The Nike Discussion!!!!!!!!(Suggest you read)

[Misiti99]

I think it is time for all of you to know the truth about what is happening in Tennis. First some keywords that are all linked together are:
Nike, ATP, USTA, IMG, SPANISH/FRENCH Federation, MONEY, ADIDAS, DOPING, SPONSORING Andre Agassi's Academy

Now if this seems like there are too many words here..which seem complicating, it is quite simple.
Let's Take two competitors:
Nike and Adidas (Nike based in USA and Adidas based in Germany)

Now lets understand that Nike has a mutual business deal (Co-ownership) with IMG (Bolletieri's Academy/aka the Top Tennis Management/Agency)
Nike is also owned with USTA (Which runs the ATP).
Simply this is why you get Blake, Agssi, Sampras, Ginepri, Mardy Fish, Donald Young, Tommy Haas (@ one time) and anyoone else coming up from IMG (Usta or Bolletieri's Academy) wearing Nike. They are almost forced to.

Adidas has recently bought out Reebok, and are now after Puma (its Brother company) Adidas was started by two brothers which when they split, one brother opened up the company known as Puma (which is German, not Italian) Now, With Adidas on a plan of attack for decades to overtake Nike, They will soon be successfull. With the switch of Fish, Agassi they will knock Nike out of the tennis world eventually.

To make a long story short, ATP Protects American players when it comes to the issue of Doping. It is known that AA, (best and most jackked shape of life in his 30s), Robby Ginepri, and James Blake, have been highly accused of doping in the insider tennis world. They will never get caught, for they bring America a lot of money. Let's take Guillermo Canas, who makes the ATP/USTA no money because although 10 in the world @ one point, he is not a marketable player, therefore not needing him in the US OPEn to knock out one of their own players, so therefore he will be caught doping. The Truth is that Guillermo Canas was using DIERETICS, a legal substance to help keep your weight down, due to the fact that he has a tendency to gain obscene amounts of weight when he takes a week or two off. He was not even allowed to enter THE USOPEN Gates to watch his girlfriend play Womens DOubles.

However, Rafael Nadal, who very well may be doping (taking steroids), considering he claims he works out with weights ONCE every THREE weeks and only in his off season or training period. However, his Manager is part of IMG, and he is sponsored by Nike (part of USTA/ATP) and he makes them tons of money based on his Marketabillity.

Now I love spanish Players, I love Argentines, and I love America because I am American. I am not hating on anyone, but instead purely giving everyone the low down on what is going on behind the scenes of the ATP.

There is a War going on between many players and Management of the USTA
(For Instance, Andy Reebok saying F*** you to USTA by splitting from Reebok and going with Lacoste. His Advisors told him to do so to recieve a better Draw @ the French) A better draw meant Jose Acasuso in the 2nd round, very sneaky of the French.

As Payback the USTA gave Roddick Gilles Mueller in the First round of the US Open; A serve and vollyer capable of Beating Andy on a good day (Dont forget he beat AA and Nadal earlier this year)

Nike (And its co ownership companies) are at war with federations of different countries, as well as with Adidas.

Many players cannot be sponsored by Nike now that they have less money to sponsor people (Now that everyone is with Adidas, everyone is wearing Lacoste and Adidas)

Nike is losing money big Time if you look @ their Annual report....
2 years ago on this website it was what is Federer/Agassi wearing.

Now its Let me see the Sergio Tacchinni, the Yonex, and the Lacoste, and Adidas.

Many players (in fact almost half) are with their Racquet companies for clothes, because they recieve a nice added bonus from the Racquet deal to wear the clothes. And Nike is not interested in spsonsoring people outside the Top 20, in which most of those people are all with Lacoste, Adidas, or their own Racquet Companies.

Look For Changes to Come in the near future, possibnly putting Nike out of the Top in Tennis......And Liek I said again, All though I am upset with what I heard About the USTA and the ATP, I am still on ATPTENNIS.com and I am a member of Tennis Channel, and of the USTA. But Perhaps when I train or when I coach or later in life when I have kids, Perhaps I will take them to a different country to train, So I don't have to listen to USTA when they say "Your coach will be this person, you will wear these clothes, and so on. My current Coach works with Shennay Perry, and if She (Shennay) were to get caught working with a Spanish Coach, and not a USTA USPTA PRO given to her by USTA (Because they sponsor her) then she coudl get dropped and NEVER recieve a wild Car in the USA again. It's a sticky situation and look for more things like this to come.

