Diadora, Marathon Sports announce pair of $40,000 NIL contracts

Diadora and Marathon Sports announced a pair of $40,000 name, image and likeness contracts that will be awarded to two current U.S. high school athletes.

The first male and female athletes to run a mile faster than 4:00 and 4:35, respectively, while wearing Diadora’s Mezzofondo distance spike will receive the NIL contracts.

Last season, three boys—Owen Powell, Josiah Tostenson and Tayvon Kitchen—and one girl—Sadie Engelhardt—beat the respective marks prior to the March 15 deadline imposed by the two companies.

Engelhardt was the first female to run faster than the 4:35 mark set by Diadora and Marathon Sports with a 4:27.97 performance at the Millrose Games on Feb. 8. Powell was the first male to dip under the four-minute mark, running 3:56.66 at the Terrier DMR Challenge on Feb. 21.

While this NIL incentive is limited to high school athletes, Diadora has also expanded into the collegiate running scene, announcing its sponsorship of Villanova University’s Marco Langon on April 23.

Since the announcement, Langon has raced in the Mezzofondo spike twice, both times in Europe. He first competed in a Mezzofondo prototype on July 9, where he ran 3:54.59 to win his race at the Cork City Sports meet in Ireland. Ten days later, on July 19, he went on to run 13:12.89 in the 5,000 meters at the Night of Athletics in Belgium.

Despite being a Diadora-sponsored athlete, Langon has also raced in Nike spikes this season. It is unclear if the decision to race in Nike spikes is due to Villanova’s apparel sponsorship.

All eligible races must be run between Dec. 8, 2025, and March 15, 2026 and sanctioned by a national governing body such as USATF or NFHS. Athletes must also have been enrolled in a U.S. high school at the start of the 2025–26 school year and compete in unmodified Diadora Mezzofondo spikes.

Eligibility also depends on individual state governing body rules on high school athletes receiving NIL contracts.

The spikes retail for $260 on both the Diadora and Marathon Sports websites.