Wake Forest Athletics
Bingham Signs With Ultimate Performance Sport Management
7/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track and Field
July 2, 2009
DALLAS, Texas - Ultimate Performance Sport Management, founded by World Record Holder and Five-Time Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Johnson, today announced the signing of Michael Bingham, Galen Rupp, and Javier Culson Perez to its client roster. These three 2008 Olympians will join an elite group of track and field luminaries, including Jeremy Wariner, who have chosen Johnson and Ultimate Performance to help guide their professional careers.
Bingham is a 23-year old sprinter who just finished his running and academic career at Wake Forest this past spring. He competed for Great Britain in the 4 x 400-meter relay in Beijing last summer and helped lead the team to a fourth-place finish. Bingham is the reigning NCAA Indoor Champion in the 400-meter after turning in the fastest indoor 400-meter time in the world this year.
The Burlington, N.C., native also finished second and earned All-American honors in the 400-meter dash at the NCAA Outdoor Championships last month. He advanced to the outdoor championships by winning the NCAA East Regional Title with personal-best time of 45.02 seconds. Bingham also was named to eight All-ACC teams and a holds a total of eight school records.
In addition to Bingham, Ultimate Performance will represent six-time NCAA Champ Galen Rupp. The Portland native and U.S. 10,000-meter Champion placed 13th in the Beijing Olympics last summer and made his third U.S. National Team last week.
Rounding out the celebrated group is 400-meter hurdler Javier Culson Perez. The six-foot, six-inch 24-year-old competed for his native Puerto Rico at last year's summer Olympic Games and has an outdoor personal best time of 48.43 seconds.
Johnson - who was just named to the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame and will be inducted on August 12 - brings a very unique perspective to his role as a sports agent by combining his own personal experience as a professional athlete along with his expertise in sports management, and the business relationships he has developed. Johnson and his team will function not only as a contract negotiator but also as a manager for travel and logistics, marketing opportunities and promotional obligations.
"When I retired in 2001, I felt that I was uniquely qualified to offer other athletes the same quality and personal attention that helped me to achieve success as a professional athlete, so I created Ultimate Performance," Johnson said. "We're incredibly selective about whom we represent, and I couldn't be more excited to work with and for these three amazing young men."
Visit www.upsortmanagement.com for more information.
Players Mentioned