 

[Ash Doyle]

pure crap. All this will do is add some fuel to the conspiracy nuts around here.

 

[Misiti99]

By the Way:
Andy Roddick- Lacoste
Andre Agassi- Adidas
Guillermo Coria- Adidas
Marat Safin - Adidas
David Nalbandian- Yonex
Lleyton Hewitt- Yonex
Gustavo Kuerten- Head
JCF- Head
Mariano Puerta- Babolat
Robby Ginepri - Under Armour
Gaston Gaudio - Diadora
Richard Gasquet- Lacoste
David Ferrer- Diadora
Ivan Ljubicic- Diadora
Dr. Ivo- Diadora
Taylor Dent- Adidad
Pim Pim= Adidas
Fernando Verdasco- Adidas
Bryan Brother- Adidas
Henman- Adidas
THOMAS JOHANNSSON- Dunlop


Which is leaving Federer, Nadal, Moya, and Blake as the Nike guys??????

They cant even afford to Sponsor Nickolay Davydenko who wears Nike Clothes Willingly but does not even get a sponsorship??

 

[Noelle]

:roll: I somehow cannot seem to find any logical coherence in the OP's post. Give me some proof that the players you are accusing of doping are really guilty. Give me one good reason why Guillermo Canas should have been using diuretics, which are a banned substance because they are known masking agents for performance-enhancing drugs.

If you were really going to blow the cover off this massive Nike conspiracy, I suggest you rewrite your original post, find us the facts to back your statements up, and for goodness' sake identify yourself (use your real name). Otherwise, your post is mere rumor-mongering.

 

[Ash Doyle]

Also I'd like to see anything to back up your statements that Nike is losing money (far from what I saw after a 10-second search on Google), the USTA runs the ATP, and Nike has a "mutual business deal (co-ownership)" with the USTA. Then there is your doping and draw rigging accusations that you really can't back up with proof.

 

[BLiND]

really interesting read, and probably correct, as-is the way with corrupt capitalist societies.

 

[TN1]

Topic should be changed to include "I suggest you don't read"

 

[Misiti99]

It's funny when things make sense and ur a supporter of American tennis, you don't want to admit that it is at least a possibility.

It doesnt matter who i am because USTA doesnt even know me...but i trained with Mariano Puerta and i studied with his coach in Argentina for 3 years.,...
this is When Mariano Puerta was taking HORSE Steroids and got caught....

Coria also took it...this is no secret...

Funny how 4 Argentines get caught, and no Americans,,,

Or Let's just say that if u want proof how is it that Blake and Ginepri play a full hardcourt Summer season including the Pilot Pen Trash Tournament in Connecticut..
get to deep in the second week of the US Open...

And are still more jakked then ever. They didnt drop an ounce of weight...Instead Blake Gained weight and had no problems with recovery....A Guy who cramped Everytiome he went more then 3 sets...

But what i say makes no sense.....

 

[Ash Doyle]

It's funny when things make sense and ur a supporter of American tennis, you don't want to admit that it is at least a possibility.

The world will end tomorrow when it is struck by a large asteroid. That's possible. It isn't true. It isn't even likely, and the statement is supported by absolutely no facts. Your statements carry the same weight.

Or Let's just say that if u want proof how is it that Blake and Ginepri play a full hardcourt Summer season including the Pilot Pen Trash Tournament in Connecticut..
get to deep in the second week of the US Open...

Is Keifer doping too. Last summer and this summer he played a very busy hardcourt schedule. Anyway, this isn't proof. It's called speculation, and weak speculation at that. Both of these players have both stated how they have become more serious about physical fitness.

But what i say makes no sense.....

