Mental health has become a huge part of concern in recent sporting dynamics. With more and more competition coming in, the need for athletes to have sound mental health is of utmost importance. Likewise, a 26-year-old Polish track and field star too, has been an active advocate of the same. Going all out for her country, this athlete has racked up 3 Olympic medals, participating in 2 different games. While she won bronze in Paris, the Tokyo games went particularly well for the Polish star. After capturing a silver medal in the 4x400m relay, the Polish athlete also clinched the coveted gold medal in the 4x400m mixed. We’re talking about Natalia Kaczmarek here.

Well, the 2024 European champion, Natalia Kaczmarek, is on a roll currently. Having created ripples within the track community, Kaczmarek is looking to further up her ante in the upcoming season. And in order to achieve her goal, the Polish star has recently landed a lucrative deal with one of the sporting footwear giants. At present, the 26-year-old was under a contract with New Balance. This is the same brand that is also the official sponsor for the women’s hurdles queen, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. Unfortunately, the 2x Olympian’s visions seem to have aligned better with her latest signing, Adidas. 

In a recent Instagram update, the Polish athlete uploaded an interesting video. Featured in the clip, Natalia Kaczmarek could be spotted getting decked up. Dazzling in a stylish black dress, the athlete seemed to have her hair and makeup sorted. However, there was one thing missing: a proper shoe to round off the look. After searching for a while, her stylist found her an Adidas shoe, which the track star liked significantly. With the video coming to an end, the logo of Adidas flashed, revealing the latest collaboration. 

Now, while this is surely a big step ahead for Kaczmarek, there is also a very deep reason for the Polish star to leave New Balance and join Adidas. As per her statement, Kaczmarek was intrigued with how Adidas always laid stress on mental health. Speaking on the topic, the Olympic gold medalist stated, “My years in sports have taught me how important the mental sphere is, and I’m glad that adidas recognizes that.”

Elaborating on the topic, Natalia Kaczmarek recalled one of Adidas’ famous ad campaigns based on mental health. “The brand’s campaign last year, which addressed the subject of pressure in sports and carried the message ‘You got this,’ is a great example of how to support athletes not only in achieving the best results, but also in staying motivated and controlling stress in key moments,” said the 2x Olympian. Meanwhile, the collaboration would mean Kaczmarek will now be on the same team as Noah Lyles. And while the Polish athlete is vocal about her mental health, Lyles’ mental wellness, interestingly, took a bit of a dip post-Paris. And the reason? Well, Adidas themselves!

Noah Lyles lashes out at Anthony Edwards and Adidas 

Noah Lyles emerged as the ‘Fastest Man On The World’ at the Paris Olympics. Beating the likes of Jamaican Kishane Thompson by a whisker, Lyles won the gold in men’s 100m category. Unfortunately, right after the Olympics, Adidas decided to invite Lyles to a shoe launch event for the Minnesota Timberwolves’ star, Anthony Edwards. While Lyles did not attend the ceremony, he vented out his frustration as was reported initially by TIMES. 

According to the report, the US sprinting sensation lashed out at Adidas for not giving him a shoe. He also criticized Edwards saying that he does not deserve such an honor as the Timberwolves star hasn’t played a single NBA finals. Unwilling to hide his anger, Lyles stated, “I love that they saw the insight to give him a shoe, because they saw that he was going to be big. All I’m asking is, ‘How could you not see that for me’?”

Soon, the news spread like wildfire. Everyone on the internet was talking about the incident. Thus, in order to stem the controversy, Lyles later came out and clarified the reason for not attending the event. According to Lyles, “This is a rumor going around that I did not go to [Anthony Edwards]’s shoe release because he didn’t deserve it.” Lyles further added, “That is not the case. He definitely deserves his shoes. He is an amazing player. The problem was finding time based on my prior engagement. Congrats on becoming an Olympic champion!”

Surely, the clarification did not convince the majority. With a sour taste still remaining, it remains to be seen how well Adidas manages to keep things at bay with their athletes in the near future.