This article was published on December 7, 2011

London athlete auctions himself on eBay for Olympic sponsorship


London athlete auctions himself on eBay for Olympic sponsorship

Desperate times, it seems, calls for desperate measures. In the build up to next year’s London Olympic Games, a local athlete has taken to eBay in search for a sponsorship deal, reports the BBC. And we don’t mean that he’s asking the company itself, either.

James Ellington, a 26-year-old sprinter from Lewisham in South-East London, has suffered a number of injuries in the build up to the Games, and thus has lost out on sponsorship opportunities. So he will advertise himself on the auction website with a reserve price of £30,000, and he will wear a sponsor’s branded kit during training sessions in the build up to next year’s Olympic Games in return.

Ellington added that he qualified for the Games despite having no support from National Lottery funding, no kit deal, and no endorsements of any kind. He said:

“I’m peaking when it really matters, finishing my best-ever season and smashing my own personal bests just before the 2012 Games. All I need now is a commercial sponsor to get onboard and I can commit myself full-time to getting into Team GB and hopefully win a medal for Great Britain at London 2012.”

Ellington says he needs half the £30,000 to cover wages, and half will go towards expenses such as travel, accommodation, food and kit. His listing will go live today and last for 10 days.

The London athlete specialises in the 100m, 200m and relay. In fact, Ellington has run the fastest 200m in 2011 by a UK athlete at a ‘non-altitude venue’, clocking a time of 20.52 seconds. Furthermore, he can run 100 metres in 10.23 seconds, and is currently ranked at no.3 in the UK. So this could be a good promotional opportunity for

The London Olympic Games kick-off on July 27, 2012, so there’s still time for Ellington to secure the necessary sponsorship.

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