On Friday, the indoor World Championship in athletics begins in Nanjing. A championship that was supposed to be held in 2020 but was postponed several times due to the pandemic and previous coronavirus restrictions in China.
Armand Duplantis, who has won all major championships several times and set a world record eleven times, still has no Chinese sponsors despite several offers.
"Worth it or not?"
There are many Chinese people who have wanted to do something with him. But it has to be something that is right and proper and that you can stand behind. So far, we have not associated ourselves with any Chinese company. His sponsors are still European, says agent Daniel Wessfeldt and continues:
We weigh the pros and cons carefully. You have to do a consequence analysis. Is it worth it or not worth it?
Wessfeldt's agency JRS Sports Management, which has Duplantis in its stable, has learned from when swim star Sarah Sjöström entered into a collaboration with Huawei in 2020. The telecom company, which has been accused of having ties to the Chinese Communist Party and being a security risk. He admits that there may be problems with entering into collaborations with Chinese companies.
Yes. I have some experience. We also handle Sarah Sjöström. We had a collaboration for a while with Huawei, but it became almost unbearable in the end. Then it was at its most intense. We never extended that agreement. It can become that, says Wessfeldt.
At the same time, there are a lot of deals going on between China and Europe and China and Sweden in other contexts. So, where is the limit? It's hard to say. There are Chinese shoe companies that have also been prominent. But nothing that we have dealt with yet.
Several social media platforms are banned in China, such as Facebook and Instagram. This can affect how Armand Duplantis communicates with his followers during the indoor World Championship.
May become a "burner phone"
I know it's different rules and so on. If you want, you need a "burner phone" or something to do it. We'll see how I do it. If it's just two days, I don't need it. It might just be nice with a little break from social media, says the 25-year-old.
Last April, the Swedish-American set a world record in the Diamond League premiere in Xiamen with a jump of 6.24 meters. Saturday's competition, the final directly at lunchtime, will be his first major championship since the Olympic Games in Paris last summer.
It's exciting. Long journey. I had a blast the last time I was in China. It's such a different place. I'm psyched, says "Mondo" who has jumped 6.27 this year.
Women: Julia Henriksson, 60 meters, Wilma Nielsen, 800 m, Vera Sjöberg, 1,500 m, Maja Åskag, triple jump, Emilia Sjöstrand, do, Fanny Roos, shot put, Sara Lennmann, do, Bianca Salming, pentathlon.
Men: Samuel Pihlström, 1,500 m, Armand Duplantis, pole vault, Wictor Pettersson, shot put.
The championship takes place from Friday to Sunday and is broadcast on TV4 and TV4 Play.
