Japanese mattress top maker Airweave quietly pulled out of its USOC sponsorship in April, three years short of the deal’s scheduled expiration. After first signing with Team USA during the '14 Sochi Games as part of a push to establish U.S. brand awareness, Airweave re-upped through the '20 Tokyo Games prior to last year's Olympics in Rio. However, Airweave earlier this year executed a withdrawal option. Terms of the abrupt breakup are not known. Airweave’s deal with the USOC was not believed to be a major revenue source, being reportedly valued in Sochi as a “mid-six figure” deal. Nevertheless, it was an active partner, doing side deals with NGBs such as USA Track & Field, athletes such as Gold Medal-winning figure skaters Charlie White and Meryl Davis and other national Olympic teams as well. It was an associate sponsor to Team USA’s experiential Road to Rio campaign last year. Airweave Managing Dir Rikiya Tomita said the company altered its plans to focus its money and energy on Tokyo in its home country. “We are focusing on Tokyo 2020 rather than PyeongChang,” Tomita said. USOC Senior VP/Marketing Mitch Poll said, “Airweave was very supportive of Team USA athletes during their time as a partner. We thank them and wish them the best moving forward." Airweave is the latest in a spring of USOC sponsors to leave the portfolio in the last year, following Budwesier, Citi, Hilton and others, though those losses have been mitigated by new contracts with the likes of Comcast, Mondelez and MilkPEP. Airweave still has deals with the Australian and British Olympic teams, White, Davis and golfer Bubba Watson.
