24 Hour Fitness, San Ramon, California, has renewed its partnership with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) through 2020, the fitness company announced last week.
Through the partnership, 24 Hour Fitness personal trainers will be eligible to complete the U.S. Olympic Committee Certification Program. Its tailored general and sport courses will provide "an additional layer of fitness expertise for members as well as future Team USA hopefuls," the release said. 24 Hour Fitness trainers will also use knowledge from the certification program in developing the fitness company's youth sports program.
24 Hour Fitness representatives will continue to provide on-site consulting during Olympic games. This includes input about the design of Team USA's High Performance Training Centers (HPTC). Twenty-one 24 Hour Fitness employees served as Team USA Fitness Ambassadors during the Olympic Games Rio 2016.
“The Olympic and Paralympic movements are about inspirational, life-changing moments that rise from years of arduous training,” 24 Hour Fitness CEO Mark Smith said in a public statement. “It’s a powerful message about goal setting, overcoming challenges and the mindset to achieve the impossible. We look forward to contributing our deep talent and resources to help the USOC and our country’s greatest athletes to achieve their Olympic and Paralympic dreams.”
USOC vice president Peter Zeytoonjian said the USOC and 24 Hour Fitness share the same mission of supporting competitive athletes.
“We look forward to combining the expansive fitness knowledge and nationwide network of 24 Hour Fitness clubs with the sports performance expertise of the USOC in effort to provide more programs and training resources for future Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls,” Zeytoonjian said.
24 Hour Fitness has partnered with U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams since 2004. Representatives from the fitness company helped design HPTCs in Rio in 2016, London in 2012 and Beijing in 2008.
24 Hour Fitness ranked No. 2 on Club Industry's Top 100 Health Clubs of 2016, only behind LA Fitness. Club Industry estimated the company's 2015 revenue at $1.4 billion. The company operates more than 440 clubs and serves nearly 4 million members.