CELSIUS Prepares for Olympics with Michigan Star Gymnast

Social media sensation Frederick Richard wins all-around at U.S. Trials, NIL earnings to catapult

Jun 27, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Frederick Richard celebrates his floor routine during the men's U.S. Olympic Team Trials at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports / Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports

With the college sports calendar quiet for the Summer and only a few days until the 2024 Paris Games, one brand is forecasting an impactful offseason. CELSIUS dominated the college football and basketball NIL game this past school year - partnering with the likes of big-name stars Michael Penix Jr. of Washington, Blake Corum of Michigan, JuJu Watkins of USC and Jared McCain of Duke, among others - but now the brand has their sights on the global Olympic stage.

Although CELSIUS' NIL athlete partners in the football and basketball arenas won't be competing in Paris, the brand strategically signed non-traditional talent, who have made names for themselves in the lead-up to the Olympics, further cementing how the brand has utilized NIL to flex their sports marketing strength at the world's biggest sports event.

One college athlete in particular on CELSIUS' Olympic roster - Michigan gymnast Frederick Richard, who is already a NIL and social media sensation, going by the nickname “Frederick Flips" - is poised to break out in a big way. The 20-year-old - who has more than a million followers across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube - just finished his sophomore year in Ann Arbor where he earned his eighth All-American honor while winning Big Ten all-around champion and Gymnast of the Year awards.

Now, as the all-around winner at the U.S. Trials, Richard is ready to take Paris by storm and share his unique story - and brand partners like CELSIUS - with the world. The behind-the-scenes content and flip challenges with celebrities and athletes have made Richard a viral star, leading to appearances on "Good Morning America" and "The Kelly Clarkson Show" plus a major TIME Magazine feature.

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A post shared by Frederick“Flips” Richard (@frederickflips)

With a NIL brand portfolio featuring the likes of Peloton, Crocs and his own apparel line - that received great TV exposure during the Trials via his Mom - the business of Richard is booming leading up to Paris.

"It's (NIL) been an amazing experience," Richard shared with Sports Illustrated prior to the U.S, Trials. "I definitely never thought I'd be where I am with the deals that I'm getting and the income that I'm bringing in because I come from men's gymnastics, it's definitely a much smaller sport, not getting mass views and audience and most kids don't see, like you don't see a big successful rich career in gymnastics. You do it for the love of it. But when I entered college and I saw these opportunities, I was like, OK, here's an opportunity right here to, to do something different to open up doors for myself and do what I love while benefiting the same as these other athletes in other sports."

Richard's partnership with CELSIUS is clearly an authentic fit, just based on Richard's energy alone - both on and off the mat. The brand has certainly dominated the college conversation over the past year, but working with an athlete creator like Richard takes them to another level.

"With NIL, we were looking at what we were able to do because we are looking at this new category consumer and our collegiate program and making sure we're positioning our brand as the future of energy," said CELSIUS' Chief Marketing Officer Kyle Watson. "We are really trying to drive health and wellness into the way people think about what they put into their bodies. So for us, NIL was an immediate opportunity that we really wanted to understand how our brand would fit into that space. We kept that same strategy of collaborating with athletes who were authentic partners, coming to us in many cases and saying that they loved our brand and saying that they wanted to work with us. In a lot of cases, they were already posting content with our product and showing how they were using it in their daily lives both as students and athletes."

Although not an official Olympic sponsor, CELSIUS will have a major place in Paris alongside Richard and fellow American Noah Lyles, the 100m and 200m Gold Medal favorite, among other athletes. The brand previously signed snowboarding legend Shaun White ahead of his final Winter Olympics, so they understand how to navigate the global stage, the Olympics' "Rule 40" marketing guidelines, investing in individual athletes versus the massive check as a Games sponsor. An athlete creator like Richard can post as much branded content he'd like ahead of the Olympics but must go quiet from July 18 until to August 13.

"Before I even tried Celsius, I saw them working with a lot of athletes and establishing themselves well in the athlete content space," Richard said. "We're now creating the vibe that I kind of got off from them. I was like, 'well, ok, this brand is kind of cool' and then I had the drink and it tasted amazing. I use Celsius now in this process with the Olympic training with the long days. I mean, there's these days where I'm tired, I'm beat up, I'm sore and I'm like, 'I don't know how I'm getting through this practice.' And then, then that's when I grab a Celsius and it powers me through."

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A post shared by Frederick“Flips” Richard (@frederickflips)

Ahead of the Rule 40 blackout period, Richard posted his final piece of CELSIUS social media content prior to the Olympics kicking off. Regardless of how he fares in Paris as the US' top gymnast, he returns to Michigan in the Fall as the face of CELSIUS' future NIL plans and a top college athlete creator.

"We want athletes to know that we are in NIL for that longer haul and we're not just looking at it based on how relevant they are in the moment," added Watson. "We also look to them to understand what are their goals. What are the things that we feel like we can bring value to them? Do they want to really get their name out there? We have those conversations with them from the beginning. It's not just about what can you do for us, because obviously there's a monetary exchange, but there's so much more that we want to do when we build this relationship with them."

Energized and ready to build off a historic U.S. Trials, Richard and the men's gymnastics team kicks off their gold medal quest on Saturday, July 27 in Paris.