The Three Agreements

After Zhang Guan returned to the capital, he immediately received a call from He Yiming. Surprisingly, the people from Fidelity Investments had arrived in the capital a day earlier than he did, bringing all the authorization and legal documents.

Zhang Guan signed the relevant documents at He Yiming's place, and also signed the related authorization documents for the Champions Team. From this moment, Zhang Guan's management team, the Champions Team, was legally recognized.

Then he returned to Tiantan Apartments. Starting tomorrow, the Olympic champion team would officially disband, and the athletes would begin returning home. Zhang Guan also planned to visit his parents.

But to Zhang Guan's surprise, someone from the Athletics Management Center (AMC) came again, and this time it was a familiar face—Director Sun, along with Manager Wang from Nike and Lawyer Zhu.

From the moment he saw Manager Wang, Zhang Guan guessed their intention. If it had been a few days ago, he might have felt passive. But now that the legal documents for the Champions Team were officially in effect, Zhang Guan could face them confidently.

Director Sun's attitude was similar to the last time. He handed over a few pages of A4 paper directly to Zhang Guan without any explanation, expecting him to sign it immediately. The contents were the same as last time—authorization documents.

Zhang Guan put down the A4 paper and said, "I'm afraid I can't sign this."

"Why not? You're already eighteen, you're an adult," Director Sun's face turned as dark as overcast skies turning into smog.

"I have already set up a specialized management team responsible for my commercial development." Zhang Guan paused before continuing, "All the relevant legal documents have been completed."

"What? Why didn't we know?" Director Sun angrily reprimanded.

"We started preparing a few days ago, and just signed all the legal documents a few hours ago," Zhang Guan added after thinking for a moment, "There was a lawyer present. It's legal."

"No, you can't do this!" Director Sun continued to shout, "The leaders of the center have not approved this. You can't do it. This is a violation of discipline!"

Zhang Guan had already prepared his response. He calmly said, "The notice from the General Administration of Sport regarding athletes engaging in advertising and business activities states that active athletes can participate in such activities with organizational approval. My team has prepared the application, and it might have already been delivered to the General Administration. Besides, I haven't engaged in any advertising activities yet; I've merely found a management team, which is not a violation."

"How can you do this! You're acting without organization and discipline. You should report to the center first, not bypass us to go directly to the General Administration," Director Sun appeared somewhat furious and embarrassed.

Zhang Guan shrugged, "I followed the normal procedures. Moreover, the General Administration has regulations that a portion of the athletes' bonuses and advertising revenues should be contributed to the association's reward fund and the national sports fund. I will definitely comply with this regulation. I believe in doing everything according to the rules and laws."

"You... you..." Director Sun stamped his foot in anger, "I'm going back to report to the leaders right now!"

After saying this, Director Sun turned and left. Manager Wang and Lawyer Zhu exchanged glances, looking even more bewildered, but they both knew their visit had been in vain.

Manager Wang was particularly frustrated. If he had known Zhang Guan already had a management team, he wouldn't have bothered building connections at the AMC. Thinking about how he had been running around and humbling himself to secure this endorsement deal, Manager Wang felt more wronged than Dou E!

...

The notice regarding athletes engaging in advertising and business activities was issued by the National Sports Commission back in the day. Now the commission had been renamed the General Administration of Sport. He Yiming anticipated that if they went through the Chinese Athletics Association (CAA), the application would certainly not be approved, so he decided to bypass the CAA and submitted the prepared application directly to the General Administration of Sport.

The General Administration was hesitant about this application. In principle, they didn't want to approve it, but they couldn't find a reason to deny it based on the regulations. Moreover, there was a thick stack of legal documents attached to the application, providing ample legal basis, making it difficult to reject without a sufficient reason.

In the office of Director Hou, he was looking at the application, filled with uncertainty. The commercialization of sports was the future trend. The country needed development and construction, and funds were required everywhere. Relying solely on state subsidies was insufficient for the development of national sports, which was why they had introduced things like sports lotteries and reformed major league sports to incorporate commercialization. These efforts were part of the move towards the commercialization of sports. Since the formation of Yao Ming's team, the establishment of dedicated management teams for athletes in China was not unprecedented. Given there was a precedent, approval for this case could also be justified.

However, given the national circumstances, athletes were considered national assets. Commercial operations could bring about many complications, not to mention potential loss of control over athletes. Even just focusing on the economic aspect, it could lead many athletes to lose direction and self-control.

