Someone else could take a break after retiring from a historic athletic career representing Canada during four Olympics, two in the summer and two in the winter, in three sports in just over a decade.
Not Georgia Simmerling.
The 32-year-old Olympic bronze medalist, who competed in six events in four Games between Vancouver 2010 and Tokyo 2020 in alpine skiing, freestyle skiing and track cycling, made history at Rio 2016 by becoming the first Canadian to compete in a different sport. in three different Olympics.
Retirement from competition was in sight in Tokyo for Simmerling, who helped Canada finish fourth in the track cycling team chase event. Slowing down completely was never on the cards.
“If you know me, I’m not one to just sit back and take a year off,” Simmerling said earlier this month. “That in itself is very scary to me. Not having a purpose for a year of my life, or a couple of months of my life, taking time off and, I don’t know, reading a book, I just don’t know what I could fill my time with. ”
So she created AG Sports Inc., a sports marketing and agency business in which Simmerling herself will be the lead agent. Simmerling, whose first name is Alice, hence the name AG, has been considering her life after athletics for the past several years. He had many conversations with people from the Canadian sports industry while training for Tokyo, which gave him a lot of spark and fueled his training.
Through those conversations, Simmerling saw an opportunity for female representation in the agency world and officially launched her new business on Monday morning.
His initial client list includes some already prominent names in Canadian sports, as well as some up-and-coming names whose names Simmerling hopes he will soon meet:
- Kasia Gruchalla-Wesierski, gold medalist with Canada’s eighth women’s rowing team in Tokyo;
- Blayre Turnbull, silver medalist with the Canadian women’s hockey team at Pyeongchang 2018;
- Katie Vincent, a Tokyo sprint canoe bronze medalist who won a world title earlier this month;
- Lauriane Genest, a bronze medalist in track cycling in Tokyo;
- Maddy Price, who finished fourth in Canada’s 4×400 relay in Tokyo;
- Amelia Smart, a “promising badass,” according to Simmerling of the Canadian Alpine Ski Team;
- Amy Fraser, an emerging freestyle skier competing in the halfpipe event.
Simmerling is open to eventually representing male athletes, but prides himself on pitching with a roster of women.
Now is the time to invest in women’s sport, she said, citing how the Canadian women’s soccer Olympic final was the most watched event on CBC during the Tokyo Games and that the women’s US Open final has overtaken the men’s final. in terms of American television. qualifications as just two examples of an increase in interest.
As an athlete, Simmerling always had a passion and gift for building relationships with sponsors, brands, and the corporate world.
“I think this is where I belong, this is my passion … and it was a very natural thing for me,” he said.
Simmerling believes that he has built a full pool of athletes due to his connections to summer and winter sports and from entering various national sports organizations throughout his career. Previously, he spent time observing working with Wasserman, a sports marketing and talent management company in Toronto, but as a first-time agent it was his work ethic and commitment that he introduced to his new clients.
Many athletes need to find a place to channel their competitive momentum after retirement. Simmerling knows where yours will focus.
“I don’t take it lightly that he hired these women and I really look forward to fighting for them,” he said.
That’s not a surprise to Vincent, who met Simmerling in 2019 and immediately noticed how he became interested in all kinds of sports and athletes, asking questions to better understand his experiences.
When Simmerling approached Vincent after Tokyo 2020 to get an agent, Vincent initially thought her friend was going to offer her some advice. But Vincent wasn’t surprised either when Simmerling suggested herself.
“I was never going to say no when asked,” Vincent said.
A leading canoeist in lobbying for the inclusion of women’s canoe speed events in the Tokyo Games, Vincent remembers seeing former Olympian Adam van Koeverden in Roots commercials when he was racing for Canada in speed kayaking. She hopes Simmerling can help her use her platform to inspire the next generation of boys, especially girls, to get out on the water in a sport she calls “small but very Canadian and very accessible.”
Genest, Simmerling’s former track cycling teammate and now one of her first clients, met her now-agent in 2018 with the national team. Simmerling’s reputation as an athlete preceded her.
“I thought she was really good … I still do,” Genest said in an email interview.
Genest was looking for an agent in Tokyo. He needed help with that aspect of his career. Being alone after the Olympics, when medalists can be in high demand, was “a bit excessive” and exhausting. Simmerling approached her at the perfect moment.
“I’ve been to Georgia quite a bit over the years and she has a drive that not many people have. She has so much energy, knowledge and loves to share it … I know for sure that she will work very hard as my agent and this is one of the many reasons I trust her in our association, ”said Genest.
Simmerling, who currently resides in Paris, France, where his fiancee, Canadian goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé, recently signed with Paris Saint-Germain, sees opportunities for both athletes and the business world. She is excited to see what kind of impact growing AG Sports Inc. can have.
“I couldn’t be more excited to interrupt a bit,” Simmerling said. “I think all the disruption is good and I’m excited to … show the business world the opportunities that exist to invest in women’s sports.”
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