Top athletes split from Under Armour

By Brian Metzler

Under Armour parted ways with two of its top professional distance runners this week, even as each one was on the verge of becoming an Olympic athlete.

It’s an odd situation for Under Armour, which has been trying to get a legitimate stronghold in running for more than a decade. It’s hired (and lost) some of the most talented running shoe people in the industry and over the past five years signed a handful of elite-level distance runners.

But last week, on the eve of the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Rachel Schneider, an Under Armour-sponsored runner for the past six years, was allowed to break her contract with the brand and sign a new multiyear deal with HOKA One One. She will continue to live in Flagstaff, Ariz., and train under the guidance of coach Mike Smith.

Under Armour’s loss quickly became HOKA’s huge gain on June 21 when the 29-year-old Schneider, wearing an orange HOKA racing single, black HOKA shorts and HOKA’s Cielo LD spikes, placed third in the final of the women’s 5,000-meter run in 15:29.56 and earned a place on the U.S. Olympic Team that will be heading to Tokyo next month. The deal got done in the 11th hour, just before Schneider ran in the June 18 opening round heat of the 5,000m. When she ran her career best times in the 5,000m and 10,000m over the previous six months, she had worn an Under Armour racing kit but it is believed she wore spikes from other brands.

The last-minute change in sponsors was peculiar, but Schneider wasn’t the only one who flew the coop. On Tuesday, Australian Morgan McDonald, an Under Armour-sponsored runner since he finished up a stellar college career at Wisconsin in 2019, also announced that he was a free agent. The following day he announced he had been signed by On Running and was joining the year-old On Athletics Club based in Boulder. McDonald, 25, is expected to be named to the Australian Olympic team on July 1 and will also compete in the 5,000 in Tokyo.

In both cases, the situation apparently centered around Under Armour’s inability to develop new racing spikes that would be commensurate with the “super spikes” of Nike, New Balance HOKA and a few others that utilize hyper-responsive midsole foam materials with a firm plate to create much more energy return than traditional spikes.

"I think everyone is aware that there have been a lot of shifts in the footwear technology and a lot of companies rushing to get our prototypes, and not every company is able to get them out quite as fast," Schneider says. "I tried a lot of footwear and feel so honored to join the HOKA family. They've got an incredible team and are developing some great footwear, and I think everyone has been aware of that. It's been an exciting change for the past couple of weeks for me."

Instead of just allowing their athletes to compete in another brand’s spikes like On Running and Brooks have done, Under Armour allowed its athletes to pause or break their sponsorship contracts this spring as Olympic-qualifying meets and the Tokyo Olympics approached. But Under Armour paid Schneider and McDonald for a combined eight years only to have them become Olympians a week after joining another brand.

While McDonald had been training with Team Boss in Boulder, Schneider was part of the Under Armour-backed Dark Sky Distance program that UA had made a big splash about when it was announced last September. That group included eight athletes under the guidance of coaches Shayla Houlihan and Stephen Haas with a goal of pursuing championship aspirations in Tokyo and beyond.

Three Under Armour-sponsored athletes in that group have been competing in the U.S. Olympic Trials this week. Taryn Rawlings ran in the opening round of the 1,500m (4:21.11) and Michelle Howell ran in the opening round of the 800m (2:06.70), but neither advanced to the semifinals. Emily Durgin is slated to race in the 10,000m final, where she is ranked 42nd with a 32:22 seed time. Schneider is among the top contenders in the 10,000m (31:09).

When asked whether Under Armour would be continuing its relationship with the Dark Sky Distance program, a company spokesperson said: “Under Armour does not comment on rumor or speculation – but we are absolutely committed to our athletes, the sport of run, and believe in the power of these groups to help athletes train for high profile competitions.”