"What should I do?" Director Hou tapped his pen on the paper, uncertain whether to write "approve" or "disapprove."

Just then, Director Hou's phone rang. As a leader of his level, the usual contact method would be through a secretary. Anyone calling him directly on his phone had to be a close acquaintance.

Director Hou picked up the phone, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then the topic of conversation made his expression turn serious. The call was to advocate for Zhang Guan.

This surprised Director Hou. The person on the other end of the line was also influential but not involved in sports. The fact that he was willing to advocate for Zhang Guan was unexpected for Director Hou. More importantly, the application had just reached his desk, and this call came so timely, indicating the other party had significant influence.

Director Hou was still hesitant, weighing the pros and cons. He was extremely serious and responsible about his work, and with his retirement approaching, he became even more cautious in decision-making. It was a matter of his responsibility and duty.

Just then, the phone rang again. Director Hou picked it up, and it was another person advocating for Zhang Guan.

Having two people intercede for Zhang Guan, Director Hou knew it couldn't be Zhang Guan alone who orchestrated this. Looking at the thick stack of legal documents, Director Hou could guess that Zhang Guan's so-called management team was not simple.

He began to flip through the attached "Champions Team" member list.

"Liu Jing, lawyer; Xu Xiujie, advertising company; Hong Zinan, public relations; Zhou Hanlin, accountant; Zhuge Wenbo, exclusive manager. Quite a comprehensive team!" Director Hou then looked at the last name.

"He Yiming, Yiming Consulting... so it's him! No wonder those two would intercede for Zhang Guan." At that moment, the mystery in Director Hou's heart was almost solved, and he could guess most of the background.

Yiming Consulting was not well-known; the average person might not have heard of it. However, at Director Hou's level, he had heard of He Yiming's name.

Although Director Hou's doubts were cleared, he still didn't pick up his pen immediately. He continued to ponder how to proceed. He was a principled person; even with people interceding for Zhang Guan, he would still consider the matter from a broader perspective and make decisions based on the overall situation.

"Commercialization of sports is a trend, and Zhang Guan's situation is unique. This could be an attempt at a new form of exploration. However, certain things must be controlled to prevent chaos." With that in mind, Director Hou wrote his approval.

...

At the CAA meeting room, a discussion was also underway about Zhang Guan's formation of the Champions Team.

"As long as it does not affect regular training, competition performance, or create negative impacts, we will grant approval in principle." After reading this instruction, the President turned the application around to show it to everyone, and continued, "This is the written directive from the leaders of the General Administration."

"What does this mean? Normally, the General Administration does not intervene in the management of association athletes," a nearby leader commented.

"Perhaps the leadership wants to explore this area of work." The President did not delve into the leaders' intentions, but instead turned to Director Luo and asked, "Director Luo, you are in charge of the specific business at the AMC. The commercial operations for Liu Feiren were well managed by the center, so you have some experience. What are your thoughts?"

Director Luo held the position of Vice President at the CAA and also served as the Director of the AMC. In the domestic system, each association has a management center responsible for specific business operations, usually led by a vice president of the association.

Director Luo cleared his throat and said, "In recent years, we've tried some commercial operations with Liu Feiren, which was an attempt to manage athletes' commercial value by the center. Although we've had some success, I believe there is still much room for improvement. When it comes to commercial operations, I admit that our center has a gap compared to professional managers. Therefore, I think the leadership's idea is that forming a management team is acceptable, and participating in commercial activities is also acceptable, but it must be done within limits! This limit is what the General Administration leaders emphasized—no impact on regular training, competition performance, or negative impacts. The leadership's view is forward-thinking, so I suggest following their instructions, allowing Zhang Guan to form a management team. However, we should not completely abandon oversight."

The chairman nodded in agreement, "Since there are precedents and Director Luo's insights, I believe we can proceed with this approach. Director Sun, please convey our decision to Zhang Guan accordingly."

Director Sun, who was initially vehemently opposed, reluctantly agreed. He knew that the decision had already been made at the higher level, and further resistance would be futile.

Meanwhile, in another corner of the city, He Yiming received the news of the approval from Director Hou and the Athletic Association. He immediately informed Zhang Guan, who was visiting his parents.

In the end, the problem was solved perfectly. After a few days of back-and-forth, Zhang Guan and the people of the center finally signed the contract, and his agent team was recognized by the center.

However, despite the agreement, it was still very difficult to obtain additional signatures from other companies for the licensing agreement.