Money talks loudest at Sydney sports fest

"Show me the money!" These were the first words Russian-born pole-vaulter Tatiana Grigorieva said to her manager Ric Carter after winning an Olympic silver medal in Sydney on Monday night. The 24-year-old former model used the line from the Tom Cruise film Jerry Maguire to express the hopes of most athletes at the 27th Olympiad. This is that success at the world's greatest sporting event will bring six-figure sponsorship deals. Tatiana, a recently-naturalised Australian who has modelled naked for Ralph magazine, is refreshingly honest about her desire to cash in on her athletic prowess, and promotes herself on her own website, www.tatiana.com.au.

"I probably will be very interested in cosmetics sponsors because I'm trying to bring a message that a woman in sport can still be a woman and be beautiful," she said. The money is already rolling in for other Olympic stars, especially those who are judged to be good-looking and marketable. Tatiana Grigorieva had three things in her favour, said Michael Porra, CEO of sports marketing company, Sporting Frontiers - she competed beyond her best, she showed she was proud to be an Australian, and "she is stunningly beautiful in looks and in nature". Even Nikki Webster, the 13-year-old darling of the opening ceremony, is being wooed with sponsorship deals. Ian Thorpe, Australia's 17-year-old triple gold medal swimmer, has been taken by Armani to show off its latest collection in New York next month. Once-off payments are common.

"It is often the case that special incentives are offered when you break a world record or win a grand final," said Nike spokeswoman Ms Megan Ryan. Cathy Freeman, who sent Australia into raptures when she won the 400 metres gold medal on Monday, is expected to receive more than Au $400,000 (€250,000) in bonus payments from her sponsors, Nike, Qantas and Optus. Her potential earnings are enormous. In the three years before the Sydney Olympics the Olympic sprinter earned $3.41 million; she can expect more than $10 million in the next three years. The sponsors themselves hope to turn gold medals into big corporate profits through their association with success and glamour.

Before midnight on the day their client won the gold, Nike changed 220 of its hoardings around Sydney to feature Cathy Freeman. Westpac Bank of Australia has been changing its billboards in Sydney's commuter railway stations almost every day to feature successful athletes. One typically read: "Ian Thorpe, World 400 metres Freestyle Champion. How does he do it?" with the message that it was partly thanks to Westpac sponsorship of sport.

Australian and international companies have invested $2.6 billion in direct sponsorship of the Sydney Olympics. It was something of a gamble.

Integrating programmes into the Olympic ideal can bring major payback if the emphasis is on sport, youth and fair play, rather than the type of scandal that has dogged the International Olympic Committee in recent years. For other reasons sponsorship does not always bring anticipated results. But the feel-good factor in Sydney has been a big winner for corporate sponsors.

The ANP insurance company, which had a run of bad publicity this year after a messy takeover, has been turned around by its Olympic sponsorship. The troubled mining and steel company BHP is hoping the Olympic venues built from BHP steel will lead to business opportunities at future Olympic Games. But sponsors also have to contend with ambush marketing. This is one of the regular offcourse "events" at Olympic Games, with non-sponsors trying to muscle in on the hype at the expense of sponsors. Nike did not sponsor the 1996 Atlanta Games, but its consumer awareness peaked at 51 per cent at the expense of sponsor, Reebok, through such marketing stunts as Michael Jordan's golden shoes. The Australian airline Ansett sponsored the 2000 Games to increase its air travel business and public awareness, but rival Qantas, not an Olympic sponsor, ran television advertisements at peak Olympic viewing time, creating the impression it was an Olympic partner.

Ansett is taking Qantas to court for offering "Olympic" fare deals. Mr Michael Payne, the IOC's marketing director, promised a high level of protection to commercial partners against ambush marketing, and advertising space was bought up worldwide on behalf of official sponsors. The IOC has petitioned the US federal court to remove 1,800 unauthorised websites using Olympic trademarks. A number of sponsors have successfully excluded competitors from daily commerce, which angers some consumers and is counter-productive. The Sydney Opera House, for example, will take only Visa for credit-card sales during the Games. Sponsors often invest in the Olympics as part of a marketing strategy.

Samsung Electronics of South Korea, despite its concerns about IOC scandals, gambled on an Au$200 million Olympic sponsorship to change its image from a cheap electronics maker to leader of the digital age. It has been showing off its high-tech miniaturised mobile telephones at the Olympic Village, where it is entertaining 500 world distributors.

In Sydney it has purchased billboard space to promote the slogan: "Sport is a religion, pray you have Samsung." McDonald's also for the first time has sponsored the Olympics in company with 10 other global companies. Its outlets around the world have capitalised on the Olympics "magic" through advertising, promotions and Olympics pages on its website, said chairman and CEO Jack Greenberg. The hamburger company has provided two free 24hour restaurants in the athletes' village.

The biggest sponsor of the Olympics is Australia Inc. The Games are expected to inject more than Au$6.5 billion into the Australian economy , said Australian Trade Commission chief economist, Tim Harcourt. "It is a form of engagement with the rest of the world and one way of assessing our progress as a nation," he said. Meanwhile Tatiana Grigorieva's website has seen a 700 per cent increase in its daily hits since her silver medal win. That's a sure sign she is can turn her silver into gold.