It's not an attack on you; but I'm sorry, it doesn't make sense. I still want to know where you got the idea of this association between the USTA and Nike, and why you think the USTA controls the ATP? When the ATP is overseeing the tournaments in the rest of the world through the majority of the year, is it still under control of the USTA? Where is the proof of draw rigging? Certain people on this board complain about the same thing but can never come close to proof. Don't you think if the draws were rigged, that after this long at least one player hurt by the rigging would complain? Also, Coria was found guilty of using Nandrolone, that's a long way from a "horse" steroid. It's a chemical that closely resembles human male testosterone. Puerta tested positive at one time for clenbuterol, a chemical similar to ephedrine, also a long way from a "horse" steroid.

 

[ART ART]

pure crap. All this will do is add some fuel to the conspiracy nuts around here.

Are you an ATP member???
Are you with the guys that make a lot of money with tennis?
I would say YES!

Everyone knows that tennis at this level, it's not about competition, but it's all about MONEY!

Ash Doyle... good money for you tooooo....

By the way are you forgetting the BETS ??? ....lots of players in the ATPTOUR make BETS to see the one that wins or not...

conspiracy NO. TRUTH !!!!

 

[Fee]

Misti, your post might have had some validity to it if you had your facts straight, but since Gilles Muller DID NOT beat Andre this year (and he beat Nadal on grass, which at this point any decent serve and volleyer will do), and since Robby DID NOT play the Pilot Pen tournament in New Haven before the US, I have no reason to believe any thing you have posted here. The devil is in the details.

Nike has deals with some coaches that are part of the high performance program, but they do not FORCE players to wear their clothes (there are plenty of juniors wearing other gear). Part of the reason so many players wear Nike is because they give them steep discounts. If the USTA is giving certain players large sums of development money, then I don't think its too outrageous that they provide a coach to protect their investment. As for Roddick's decision to sign with LaCoste and what that did to his draws, that's just completely silly and not even worth discussing. Also, you said that 'half' of the ATP players wear clothes from their racquet company, but I would like to see proof of that. I can only think fo about 8 players who do that (and JCF wears Tacchini, not Head clothes, so he's not one of them).

Anyway, you need to do some research to back up this drivel because the holes in your post are big enough to drive airplanes and cruise ships through. But it was a funny read, so thanks for that.

 

[K!ck5w3rvE]

Goose. You goose....(shakes head and laughs).

 

[Misiti99]

JCF wears HEAD...NOT TACCHINI...Check YOUR facts.......

and I did not mean this to change everyones views...theres no way to prove this..these are things I know..from my experience in dealing with media, players, and coaches..things avg Joe does not know...im not special...i wish i didnt know half the stuff that went on...

 

[Noelle]

Aside from checking your facts, Misiti99, get your eyes checked, too. JCF wears Tacchini. Do a search on Getty or Google and you'll see.

Or maybe you don't want to see.

 

[VamosRafa]

Topic should be changed to include "I suggest you don't read"

I agree. I got to the Nadal doping part, and said, wtf? If anything comes out of this, I'm sure I'll read it on a more mainstream publication.

 

[ART ART]

I just don't know if its Misiti99 that doesn't see... poor guys...

Do you believe that in nowdays all is clear in sports??? ...shame...

Very good post Misiti99, very good for the ones that still don't see or don't want to see...

 

[BreakPoint]

The last time I looked, Pim Pim (Joachim Johansson) was still wearing Yonex clothes and NOT Adidas.

Who the heck cares what any pro wears anyway? Does what they wear make them a better tennis player? No! If wearing Nike or Adidas or Diadora or Fila or any brand for that matter guarantees that the player will win the US Open, don't you think they would all be wearing that brand, even if they had to buy the clothes themselves? Federer could be wearing K-Mart specials for all I care. He would still kick everybody's butt!!

 

[Misiti99]

obviously it doesnt matter what the pros wear, how they play is what is beautiful to me.....
but the original post is an answer to a previous threat concerning "what is going on with nike and how they lost so many players"

 

[BLiND]

why oh why is this so hard to believe?... this sort of thing happens all the time... *cough* Bush anyone?

