Elliott Hill started at Nike as an intern in 1988 but steadily scaled its ranks, banking on values of grit and hard work ingrained in him as the son of a single mom in a working class Texas neighborhood.

Elliott Hill, an executive who left the company after Donahoe’s appointment in 2020, will return as chief executive, Nike’s board said.

Nike said John Donahoe will retire as chief executive and from the board. Elliott Hill, who retired from the sneaker maker in 2020, will succeed him.