Two-Time Olympian to Head Marketing Efforts at WHOOP

WHOOP has named Dirk-Jan “D.J.” van Hameren as chief marketing officer (CMO). His appointment coincides with the company’s rapid growth, having surpassed 3 million members worldwide after adding its latest 1 million members in just seven months.

Van Hameren spent 31 years at Nike, where he rose from the mailroom at the company’s European headquarters to become an influential marketing leader. He retired from Nike Inc. in 2023 as executive vice president and chief marketing officer, leading the company’s worldwide marketing organization.

Van Hameren joins WHOOP as the company enters a period of unprecedented acceleration, according to executives. Over more than a decade, WHOOP has helped the world’s highest-performing athletes understand, train, and improve their performance. WHOOP currently brings that same performance mindset to millions of people who want to live longer, healthier, higher-performing lives.

“The next great health company will do more than deliver breakthrough technology,” WHOOP Founder/CEO Will Ahmed said. “It will also inspire people to take control of their health every day. DJ has spent his career building brands that shape culture and motivate millions of people, and I’m excited for him to bring that experience to WHOOP.”

WHOOP’s international membership has grown more than 11-fold since January 2023, and currently, 58% of members live outside the United States. WHOOP is also reaching a broader audience, with teen membership growing more than 10-fold since January 2023, women’s membership more than doubling over the past year, and membership among adults over 60 increasing by more than 130% annually.

At WHOOP, van Hameren will lead global marketing across brand, creative, international markets, media, athlete and sports partnerships, and product storytelling. He will help further expand WHOOP as a brand rooted in sport, trusted in health, and embraced by people committed to reaching their full potential.

“What attracted me to WHOOP was the scale and importance of the opportunity,” van Hameren stated. “The company has earned credibility with elite athletes and built an engaged, global community of more than 3 million members. But I believe we’re still at the very beginning. Proactive health will become one of the defining categories of our generation. WHOOP will build the global brand that defines it.”

Before becoming Nike’s CMO, van Hameren served as global vice president and general manager of Nike Sportswear, where he led $7 billion in Nike Sportswear revenue growth and helped drive the success of iconic franchises including Air Max, Air Force 1, and Tech Fleece. During his Nike tenure, he also led the ideation and execution of the Livestrong initiative, the award-winning “Dream Crazy” campaign, and the company’s global marketing for the 2004, 2012, and 2024 Olympic Games.

Before his business career, van Hameren represented the Netherlands as a track cyclist at the 1992 Barcelona and 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

van Hameren has been recognized by Campaign U.S. CMO 50 and Forbes’ World’s Most Influential CMOs. After leaving Nike, he co-founded Superconnector Sports, launched his advisory firm, Mailroom Marathon 7, and serves as an operating advisor to Arctos Partners.

WHOOP delivers a wearable membership to help people live healthier, longer lives and unlock their potential. Through a 24/7 wearable with a 14-day battery life, WHOOP provides intelligent health guidance across sleep, recovery, strain, fitness, and longevity. The health platform includes a U.S. Food and Drug Administration-cleared ECG, a Healthspan longevity feature, Blood Pressure Insights, and Advanced Labs blood biomarker analysis. Research shows that people who wear WHOOP daily log more than 90 additional minutes of exercise per week, get over two extra hours of sleep, and have 10% higher heart rate variability. WHOOP was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Boston. The company has raised more than $900 million in venture capital, ships to 56 countries, and operates in six languages.