Allyson Felix was always focused on doing one thing as an athlete and that was winning medals.
By the time she was 32, she was one of the most decorated athletes in history, a 6 time Olympic medal winner and an 11-time world champion.
In 2018 she decided to start a family and that was where she had issues with Nike.
At this point, she was one of Nike’s most widely marketed athletes and was trying to renegotiate a new Nike contract as the last one ended in December 2017.
She gave birth to her daughter in November 2018 via C/S as she had “Severe Pre-Eclampsia” that put the lives of both her and her unborn child in grave danger.
Just before we continue, let’s briefly talk about “Severe Pre-Eclampsia”
– It’s a SERIOUS complication of pregnancy.
– It’s high blood pressure, high levels of protein in urine that shows kidney damage in pregnancy.
– It’s one of the ABSOLUTE INDICATIONS for C/S in pregnancy.
It threatens both the life of the mother and the unborn baby that’s why C/S is recommended.
So you can imagine Allyson going through this and when she came back, Nike told her according to their company policy, they would pay her 70% LESS than before because she gave birth to her child.
She initially agreed and asked Nike to guarantee she won’t be punished if she didn’t perform at her best in the months following her childbirth but Nike refused to guarantee her that and that was when she knew she had to take a stand.
She terminated her contract with Nike, broke her non-disclosure agreement and spoke out and this encouraged other female athletes to speak out against these policies.
She didn’t stop there, she launched her own shoe brand, “Saysh” alongside her brother and two former female Nike designers were she created her own pair of sprinting spikes that she wore in Tokyo 2021.
During the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021 wearing her own shoe brand, Allyson Felix acquired the title of the most decorated track and field athlete in sports history.
Not only was she the oldest woman from the United States to ever win gold on an Olympic track, she did so as a new mother.
Thanks to her, Nike had to change their maternity policy and as of 2019, Nike athletes didn’t get any performance related deductions due to pregnancy.
Today is the “International Day Of The Girl Child” and it’s our responsibility as a society to ensure the girl child is supported, protected and provided for.
Today Allyson Felix is not just one of the greatest athletes ever but a business woman and an activist because she decided to SPEAK UP!!!
There comes a time when as an individual, you leave the fence and SPEAK UP!!!!
Credit: Sports Dokita.
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