Posted: August 31, 2004

Athletics: Jeremy Wariner Turns Professional

Athens, Greece: Olympic Track and Field Gold Medalist, Jeremy Wariner, will forego his college eligibility and turn Professional. Wariner. just twenty years old, shocked the world, but not his teammates, with his gold medal winning performance at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. His gold medal performance in the 400 meters was a personal best time of 44.00 seconds and the fastest time run since Michael Johnson's retirement after the 2000 Sydney Games.

Wariner, who is fast becoming one of shining stars of international track and field, will continue to train at Baylor University with his current coach Clyde Hart, the former coach of 200 and 400 meter world record holder Michael Johnson. Wariner has selected Johnson as his agent - someone who is very familiar with the 400 meters as well as the business of athlete representation.

"I am very excited about my future both on and off the track," Wariner said. "I am looking forward to taking my career to the next level and I believe that, with Michael's help, I will be able to achieve my goals on both of these fronts. Michael is not only an Olympic legend, he is also an incredibly smart businessman who understands this sport and the business of sports marketing."

"I am excited to be representing Jeremy," said Johnson. "I have followed his career closely and have been a big fan of his since he began at Baylor University. I am really looking forward to the opportunity to work with Jeremy and, of course, Coach Hart again, and to assist Jeremy in developing his career and building on his tremendous success at these Olympic Games."

In representing Wariner, Johnson's company, Ultimate Performance, will collaborate with the athlete management firm, Janey Miller Management, Inc. Miller has represented a vast number of top Olympic athletes over the years, including Michael Johnson, Dan O'Brien, Dominique Moceanu, Amy Van Dyken, Apolo Anton Ohno, Laura Wilkinson and Natalie Coughlin.

Wariner has returned to Waco to train under Coach Hart and is currently continuing his studies at Baylor University as a professional athlete.

For more on Wariner, visit: USATF.org.