"Sponsor Revenue To the Meet Organizer" : US legend Settles Debate Over Bib's in Track World

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3 min read

Recently, an interesting debate sparked on Twitter about the relevance of wearing bibs at sporting events. The debate began when a Twitter post by Travis Benjamin asked fans about what could be a good replacement for race bibs. Jumping into the discussion, Olympic gold medalist Michael Johnson disclosed the real reason why bibs are worn by athletes in sports events.

The tracks star was also reacting to the comments made by two other track athletes, Trayvon Bromell and Rai Benjamin, on athletes wearing bibs at sporting events. Bromell and Benjamin's reaction was shared by Travis Miller of NBC on his Twitter handle, which made Johnson comment on the topic. So what were Bromell's and Benjamin's intriguing opinions on bibs that urged Johnson to react?

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Rai Benjamin had tweeted on his Twitter handle, "Like FR….why are we wearing bibs in 2023?" Responding to this, Bromell replied, "Never understood this, even at the college level. After HS I feel it's pointless." Further, he indicated that taking someone's help to put on the back bib made him feel mad. Reacting to these comments Johnson said sarcastically, "You guys do know the real reason for the antiquated bibs right? Sponsor revenue to the meet organiser." However, this is not all.

You guys do know the real reason for the antiquated bibs right? Sponsor revenue to the meet organizer. https://t.co/CJ4khUgMsk

— Michael Johnson (@MJGold) April 12, 2023

Interestingly, earlier, Johnson had criticized the practice of making athletes wear bibs through hard hitting comments in 2022 on Twitter. The comment was: "Still can't believe track still makes athletes attach paper bibs with safety pins onto their uniform", adding that he also pointed this out in 2004.

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via Reuters

World champion sprinter Michael Johnson of the U.S. speaks during the Doha GOALS forum in Doha December 11, 2013. REUTERS/Fadi Al-Assaad/Files

Later, interacting with fans on this Twitter post, he clarified that these bibs helped to generate revenue, at the cost of making athletes look amateur. "It provides a few sponsorship dollars that meets don't want to give up for the greater good of not making the sport look amateur", he said. These statements point out how Johnson strongly dislikes the practice of athletes wearing paper bibs. Surprisingly, bibs once caused a huge controversy and resulted in a massive lawsuit by golf caddies.

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According to sources, 168 golf caddies didn't wish to wear bibs with sponsorship logos if they weren't provided adequate financial compensation. A reason for this was that the logos would keep altering when the tournaments changed which added pressure on caddies. Not only this but they were also threatened to be fired from their jobs if they didn't wear the sponsored bibs. This prompted the caddies to file a lawsuit against the PGA tour in 2015.

via Imago

Syndication: The Record Apr 8, 2023 Augusta, Georgia, USA Tiger Woods walks to the 14th tee with caddie Joe LaCava during the second round of The Masters golf tournament. North Jersey NJ , EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xDaniellexParhizkaranx 0242154666st. Image Courtesy: IMAGO

However, this lawsuit failed to provide the required compensation. The case was closed in 2018 when the PGA Tour approved increasing the caddies’ medical allowance.

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Johnson's views, point out how bibs are important for sponsors though other athletes like Benjamin and Bromell dislike the practice. What are your views on athletes wearing bibs at sports events? Share your views in the comments section.

Priya Hinduja

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Edited By: Anupama Ghosh

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