Diego Hypolito Loses Sponsorship Contracts

Diego Hypolito is not having an easy time of it. A week ago, while on vacation in the United States, the triple World Cup winner on floor was informed that his sponsorship contracts (including a major one with medical aid agency Golden Cross) would not be renewed. Then it was announced that his club, multi-sport program Flamengo of Rio de Janeiro (most famous for its superb soccer team), might have to drop or significantly reduce its elite gymnastics program due to a budget cut by its sponsor, energy company Petrobras. The drop in the Flamengo gymnastics budget would affect not just Diego Hypolito, but his sister Daniele Hypolito and Jade Barbosa, both of whom train at the club.

It now seems that there is some light at the end of the tunnel. According to this Globoesporte article, Petrobras has dropped the exclusivity clause in its contract with Flamengo, meaning the various components of the club are now free to attract sponsors of their own. It is to be hoped that Flamengo's gymnastics program will find such a sponsor.

Meanwhile, Diego Hypolito is still sponsorless, and he is convinced this is because of his failure to medal in Beijing, according to this Globoesporte article, published on January 10.


(photo: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

Diego says he lost his sponsorship deals because he fell in the Olympic final in Beijing

The gymnast is apprehensive after the setback: "Brazil only values champions"

The tumble he took in the Olympic final in Beijing is costing Diego Hypolito dearly. The gymnast himself believes that it was his disappointment in the 2008 Games which caused his three personal sponsors not to renew his contracts for this year.

"Our country only lives on [for?] Olympic champions. I'm certain, and I'll emphasize it here, that I lost my sponsorship deals because I fell at the Olympics. With that fall I lost more than just a medal. It's a pity Brazil only values champions, because athletes don't live on [for?] one competition only," said the athlete, who finished sixth in the Beijing floor final, in an interview with the newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo.

The financial setback came at a very bad time for the athlete. Diego, who trains at Flamengo with his sister Daniele, has not received his stipend for three months now. To make the situation worse, Flamengo is threatening to close down the artistic gymnastics component of its program.

"[I had been told in November that my sponsorship contract with Golden Cross might not be renewed, but] I thought I'd be able to turn things around with my victory in the World Cup Final [in December]. Now I'm going to have to wait, which is rather nerve-racking. We are looking to buy a house, but I'll have to evaluate whether I really want to put myself through those financial straits again," he complained.


(photo: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

Diego, who has lost an income of about 40,000 reais [nearly 18,000 USD] per month, also faces another dilemma. The gymnast is refusing to take part in the [three-day] selection process for the national team, which the Brazilian Gymnastics Federation announced this week [and which is supposed to take place in Curitiba on January 26-28]. And Caixa Econômica Federal [the federal government bank], the Federation's sponsor, will not give him any money until the renewal of the agreement with the athlete has been signed.

"I don't have to prove anything to anyone anymore. I'm a disciplined athlete and I train hard," said the two-time world champion on floor.