M&C Saatchi Merlin, the talent arm of communications company M&C Saatchi, is planning to launch new offices in South Africa and Australia after launching an athletics unit in the U.K. this week. Great Britain's long-jump Olympic champion Greg Rutherford is a client of the new division, along with a clutch of other GB athletes. These include Commonwealth medalist sprinter Jodie Williams, former European 400m indoor champion Perri Shakes-Drayton and Katarina Johnson-Thompson, who won gold for the pentathlon at the European Indoor Championships earlier this year. M&C Saatchi Merlin will manage the commercial activities of the athletes, who are likely to be pushed further into the media spotlight in the run-up to the Olympics in Rio next year. "They have so much promise and potential to go on and be world beaters," said M&C Saatchi Merlin Chairman & Founder Richard Thompson of the athletes, adding that he had no concern that the commercial appeal of athletes could be tainted by a number of drugs scandals which have beset the sport. He said, "Nothing can be worse than cycling. I think with regard to athletics, my genuine feeling is that brands do not see a danger to attaching themselves with athletes." He added that brands were more fearful about attaching their names to Premiership footballers.
ALL THAT GLITTERS: However, insiders pointed out that for M&C Saatchi Merlin to be successful with its new unit, it would need to produce medal winners at the Olympics and World Championships, otherwise brands would look elsewhere for tie-ups with sporting stars. One insider said, "Ultimately, for this to be a success, then the athletes in it need to be medaling." Greg Kirkpatrick, who is heading up the new unit, said, "We strongly believe in the potential that Katarina, Perri and Jodie have to become Olympic and World champions and, in Greg's case, repeat his success to become a double Olympic champion and concurrently hold the Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth titles."
PLASTIC BRITS: Parachuting in so-called plastic Brits -- athletes who choose to represent Great Britain in int'l sports despite having a personal connection to another country -- to bolster the chances of winning Olympic Medals has been attacked by some in the media. But Thompson said he would have no problem with taking on athletes who were not born in the U.K., pointing to marketing success stories such as Kevin Pietersen in cricket. Mo Farah, who was born in Somalia, is also a client of M&C Saatchi Merlin, which manages his off-track commercial activities. Meanwhile, Thompson said that M&C Saatchi Merlin, whose client roster includes cricketer Freddie Flintoff and Sky pundit Jamie Redknapp, is now looking to open offices in South Africa and Australia to build on its U.K. operation. Thompson, who is also chairman of Surrey cricket club, said that divisions in other sports could open in the next few years, but declined to give details of which sports they would involve.
John Reynolds is a writer in London.
