HSI PRIMED: In CA, Scott Reid profiled Irvine-based
sports management company HSI, founded by CA attorney
Emanuel Hudson and sprint coach John Smith, which has
emerged into what NBC analyst Dwight Stones calls the "most
powerful and influential club or entity in U.S. track and
field right now." Reid wrote that HSI athletes "are primed
not only to win as many as a dozen" individual and relay
gold medals at the 2000 Olympic Summer Games, "but to clean
up in the post-Olympic endorsement sweepstakes as well."
Sprinter Maurice Greene has signed a deal with Coca-Cola to
go with his "seven-figure" Nike contract, "which is one of
the biggest shoe deals in the sport's history." Hudson is
negotiating deals for Greene and sprinter Inger Miller with
cereal companies (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 3/29).
NOTES: In N.Y., Mike Wise profiles the second-year
struggles of Kings G Jason Williams. Williams, on the media
hype surrounding his first season: "It wasn't tough on me
when NBC started talking about me and Allen [Iverson] and
Kobe [Bryant]. It's part of the job. That's what they're
going to do. But when I look back, you know, maybe they
should be talking about other players, too." Wise:
"Williams' mix of poor play and surly behavior to the news
media and fans has led to a backlash against him, a feeling
that he is not quite ready to deal with all the pressures
involved in leading one of the most exciting young teams in
the N.B.A." (N.Y. TIMES, 3/29)....The LPGA Tour named Cohn &
Wolfe as its PR agency of record. The LPGA Tour previously
handled PR in-house (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 3/27 issue).
