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Liu Xiang’s advertising value hits a hurdle

Pedestrians walk past a huge billboard displaying Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang along a street in Shanghai yesterday. China’s leadership and the media rallied around the fallen idol a day after the injured 110m hurdles champion limped out of the Beijing Olympics. Vice President Xi Jinping, in a message published in the official Chinese media, wished him a speedy recovery and told him and his coach, Sun Haiping, not to lose heart. PHOTO: AFP

Hurdler Liu Xiang’s (劉翔) surprise departure from the Olympics was a blow to advertisers including Coca-Cola and Nike that made the 25-year-old hurdler a star of campaigns aimed at Chinese consumers.

“His marketing value has been seriously diminished,” said Chris Renner, president for China of sports marketing agency Helios Partners.

Liu has become one of China’s most familiar faces, appearing in advertisements on TV, billboards and public buses for Coca-Cola Co, Nike Inc, Chinese computer maker Lenovo Group (聯想) and telephone company China Mobile Ltd (中國移動).

Liu’s endorsements have made him one of China’s richest athletes, bringing in 163 million yuan (US$23.8 million) last year, Forbes magazine said. He ranked No. 2 on its list of China’s most powerful celebrities, behind basketball star Yao Ming (姚明).

Nike plans to continue showing television commercials in China featuring Liu, said a company spokesman, Derek Kent.

“If anybody takes a hit from it, it’s certainly Nike, simply because they’re all about performance.”

— Chris Renner, president of Helios Partners (China)

Asked whether Liu’s advertising value had declined, Kent said, “He’s an icon here in China. He has a very bright future.”

On Monday, state TV broadcast a Nike commercial featuring Liu just hours after he pulled out of the first heat of the 110m hurdles because of leg pain. The ad showed Liu getting into starting blocks and the company slogan, “Just Do It.”

With Liu out, Nike’s advertising loses some of its punch, Renner said.

“If anybody takes a hit from it, it’s certainly Nike, simply because they’re all about performance, whereas the others are about brand image,” he said. “Nike’s all about, ‘you don’t win silver, you lose gold.’ With that attitude, it’s much tougher for them, because he was certainly the cornerstone for their program.”

Advertisers that want to expand in China’s fast-growing consumer market have spent heavily to build high-profile campaigns around its Olympians. Others include Yao, who is playing for the Chinese basketball team, and divers Guo Jingjing (郭晶晶) and Wu Minxia (吳敏霞).

But Liu was seen as the most valuable. Softspoken and boyish, the 25-year-old was a national hero after winning the 110m hurdles at Athens in 2004. The Chinese basketball team was thought unlikely to take gold, even with Yao, but Liu had been expected to dominate the Beijing games by repeating his triumph.

Coach Sun Haiping (孫海平), who broke down in tears at a news conference as he discussed Liu’s withdrawal, suggested that the public exposure added to the pressure on him.

“Whenever he goes out, he sees his own picture in the streets,” Sun said.

A Coca-Cola spokeswoman, Christina Lau, said the company would continue to use Liu in marketing. But she declined to give details of advertising plans or say whether Liu’s role would change after his injury.

Liu was one of a “Chinese dream team” of Olympians who appeared on a special edition Coca-Cola can issued in China last year.

“We will continue to count on Liu Xiang as an ambassador for our company and our brand because his achievements both on and off the field will continue to inspire fans and consumers throughout China,” Lau said.

Liu was the only Chinese competitor among 11 athletes sponsored by Lenovo in its “Olympic Champions” program. Lenovo spokesman Bob Page said Liu’s photo would appear on brochures and posters released through the fall but he said he had no information on what would happen after that.

Nike has run full-page newspaper ads in China showing athletes who won gold medals this week, including the diver Wu.

Yesterday, Nike published the same newspaper ad showing Liu — the first non-medalist of the series.

The company said it would appear in at least seven newspapers in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities, as well as on Web sites.

“It’s about picking yourself up when you’re down and coming back stronger,” Kent said.
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