Over seven seasons with ASICS, Clayton Young grew from a promising post-collegiate runner into one of America’s top marathoners. The partnership backed his breakout 2023 Chicago Marathon, where a 2:08:00 earned his Olympic standard and set up his debut on the U.S. Olympic team. Along the way, ASICS supported his training, travel, and growing profile in the distance scene. And while he’s currently recovering from his injury, Clayton took a major step forward in his career, with a goal of competing at the 2028 Olympics.

On March 18, Young joined the CITIUS MAG Podcast with some major spring‑marathon news: he signed with Brooks Running, an American company that makes high‑performance running shoes, apparel, and accessories with annual revenue of about 1.2-1.4 billion dollars.

“We flew out to Seattle, and the very first meeting of the day was with their executive leadership team,” Clayton Young said. “It’s not every day you get to meet a big company’s executive team and understand why they value you and why you could value them.”

The 32-year-old has been nursing an ankle injury so severe that one doctor told him it could end his career. However, the Olympian underwent a grueling 18-week period during which he rehabbed and met with doctors, specialists, and others. That eventually allowed him to return to training, with his goal now set on the 2026 Boston Marathon.

And that’s what made the R&D team at Brooks that much more impressive for Clayton Young. The shoe they created, the Hyperion Elite 6, was perfect for his ankle, which helped make his decision easier.

As he noted, “They presented the Hyperion Elite 6, what’s in the pipeline, what they’re developing—not just from a footwear standpoint, but how they support athletes on a performance level, how they’re doubling down on R&D budgets, and essentially painting a picture all the way to LA 2028. Right then, I was like, ” Wow, this is a brand that really listens to its athletes.”

He now joins an elite Brooks American marathoner stable that includes 50-km world record holder CJ Albertson, 25km American national record holder Casey Clinger, and more. The 32-year-old decided to leave ASCIS after his contract expired, though it was far from easy.

It came after months of negotiations, conversations, and more, with Clayton Young representing himself throughout the process. He touched on the contract negotiations and expressed appreciation for how he was treated.

“Garrett (Heath) listened to me and understood me not only as an athlete, but as a dad, an engineer, and a creator,” Young added. “I had to be really patient, but then he put a contract in front of me that was very personal and very Clayton-specific. I really appreciated that. “

“As part of the negotiation process, he took me and my wife Ashley out to Seattle. Anyone who knows me knows that Ashley is a big part of who I am and my decision-making process, and Brooks was great to bring us both out.”

However, despite leaving ASCIS, Clayton Young is nothing but happy with his seven-year spell at the brand, especially given the role they played in developing him.

Clayton Young touches upon ending seven years with ASICS

For Clayton, over the past several years, ASICS was more than a shoe sponsor, becoming a steady presence through peaks and setbacks. Young has credited the brand for backing his long-term development and giving him the stability to grow into an Olympian athlete.

“It has been cool to see the journey they’ve been on with me,” Clayton Young explained. “I’ll forever be grateful. Contracts usually scale with performance, and I do think I provided the value I was being paid even when I wasn’t performing well, and I more than provided value in the years I was performing well.”

That includes taking him to Paris to tour the Olympics after he qualified with the second-best time in the 2024 United States Olympic trials (marathon). Young eventually finished 9th in the marathon before achieving the same finish at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo. 

But the main takeaway from his time at ASCIS is that he hopes he can keep the relationships he made. However, for now, Clayton Young’s focus is on the 2026 Boston Marathon, which takes place on April 20. Will the 32-year-old stun the crowd on his big return? We’d love to hear your thoughts below.