NEW YORK — A gold medal used to be the golden ticket for lucrative endorsements — think Mary Lou Retton on a Wheaties box. But in the age of social media, athletes are making a name for themselves well ahead of time. Before his team won bronze for team ice skating, skater Adam Rippon stayed in the headlines with his social media presence. But as much as athletes can use social media to win people over, there’s a flip side when bad behaviour is uncovered. “Any athlete or celebrity that has an influential social media footprint certainly can commercialize that,” he said.

Source: National Post February 16, 2018 17:34 UTC