 

[Ash Doyle]

obviously it doesnt matter what the pros wear, how they play is what is beautiful to me.....
but the original post is an answer to a previous threat concerning "what is going on with nike and how they lost so many players"

Your explanation of why Nike lost so many players isn't quite right though. It wasn't so much that they "lost" them as they "dumped" them. Nike has just decided that the money they are putting into tennis isn't worth the return they get, and are majorly cutting back sponsorship in the tennis world. A quick check of their financial info shows that the company is not losing losing money at all, and are in fact growing. Had this choice been made due to their not having the money to do it because they were in such a bad situation as you said then you would see them drop out of other sports too. Because I love tennis, I don't agree with this choice but it's what their board or CEO decided to do.

This isn't an issue of refusing to believe it. It's an issue of not beleiving something that has no proof and is even based off of flawed "facts". People who believe in conspiracy theories attack those that don't believe for following the status quo and not seeing anything else. But another, just as dangerous, flaw in thinking is to believe accusations without proof.

 

[Venetian]

Just another America hater.

 

[The_Dark_Knight]

dribble dribble dribble, blah blah blah

Nike does not "force" players to where their stuff, players choose whoever gives them the most money. Yeah, it's too bad nobody is ever going to listen to you again

 

[ART ART]

schumks...

 

[BigboyDan]

I do not know the veracity of the facts offered by the origional thread poster; though,

Tournament tennis has always been dirty at its core: under-the-table payments were standard before the pro era; appearance fees; Wild Card entries sold, or given to favorites; seeding irregularities; amateur juniors who aren't; players tanking matches; rotten deals with sponsers and tournament directors; racquet paint jobs; Davis Cup player selection problems; drugs out the wazoo (read McEnroe's book for one); fiduciary corruption by the Gran Prix, now ATP (eg. new doubles rules anyone?)

But, tennis is no different than any other major sport...

 

[goober]

Regarding Canas

Diuretics are a banned substances in professional sport because they mask steroids. They are not taken to reduce weight. The main legitimate use of diuretics is to treat hypertension although there are other uses as well but weight loss in not one of them. Although you could lose a little weight theoretically by taking diuretics you are really just losing water. A professional athlete would never take a diuretic to lose weight- neither a normal person either. You obviously have no clue how the drug actually works. Canas never claimed to be taking them to reduce weight he said he was given them to treat a cold by a doctor in Mexico - which is an obvious crock of sh1t but that is another story.

 

[hotdimsim]

this thoery goes right next to the theory Kurt Kobain was murdered, BS.

its purely the fact that Nike is dumping players, and trying to save money.

All the other companies are picking them up because they are on the market. Players dont care what they look like, as long as they win. (wat is Nadal thinking)

Take this for an example. At this years Aussie Open, Hewitt was wearing sleaveless tops. when asked why, his reply was that nike told him to.

They get there managers to find the most lucrative deal for them, and then sign the dotted line.then they do what there sponsors say cause they are getting a six figure sum a year to wear there label.

I agree with the doping thing to an extent. Four Argentinians caught using a banned substance, no coincidence. But the fact that the ITF and ATP AND the WTA would exempt the popular players is ludicrous.

 

[Ash Doyle]

But the fact that the ITF and ATP AND the WTA would exempt the popular players is ludicrous.

This isn't a fact. Roddick and Federer both stated last year that they were tested numerous times throughout the year. You may say that even though they tested positive the results were never allowed out. There are watchdog groups that want to keep steroids out of all sports and keep an eye out for this thing, and you would think that after so long they would finally get wind of it and blow the whistle. I doubt it is happening, but it may be something that some groups need to look into; however, calling it a "fact" is misleading and very inaccurate.

 

[Prostaffer]

one things

ONE THING YOU FAIL TO NOTICE THOUGH....

blake and ginepri are nowhere to be seen during the beginning of the season. hell if i didn't play the aussie, french and wimbledon...i'd be in great shape to play a full hard court season? wouldn't you?

 

[AAAA]

If and only if Nike has a business relationship with the USTA and the USTA holds tournaments for Nike and non-Nike sponsored players then by all accounts the USTA has a conflict of interests.

