Following the footsteps of the U.S. women's soccer team's case for equal pay, women in track and field have found their footing on another important crusade, retaining full pay from their sponsorship deals after they get pregnant. Top U.S. runners such as Allyson Felix, Kara Goucher and Alysia Montano, are speaking out. 

"It's the power of the collective," said Allyson Felix, six-time Olympic and 11-time world champion, who will be competing next week on the U.S. women's relay team at the world championships in Doha, in an interview with the Associated Press. "Alysia speaking, Kara speaking, the women's soccer team. It's just such a pivotal time right now in women's sports, and we're seeing change happen."

Felix had a baby girl in November and next week at the worlds in Doha, she will have a new apparel sponsor, Athleta, after spending years with Nike.

Nike responded to the outcry, as well, announcing in May that it would not apply performance-related pay reductions for pregnant athletes for a consecutive period of 12 months. Then, last month, the company expanded that to 18 months, starting eight months before the due date, and pledged to include specific language about pregnancy in its contracts to reinforce the policy.

"We recognize we can do more and that there is an important opportunity for the sports industry to evolve to support female athletes," Nike said in a statement. 

In a New York Times opinion piece, Felix recounted how Nike "wanted to pay me 70 percent less than before." She eventually helped push the company to change the way it deals with pregnant athletes. When Nike revised its contracts, she celebrated.

"This means that female athletes will no longer be financially penalized for having a child," Felix wrote on Instagram.

Montano, six-time U.S. national champion who famously raced while she was eight months pregnant earlier in May, broke nondisclosure agreements with Nike to produce a video describing the reality of being a woman in track and field.

"The sports industry allows for men to have a full career, and when a woman decides to have a baby, it pushes women out at their prime," she said. "When I told (Nike) I wanted to have a baby during my career, they said, 'Simple, we'll just pause your contract and stop paying you.'"

Montano is five months pregnant with her third child and now has a sponsorship deal with an active wear company, Cadenshae, which has vowed to support her regardless of whether she returns to the track.

It was her message that led Felix and Goucher to both go public with their stories. 

Goucher, silver medalist at the 2007 World Championships, also spoke out about the pressure she felt from Nike to go back to training instead of caring for her newborn son, Colt. Despite Nike's changes, Goucher now lists Altra as her shoe sponsor.

(With input from agencies)