Olympics on the brain
Good morning. Mark your calendars for LA 2028.
You might be asking, but what about Paris 2024? Worry not! We are eagerly anticipating Paris 2024 and are channeling some serious energy into the second half of this Olympic cycle.
However, this week the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the official calendar dates for LA 2028 and we can't help but be excited about that confirmation!
The 2028 Olympic Games is slated to take place July 14 - July 30, while the 2028 Paralympic Games will run from August 15 - August 27.
Thinking ahead to LA 2028 may seem a little early, but not if you think in terms of goal which should involve a balance between the short and the long term. Regardless of where you are in your life and career, it is never too late to sit down and goal set. It is good practice to reflect on where you want to be in 1, 3, and 5 years, because knowing the answers to the long term can help you refine and hone short term goals.
New to goal setting? Check out this resource on goal setting techniques from The National Society of Leadership and Success.
Enjoy your Wednesday, folks.
-- Taylor
OTHER BIG NEWS THIS WEEK:
Kieran Smith posted the fastest time in the men's 800 free (8:02.99) at the 2022 Connecticut Long Course Senior Championships.
Elizabeth Beisel is one of 12 slated to be inducted to the Rhode Island Interscholastic League High School Athletic Hall of Fame in October.
Listen to James Green, USA Wrestling Development Coach, break down U17 men's freestyle World team.
Team USA has announced their roster for next month’s Duel in the Pool in Sydney, Australia. Beata Nelson is among those competing for Team USA, as is McKenzie Coan - one of four Paralympians representing Team USA in the pool!
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 2022 World Games concluded recently with a gold medal victory for Team USA softball over Team Japan softball with a 3-2 score. Haylie McCleney, Team USA center fielder, was named the MVP of the tournament.
Additionally, McCleney is one of three Americans named to the All-World softball team.
Chicago Fire FC's Soldier Field had some special guests over the weekend: the Special Olympics Illinois Unified soccer team! The team spent time on the field and, alongside their counterparts from Toronto, were honored during halftime. Jonny Bornstein, defender for the Chicago Fire FC, was among those who spent time with the athletes at Soldier Field.
Mandy Marquardt has raced in the UCI T-Town Summer Games, a series of six events that take place over the course of the last month in Trexlertown, PA. Marquardt finished in the top four for each event that she entered, claiming three silver medals and one bronze medal overall.
Additionally, she lowered her personal best time in the 200m qualification heats from 11.159 in the first weekend to 11.043 in the final weekend of racing.
Sigma Gamma Rho is celebrating 100 years of service in the community this year! As part of the celebration, 6,000+ members recently gathered in Indianapolis for a variety of events. Natalie Hinds was among those in attendance, representing both Sigma Gamma Rho and USA Swimming with Swim 1922.
According to Hinds, her favorite part of the week was "starting the rebuild of a community pool that will help to provide access to thousands of kids in the Indianapolis area."
Learn more about Sigma Gamma Rho including membership, foundations, partners, and more online.
In honor of #WaybackWednesday, this week we bring you one of the OG Cejih Explains articles: "Why Branding Matters!"
We talk a lot about branding and how important it is for athletes to invest in their brand development early in their careers. The brand becomes the foundation for an athlete to build a successful business upon. Below are three methods I want to highlight and explain why these are opportunities every athlete should be considering.
1) Mission driven, athlete-founded companies: This type of business is for athletes who recognize a problem in the market and are on a mission to solve it. They have the entrepreneurial spirit to build a business around their passion and the resourcefulness to jump right in. Great examples include: The LEAD Sports Co. (founded by Kara Lynn Joyce in 2016); Back2Back Swim Camp (co-founded by Jacob Pebley in 2018) and Swimmers For Change (a non-profit co-founded by Lia Neal in 2020).
2) Direct fan engagement: Athletes are very powerful influencers and this makes them very attractive to sponsors and advertisers who want to connect their products with an athlete's audience.
3) Athlete merchandise - because who doesn't love a t-shirt of their favorite athlete! In today's media heavy market - athletes are in front of fans and audiences constantly. Moreover, they have the opportunity to show off their authenticity and create a stronger direct relationship with fans. This leads to opportunities for the purchase of customized athlete merchandise (t-shirts, hats, hoodies, stickers, water bottles, notebooks, etc.) by more consumers.
Catch up on all Cejih Explains articles online and watch the Cejih Explains reels on Instagram.
If you have any topic ideas or questions about sports marketing and branding, feel free to contact us directly!
Congratulations to Mick Dierdorff and his fiancé, Katie, on their recent engagement!
EyeBuyDirect
Picking out a new pair of glasses can be a daunting task with lots of decisions to make (frame style, thin vs. thick lenses, designer brands, tinted lens, and more). But it doesn't have to be. Enter: EyeBuyDirect
EyeBuyDirect is reframing the eyewear game, one pair of glasses at a time. With a mission to make quality eyewear affordable accessible to everyone, EyeBuyDirect cuts out the middleman by allowing you to shop for your favorite frames online and then have them shipped directly to you. The company has everything from premium brands like RayBan and Oakley to climate-conscious brands like 5 TO SEE and Nature Harmony, so there is no shortage of options to choose from.
Like to match your glasses with your outfit? For a limited time, EyeBuyDirect is running a Buy One Get One 50% off sale. Simply use the code "save2" to grab some new specs!
A collection of the CG Sports Teams’ favorite random news of the week:
PGA: Australian Cameron Smith delivered a come-from-behind victory to win the British Open in St. Andrews.
NFL: Here are all the new uniforms and helmets for the 2022 season.
NCAA: After several conversations, the Big 12 and Pac 12 have decided not to officially partner together.
Olympics: Jim Thorpe has been reinstated as the sole winner of the pentathlon and decathlon from the 1912 Olympic Games.
Champion's Mojo, Episode #165: "Mojo from Down Under: Aussie Champion & Host of Torpedo Swimtalk Podcast Danielle Spurling"
Want the scoop on all things Australian Swimming? Aussie Danielle Spurling is a FINA World Masters Top 10 Ranked pool swimmer, has had a life-long involvement in swimming, first as an Australian Age swimmer and then Open National medalist in her youth. She is also an open-water enthusiast. She's had a long career teaching swimming and physical education teacher. Danielle is the Founder and host of Torpedo Swimtalk, a popular Masters swimming podcast that she started during COVID lockdown in 2020 and has published over 80 episodes and chatted with some of the top masters swimmers around the globe.
You’ll hear some of the pitfalls of returning to swimming after not being involved in the sport for 25 years. We also talk about Masters swimming Australia. In our conversation, we learn about the swimming culture in Australia, what the competitive swimming scene is like in Australia, what she finds champions share in common, details about her training routine, what she enjoys the most about swimming, and much more!
Catch up on EVERY episode at ChampionsMojo.com.
