Spread love ❤️
Good morning. "Tell someone you love them."
Football is filled with emotion on any game day, but 2023 has especially pulled on our heartstrings.
On January 2nd, Damar Hamlin suffered from cardiac arrest following a tackle in the first quarter of the Bills v. Bengals game. Hamlin's on-field cardiac arrest is a terrifying moment in football history and has shook the nerves of players, coaches, and fans alike.
We all breathed a little easier as Hamlin's condition stabilized and he posted his love, gratitude, and prayers on Twitter. Many of us cried as the Bills' Nyheim Hines honored Hamlin on January 8th by returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown and we celebrated when he was cleared to fly home to Buffalo from Cincinnati to continue his recovery closer to home.
As you go about your week, month, and new year, remember Hamlin's advice: Tell those that you love that you love them and tell them often.
-- Taylor and The CG Sports Co team
OTHER BIG NEWS THIS WEEK:
Visit Sam Fischer's new website!
Vote for your favorite athletes of the year below!
P.S. Nervous about missing upcoming news from CG Sports? Follow us on Instagram (@cgsportsco), Facebook (CG Sports Management), and, of course, our weekly newsletter.
The Tour de Ski concluded this past weekend at the Alpe Cermis resort. Rosie Brennan finished sixth on the 10K course and secured a fourth place finish in the overall Tour standings.
Throughout all seven stages, Brennan never dropped below 15th place and had multiple top-ten finishes.
Read the full report online.
Following her performances in 2022, Haylie McCleney nominated for the World Games Athlete of the Year award. Additionally, Team USA was nominated for the World Games Team of the Year.
Voting is now open and will close on January 22nd at 6 a.m. CST.
Click here to vote for your favorite teams and athletes.
Colleen Young joined the Talks at Google show to discuss her career journey as a World Champion and Paralympian, as well as how she is driving awareness for the visually impaired community.
Listen to the full talk on YouTube.
The World Open Water Swimming Association (WOWSA) have announced their candidates for 2022 awards and Sarah Thomas has been nominated for Open Water Woman of the Year and Performance of the Year.
Voting is currently open to the public and will close on January 31st. Click here to vote for your favorite open water swimmers, performances, and products of 2022.
Uncle Yung Sales Tip: "It's never a 'no,' just a not now."
I had the chance to be a guest speaker to the employees of SponsorUnited, hosted by their CEO Bob Lynch. We had an in-depth discussion on how to develop Olympic talent in the market place and professional talent in the workplace. I share a few good stories on what I learned over the past six years growing the CG Sports business. Finally we talk about the importance of establishing core company values and the similarities between elite athletes and elite sales people (this one was fun).
Bob asked me, “What’s one piece of advice you would give entrepreneurs and sales people who keep getting told ‘NO’?”
My advice here is to remember, “It’s never a NO. Just a not now.”
Trust me on this. As a sports agent focusing on Olympic sports, I know about getting told no.
It takes persistence, creativity and understanding that a “NO” usually means you need to re-approach things from a different angle. Step back. Take time to develop a different approach. Then get back out there and keep trying.
So many of our best partnerships and sponsor relationships at CG Sports started off with a wonderful “NO” to my face :)
A few years ago one of our clients, Kara Lynn Joyce, was a keynote speaker at the Comcast Xfinity Leadership Event. She had a powerful closing quote from her speech that really stuck with the executives at Comcast:
"Trust your hard work is unlocking doors you can't see."
This is so true and very powerful to me because I see it happen every week. As long as you are able to keep moving stuff forward, even just a few inches, this is what seems to separate great teams from the pack.
It's hard to tell how far you've gone when you're in the middle of the grind, but when you look back - it's always amazing to see how far you came.
Here’s to a great start to 2023.
New year, new brand for Sam Fischer! Check it out and stay up to date by visiting her new website!
MAC Sports Travel
Have you ever dreamt of watching tennis from the stands of Wimbledon or the Australian Open? What about supporting your favorite pro golfer at the Ryder Cup or the Masters?
Since 2001, MAC Sports Travel has been helping tennis and golf fans make their dreams come true. Each travel package includes hotel and airfare coordination, tickets to your selected event, event experts, event add-ons, and more.
Visit macsportstravel.com to view all 2023 packages and to begin planning your dream sports vacation!
Catch up with Champion's Mojo
If your New Year's resolutions include listening to more podcasts, let us provide Champions Mojo direct to your inbox each Wednesday.
Co-hosts Kelly Palace and Maria Parker are both world record setting masters athletes, authors, and certified health and life coaches. Their show is to help you to overcome challenges, get better with age and to bring out the champion in you! You'll hear the secrets to success from Olympic Champions, Olympic Coaches, Masters Champions and Champions for a cause. Let them champion you with inspiration, motivation and education! They explore what makes a champion in sports, but most importantly in life, through thought-provoking interview questions, fun quizzes and unique perspectives.
Catch up on EVERY episode at ChampionsMojo.com
Val Ackerman – Commissioner, Big East Conference
Val Ackerman, BIG EAST Conference Commissioner, Founding President of the WNBA, the first woman to serve as the President of USA Basketball and Basketball Hall of Fame joins Sports Business Radio for a wide-ranging conversation. Ackerman discusses her trail blazing career as a woman executive working in sports, the early days of her career working side-by-side with late NBA Commissioner David Stern in the NBA league office and her current role as Commissioner of the BIG EAST Conference. She also tells us what needs to be done to continue to grow women’s sports and how the college sports landscape might continue to evolve with NIL, conference realignment and other changes.