 

[Fee]

Some of us have been keeping track of James and Robby since day one of this year. What happened at the USO was not out of the blue to us, it was a gradual progression of the work they have both been doing all year to improve their rankings (remember, James won two Challengers on clay, then qualified for Roland Garros in May). Robby needed a wake-up call and he got it when he lost in the first round of Wimbledon, dropped out of the Top 100, and got dumped by Nike all in the span of a few weeks. He was already pretty fit, he just needed motivation, and he found it.

As for doping, take that up with WADA. The ATP is working with WADA to standardize its testing and I believe that WADA is in charge of the process now as an objective 3rd party. If results are being covered up, it seems to me that would be WADA's responsibility, not the ATP.

Oh yeah, I'll give 10 bucks to the first person who walks up to Andy and says 'hey did you know that the USTA made you play Muller at the USO because they are mad about your clothing contract and didn't want you to win?!' Wow, that sounds even more insane when you see it like that.

 

[VictorS.]

Pretty interesting thread. While tennis players rely heavily on endurance and athleticism, let's not lose sight of the fact that tennis is still largely a game of skill and strategy. Steroids wouldn't give James Blake a more consistent backhand for instance. It wouldn't give Ginepri a better mental game. Let's also not forget that Dent did pretty well throughout the summer as well (and I sure as heck hope you're not accusing him of steroid use). It's not for me to say whether or not certain players are using performance enhancing drugs. Maybe they are, maybe they aren't. But let's not lose sight of the game improvements that blake and ginepri have made, which could only have been done thru time on the court practicing.

And as far as Nike being in financial trouble. I'm not so sure about that. They currently have the two hottest players in tennis right now in Federer and Nadal. Let's be honest, having superstars on your roster helps sell merchadise. People don't wear Nike because Justin Gimelstob wears it. Losing Agassi and Hewitt, to me, wasn't a big hit. Agassi's on his last leg and Hewitt has kind of lost his luster over the past few years, despite his solid results. With guys like Blake, F.Lopez, and Moya. These guys are not the highest ranked players in the world. But they are highly visible athletes. They have the charisma and style to sell a product. I think Nike knows how to market and sell shoes and clothing. When you look at their stable of players (Federer, Nadal, Blake, Feliciano Lopez and Moya) and let's not forget the women (maria, serena, etc)....these are stylish athletes whom young kids want to emulate. These are the most marketable players in the game of tennis BY FAR. Roddick's probably the one major exception.

 

[T50]

The original post is interesting. I'm not so familiar with USTA/ATP stuff,
but Misti's post doesn't surprise or upset me as it sounds just like what's
going on in any other business. Actually, it would be harder for me to
believe if someone says Misti's post was all wrong and people in tennis
business all get along and follow rules.

 

[andfor]

This is either a troll or meant to be funny. If the person thinks they are serious all I have to say is this world is full of nut jobs. You just saw one of 'em'.

 

[volleys_tennis_master]

just to mention, that actually not a ton of juniors are sponsored by nike. only the ones we hear about the most are sponsored by nike. for example, alex kuznetsov is sponsored by adidas. so is sam querrey. and quite a few other top us male juniors. the only thing you can accuse nike of is choosing who they sponsor by who gets the most publicity

 

[iwant2win]

Interesting original post. It must be partly true and could not be all right.
anyway, what really interests me that tiny comment of Nadal.
Is it real that Nadal only do weights once 3 weeks AND off the season??

IMHO, tennis really hone you leaner and leaner. I myself is doing 1 -2 weights every week. I just simply feel that the hulk that I puts on are quickly burned and toned on the court. Also, look at Lyeton. What a hulk he was at the Aus. and compare that with his being USOPEN, you'll see.
It just don't physically make sense that Tennis can actually make a guy that huge.

 

[VictorS.]

Tennis obviously doesn't make you bigger. And for certain guys, it obviously can be the cause for losing weight, depending on your metabolism and diet. Nadal isn't the only big guy in the top 20-30. David Nalbandian is a husky guy, though obviously he's not quite the athlete that Nadal is. Taylor Dent is a relatively big guy as well. Not every tennis player is going to be a string bean like Gustavo Kuerten.

 

[joe1987]

Quit thinking politks and just enjoy the damn game. Scr*w nike and whoevers trying to tinker with the game.