s the sensible thing to do. The director of sports marketing agency Brand Rapport reinforces this view, saying: “This is very different to the Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong cases… There’s no coming back from this.”
Thus Iceland’s Össur, a global leader in orthopaedics, which is saying a decision is“highly premature”, may find itself singed by the firestorm of negative press that is likely to ensue.
While Nike is a high-powered brand and saw a fit in Pistorius’s tenacity, the brand will also wish to erase the associations in a recent video that features Pistorius (“My body is my weapon. This is how I fight.”)
Pistorius himself may rue theday he tattooed Corinthians 9:26-27 on to his back, which reads: “I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. I execute each strike with intent. I beat my body and make it my slave...”
In future, brands will need to do detailed background checks and re-evaluate
their current celebrity endorsements. ■
Nick van der Leek
nickvanderleek@gmail.com
“Nike routinely works with the best athletes in the world, and Oscar Pistorius
stands out on that list...” – Arturo
Nunez, Nike Emerging Markets Marketing
Director
Nike’s official message: “Nike extends
its deepest sympathy and condolences
to all families concerned following this
tragic incident. As it is a police matter,
Nike will not comment further at this
time.” Nike South Africa spokesperson
Seruscka Naidoo told AFP: “We’re not
commenting on our sponsorship or relationship.”
Naidoo added that the ‘I am
the bullet’ ad was on “Oscar’s website
[but] not a Nike-owned website.”
“BT’s relationship with Oscar has developed
over a number of years and we’re
extremely proud to be supporting such a
phenomenal athlete and human being.”
– Suzi Williams, BT
BT’s high-profile ‘Ambassador’ campaign
(significantly raising Pistorius’s
profile and used in 2012) was short listed
as ‘Best Sponsorship of a Sports Team or
Individual’ on 14 February, the day of the
incident. The following day a BT spokesperson
said: “We are shocked by this terrible,
tragic news. But we have no further
comment at this stage.”
“Oscar is a giant of modern sport. A pioneer.
The master not only of the possible
but the seemingly impossible.” – Jonathon
McEvoy, Olympics Correspondent,
Daily Mail
“As well as owning a pistol and machine
gun, at the time of Miss Steenkamp’s
death he reportedly had seven outstanding
firearm licence applications. One was
for same type of assault rifle used in the
recent Sandy Hook school massacre in
the US.” – Dan Newling, Daily Mail
Blade Runner ‘homicide’:
Breaking news worldwide
■ The Anguish of Oscar – The Times
■ Girls, guns and the dark side of the Blade Runner – Daily Mail
■ 3 shots. Screams. Silence. 3 more shots – The Sun
■ The Dark Side of Oscar Pistorius – The Independent
■ World icon in hell – El Pais (Spanish daily)
■ The bloodied destiny of Oscar Pistorius – Le Soir (Belgian daily)
■ Olympic hero shoots girlfriend dead – Bild (Germany’s biggest selling newspaper)
■ Amputee runner arrested. Gunned-down body found at Mr Pistorius’s home –
Mistook girlfriend as robber? – Asahi (Japan) ■
“What we have to ask ourselves about
big-time sports more broadly is how
we prepare great athletes for the
responsibilities of leadership. And I
don’t think we have good answers for
that.”
Mentoring programmes that enable
athletes to manage themselves, as athletes,
as people and as ‘brands’ to leverage
their exposure to the media – that’s
one option.
Another is from the client side.
Howard Bloom, writing for sportsbusinessnews.
com stresses the need
for ‘morals clauses’ in athlete endorsement
contracts. This is perhaps the
best way of managing the way both
the brand and the ambassador will be
represented; it rewards positive reinforcement
and punishes
misrepresentations and any
negative publicity. While morals
clauses have “become
standard in athlete endorsement
contacts since the late
Eighties”, and are what Bloom
describes as “a significant element
of most, if not all, endorsement
agreements” it’s possible
that the level of moral accountability
ought to be far more rigorous.
The athlete may have to
agree to simply not “get into trouble
on a regular basis” in order to
guarantee a basic level of ‘reputational
management’.
In addition, clauses can allow for
sanctions or fines on the part of ath-
What should
Oscar do?
If one speculates given the evidence
so far, it is highly unlikely that Pistorius
will be acquitted, even if his lawyers
prove he acted under the influence of
steroids or other drugs (this defence
has not worked in the past). If he
pleads guilty and makes a deal with
the State he could serve 15 years on
good behaviour, sell the house the cars
and invest his current fortune while
serving his sentence.
He still has youth on his side, but he
might feel tempted to spend a small
fortune on his legal defence. This
appears to be his current strategy
given the legal team and advisers that
are already on the payroll. The former
option means that at least he will have
money when he re-establishes himself
in society, and tries to make a living
once more in circa 2030. ■
Will brands rethink endorsements or brand ambassadors after this? No – we can’t
imagine Nike not being associated with sports stars. They’ll move on to the next hero
with feet of clay. Most of the brands out there are big enough to survive the fallout.
Nike has loads of other stars to endorse it. It’s small brands that become intimately
associated with a celebrity that are most at risk. – Sarah Britten, communications
strategist.
I think that there is going to be far more attention given to this issue. In light of Tiger
Woods, Lance Armstrong and Oscar Pistorius – companies will have to relook their
stance on sponsorship. Interesting is the response rate of sponsors ie with Tiger Woods
– Nike supported him and continued its sponsorship; regarding Lance Armstrong, the
sponsorship was retained through the allegations and then pulled once he confessed;
to doping; regarding Oscar – there was an immediate ‘pulling’ of [some] advertising
etc.
This is a new challenge for companies to deal with, especially as these really “loved”
brands (the nation and the world has adored Oscar and the devastation of finding out
another ‘dark’ side of a brand has huge implications – companies will definitely be
relooking sponsorship of sporting icons – not in terms of not sponsoring them – the
benefits are too huge), but in the context of how they are managed from a risk perspective
to ensure company
What should Oscar do?
If one speculates given the evidence
so far, it is highly unlikely that Pistorius
will be acquitted, even if his lawyers
prove he acted under the influence of
steroids or other drugs (this defence
has not worked in the past). If he
pleads guilty and makes a deal with
the State he could serve 15 years on
good behaviour, sell the house the cars
and invest his current fortune while
serving his sentence.
He still has youth on his side, but he
might feel tempted to spend a small
fortune on his legal defence. This
appears to be his current strategy
given the legal team and advisers that
are already on the payroll. The former
option means that at least he will have
money when he re-establishes himself
in society, and tries to make a living
once more in circa 2030. ■
Blade Runner ‘homicide’:
Breaking news worldwide
■ The Anguish of Oscar – The Times
■ Girls, guns and the dark side of the Blade Runner – Daily Mail
■ 3 shots. Screams. Silence. 3 more shots – The Sun
■ The Dark Side of Oscar Pistorius – The Independent
■ World icon in hell – El Pais (Spanish daily)
■ The bloodied destiny of Oscar Pistorius – Le Soir (Belgian daily)
■ Olympic hero shoots girlfriend dead – Bild (Germany’s biggest selling newspaper)
■ Amputee runner arrested. Gunned-down body found at Mr Pistorius’s home –
Mistook girlfriend as robber? – Asahi (Japan) ■
No comments:
Post a Comment