In Under Armour’s latest campaign, “Rule Yourself,” the brand aims to “redefine what it means to be successful in training.” The theme of self-discipline is seen throughout each commercial that features professional athletes, including Stephen Curry, Tom Brady, Jordan Spieth and Misty Copeland.
Olympian swimmer Michael Phelps was recently added to this elite roster. The video has quickly gone viral, and it is being talked about on national news platforms such as The Today Show.
So why have 2 million people watch and re-watch this new UA ad that was posted two days ago? Take a look for yourself.
Eighteen months ago, Phelps’s name in the headlines was generating a different response than it is today. The most decorated Olympian of all time found himself arrested for driving under the influence. “I was in a really dark place,” he told Time Magazine. “Not wanting to be alive anymore.”
The video shows an intimate look into the secret life of Phelps. You see him agonizing in pain has he finishes a rep of toes-to-bar, shaking as he steps out of the pool and wincing in pain as his muscles endure treatment. The moments captured in the commercial brought Phelps and his fiancé, Nicole Johnson, to tears.
“What do you think,” asked Under Armour’s CEO and founder Kevin Plank. The campaign sheds light on the grind of professional athletes, and it reveals the costs of their success. “I think the world has seen a part of me throughout my career, but I think this is seeing the real me and seeing who I am and what goes into everything that I do,” Phelps answered.
The Phelps that was in the really dark place is now in the light. The media only shows the times of glory and defeat. The UA video goes beyond these two dissimilarities. For Phelps, he was either seen proud with medals around his neck or ashamed in a courtroom.
Now, Phelps is seen in a new perspective. The video ended with a tag that appropriately defines his life, “It’s what you do in the dark that puts you in the light.”
“I don’t feel like I’m carrying weights around anymore. Whatever I’d been holding inside of me, I was able to get it out and was able to start fresh, and that’s a pretty incredible feeling,” he said when describing his life after the DUI arrest. I believe that Phelps felt the same way after UA released his spotlight video.
Phelps is expecting a baby with his fiancé this year. It looks like there is a road of light ahead for both him and Under Armour.
