Phelps Scandal

Phelps wearing his Olympic medals

We all remember the, well most of us remember, 2008 Olympics in Beijing.  The U.S kicked royal booty in aquatics.  Super stud Michael Phelps won 8 gold medals and now currently holds the record for most Olympic medals in history with 16.  This one of a kind all star athlete can do no wrong, or can he? Phelps was caught smoking  marijuana at a college party.  After his poor actions not even months after the hype of the Olympics, his endorser Kellogg dropped him from their contract, however Speedo decided to keep them as their representative. 


According to Kellogg Phelps had broken the morals clause they had held him to.  A morals clause is a provision in a contract or official document that prohibits certain behavior in a person's private life. They deal with behavior such as sexual acts and drug use. They were commonly used in the contract between actors/actresses and film studios to uphold the public image sought to be portrayed by the studio. Morals clauses are included today in certain contracts of public figures, such as athletes, actors/actresses, and others.  In other words Kellogg saw pot smoking as bad publicity for their comany and did't want to be affiliated with Phelps.  Why is it however Speedo remained faithful to their beloved star?    

Phelps Speedo advertisement

My assumption is Speedo is a premier swimming brand.  Phelps is an outstanding swimmer.  Kelloggs target market is usually associate with kids.  They make childrens cereals and other snack like products and having a pot smoker as a representative would reflect badly on their company, not to mention the message it would send to kids.  Speedo doesn't just cater to youth, they make products for adults as well.  I believe this is why they held onto Phelps.  They wanted to still be perceived as the best in the swimsuit market and at the time Phelps was the best swimmer.  There was no one else people would recognize other than his face so Speedo took the risk.  I am sure Speedo didnt just brush off the incident, they had probably fined Phelps heavily for breaching contract or didn't pay him in the full he was originally awarded.