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Biles (r) gets the solo treatment on the back of the
packaging for the Special K Red Berries cereal box. |
The Gold Medal-winning U.S. women's gymnastics team will appear on boxes of Kellogg's Special K Red Berries cereal. The box was unveiled Friday morning on NBC’s “Today” show during a live interview with all five members of the team. Simone Biles, who on Thursday won the individual all-around Gold Medal, walked to a podium and unveiled the cereal box (
“Today,” NBC, 8/12). While the entire team is pictured on the front of the box, Biles got the solo treatment on the back of the packaging (
THE DAILY). The Special K box is likely the first of several new commercial opportunities for Biles, who could add to her Gold Medal haul in Rio when the individual event competitions begin. In N.Y., Mather, Mills & Lee note Biles' win in the all-around "brings lucrative endorsements and widespread adoration, a popularity bonanza fueled by a prime-time showcase of athletic artistry" (
N.Y. TIMES, 8/12). Some companies are already capitalizing on Biles' achievements -- Core Power aired two commercials during Friday's episode of "Today" starring Biles, while P&G's Tide brand aired one ad (
THE DAILY).
GYMNASTICS' GOAT: USA TODAY's Nancy Armour notes Biles "erased whatever lingering doubts there were about whether she's the greatest gymnast of all time Thursday, winning the Olympic all-around title in a rout" (
USA TODAY, 8/12). In K.C., Vahe Gregorian writes Biles' Gold Medal "was about as inevitable as anything can be in sports." Gregorian: "Even if this went precisely as anticipated, it wasn't anticlimactic" (
K.C. STAR, 8/12). In Miami, Linda Robertson writes under the header, "Simone Soars To Gold, Lands Atop Women's Gymnastics For All Time" (
MIAMI HERALD, 8/12). SI.com's Michael Rosenberg noted Biles was not just the best gymnast in Rio, but she is, "by most reasonable measurements, the best ever." Rosenberg: "She is Michael Jordan or Babe Ruth, so far ahead of her generation's rivals that it will probably take years for anybody to approach her mastery of the sport. ... It is no exaggeration to say that Biles is playing a different sport" (
SI.com, 8/11). BLEACHER REPORT's Greg Couch noted the "next generation will see now from Biles what kinds of things can be done. Couch: "They'll spend years trying to catch her and then imagine something else" (
BLEACHERREPORT.com, 8/11). In DC, Liz Clarke writes, "In Biles' hands, gymnastics is such a celebration, such a party, that no theatrics are needed other than the few fleeks of glitter she lines her eyes with, so they match her sparkly leotard" (
WASHINGTON POST, 8/12).
EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT! Biles landed on many newspaper front pages across the country Friday morning. Her hometown Houston Chronicle goes with the headline, "Golden!" with a shot of an emotional Biles waving to the crowd. USA Today: "Best In The World." The Dallas Morning News: "Superlative Simone." San Diego Union-Tribune: "Soaring To the Top." Washington Post: "All-Around Greatness." N.Y. Times: "As Biles Soars, A Tiny Country Rises With Her." The Miami Herald references Biles and Silver Medalist Aly Raisman with, "U.S. Pair Pinnacle Of Gymnastics World." The Boston Globe: "The Looks Of Olympic Triumph." Meanwhile, some papers combined Biles' feat with Michael Phelps, who added two more Golds to his collection Thursday night. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser: "They're The Best By Far." The Indianapolis Star: "The Greatest."
