Why aren’t top runners sport stars?
An Olympian and a race director pair up to tackle the broken business model of professional running
The business of professional athletics is convoluted, even for those in the sport. Many elite athletes hire an agent to help them navigate the process. But the number of agents in Canada is limited, so most Canadians work with American agents out of necessity.
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Met Stephen about a year ago and it started with a simple question, “How can we help Canadian athletes?”
Stephen and I are hoping to provide and avenue for athletes to achieve their goals
Just trying to leave the sport in a better place than I found it https://t.co/VziggsYsGP
— Matt Hughes (@HughesRuns) January 18, 2023
Enter Matt Hughes and Stephen Andersen, who met a year ago thanks to their shared concern about the dismal state of the Canadian pro running system. Matt is a retired 2-time Olympian, the Canadian steeplechase record-holder, and a member of the World Athletics Athlete Commission. Stephen is a law and MBA student at the University of New Brunswick, a runner and race director, and a World Athletics Certified agent. Matt and Stephen now represent nearly 20 elite Canadian runners, including Shakeout co-host Maddy Kelly.
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In this episode we hear how they’re working to disrupt this system and give Canadian runners more opportunities for excellence and stardom.
You can reach Stephen Andersen at stephen.athleterep@gmail.com and Matt Hughes at hughes.run@gmail.com
The Athletics Canada athlete reps are: Charles Philibert-Thiboutot, Greg Stewart and Christabel Nettey
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