Curtis Beach Signs With Nike

Apr 10, 2015 by Meg Bellino

The 2x NCAA Champion and multiple-time All American from Duke University has joined the likes of U.S. decathlon champions Ashton Eaton and Trey Hardee and signed with apparel giant Nike. We caught up with Beach, now training at the World Athletics Center in Phoenix, Arizona one week before he competes at the Mt. SAC Relays.

Congrats on signing with Nike! How does it feel to have the support of one of the biggest apparel companies in the world and essentially be "teammates" with Ashton Eaton and Trey Hardee?

Thanks! It feels great (freakin' love the huge packets of gear). I'm very grateful to have Nike helping me achieve the goals I've been working towards for years and to have the chance to represent the brand. As always, it's going to be really fun competing with Ashton and Trey- there's something to learn from those guys every single meet.

Since leaving Duke, you've been training in Phoenix, Arizona. Could you tell us a little bit about training at the World Athletics Center and what that atmosphere is like? Who are your training partners? What is the biggest difference between training at Duke and training professionally?

The athletes, coaches, and therapists at the World Athletics Center are all among the best in the world and I feel really lucky to be in a place where everyone is so driven. One of the best parts is that there's top chiropractors and PTs right there at the track during practice (the coaches are also fantastic therapists). At the same time, it's difficult to be away from everyone at Duke, pay for all the things a college program covers, and to not live in an awesome college environment anymore (not complaining about no homework, though). I'm training alongside Pascal Behrenbruch, a German decathlete also sponsored by Nike, who just happens to be the best in the world for the throwing events. There's also great heptathletes to train with and numerous individual event athletes who have won medals at major championships.

Your outdoor season was cut short last year. How did you recover and what steps did you take to come back to the track full strength?

I had been dealing with an elbow injury for a few years and last June I underwent Tommy John surgery. I fortunately got an appointment with Dr. James Andrews, who's regarded as the best for this operation. He wasn't sure if it was even operable since there was a broken bone in there, but it turned out to be a success. I'm still rehabbing with active release, voodoo floss, and various strength exercises. It's expected to be an 18-month process to get fully recovered for this surgery, but that doesn't mean I can't throw jav or vault this year.

You were in that 600m race in ABQ with Cas Loxsom and Mark Wieczorek, what was that like? Do you think your middle distance strength is your best asset in terms of the hep/dec?

I ALWAYS love competing in the middle distance events, especially with those guys. And yeah, my mid-d strength/speed endurance is probably my best asset among the 10 events.

You're opening up at Mt. SAC! (Which is live on FloTrack, btw) - What are you hoping to score in the decathlon? Do you have a concrete strategy in place for the weekend?

Yep! Pretty stoked about it. I'm just going to stay focused on each event as it comes, survive the javelin with where my elbow is at at the moment, and hopefully have a good score that will get me into USAs.

There's a World Championship team to make this summer. Is that a goal you have for the season? You're going against the current WR-holder and another former World Champion, what is that like knowing that the U.S. is stacked but you could very well make the team?

Yep, that's a goal. It's cool that it'll be a stacked field, but that doesn't change how I feel about the competition or how I'll approach it. I'm just going to be as tough to beat as possible and hopefully be in a place to make some teams and win some medals.