A couple of weeks ago I shared some thoughts about the Winter X Games. After a number of visits to that post, and the February 5, 2007 article in the Denver Post on Gretchen Bleiler, I thought I would continue the dialogue and share some further thoughts about female athletes and their brands.
As you might know, Gretchen recently won her third snowboarding superpipe gold medal at the Winter X Games in Aspen. As you might also know, in the past she has been a popular figure in many provocative photo shots. "It's too bad that when you are a woman in sports that those are the (publicity) opportunities you get, to show your skin. But it's a fact of life, and I've learned about it along the way. It won't happen again," says Bleiler in the Denver Post article.
It is unfortunate that women are often expected to adhere to strategies like nude photo shoots to enhance their brands. I have no problem if athletes want to do so, but too often, especially early in their careers, it seems like female athletes are pressured to do things they might not want to in order to advance their careers.
By the way, what did you think of the Super Bowl ad at Go Daddy with Danica Patrick?
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