Regional Championships, Not Rankings, To Dictate Which Teams Race For The National Title As Registration Opens At NiketeamNationals.com For Teams To Sign Up For The Series

BEAVERTON, ORE (17 August, 2007) - Nike Team Nationals, the highly successful national cross country team championship held in Portland for the past three years, has changed to a regional championship format to decide which teams will contend for the Nike Team Nationals title at this year's competition.

The top teams in each of nine regions - Heartland, Midwest, Northwest, Southwest, South, Northeast, Southeast, California and New York - will compete to qualify for the highly popular meet at Portland Meadows racetrack the first Saturday in December 2007. Teams can now register to participate at www.NikeTeamNationals.com.

The change is part of a continued effort to provide the highest platform for team cross-country competition. Nike Team Nationals stands as the only national XC team championship offering XC clubs composed of the best high-school-age athletes an opportunity to compete against each other in a team setting. Each regional championship event will include a series of five races - the small schools, the freshman race and others - all culminating to the regional championship event where only the top 30 teams will be able to compete. In addition, each region has gone out of its way to make sure that this race is a truly unique event, including on-site visits from Nike athletes, making it a completely new experience for each team participating.

"We believe the heart and spirit of cross country is grounded in the team aspect of the sport," said Brian O'Connor, Nike's Global Brand Marketing Manager for Running. "Personal bests count only in the sense of their contribution to the team's final score - seven runners all running for the same goal. The regional championship format allows us to make sure this happens."

With each region given two automatic bids to the Nike Team National Event in Portland, regional events are more than just a qualifier for Nike Team Nationals. Competition at each race consists of the best teams in the area and success is a product of a collective effort. In addition, there will be four national at large invitations selected by the NTN selection committee, increasing this year's field to 22 teams.

The regional championships begin November 10 with three of the 9 regions. See below for a full schedule of regional championship meets.

The selection process for California and New York will be announced shortly.

For more information, go online to www.NikeTeamNationals.com or www.dyestat.com. For interest during the season, the committee will still publish regional rankings each week.

About Nike Team Nationals

The Nike Team Nationals is a part of the larger Nike Nationals championship series which includes the Nike Outdoor Nationals and Nike Indoor Nationals. The series of events was established in 2004 to help strengthen the national circuit for high school cross country and track and field competition.

Following in the tradition of European cross country meets, the event will again feature a multiple loop race course with man-made obstacles built on the inside of the horse race track. Spectators will be able to enjoy a continuous live view of the race from the venue's enclosed 3,000-seat grandstand. Again this year the Nike Team National event is providing coaches handheld computer devices, utilizing FinishLynx tracking technology (created specifically for Nike Team Nationals), to see team scores posted to a live leader board every kilometer. The technology was first introduced in the races' inaugural year and provides instant feedback on a teams' position in the race allowing coaches to adjust strategy in the midst of the event. In addition to real-time race tracking, event data is then transferred to live to dyestat.com and to www.NikeTeamNationals.com following the completion of the race so spectators, participants and coach can replay the race of select teams and/or individuals exactly how it was run.

About Nike

NIKE, Inc. based in Beaverton, Oregon is the world's leading designer, marketer and distributor of authentic athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories for a wide variety of sports and fitness activities. Wholly-owned Nike subsidiaries include Converse, Inc., which designs, markets and distributes athletic footwear, apparel and accessories; Bauer NIKE Hockey Inc., a leading designer and distributor of hockey equipment; Cole Haan®, which designs, markets and distributes fine dress and casual shoes and accessories; and Hurley International LLC, which designs, markets and distributes action sports and youth lifestyle footwear, apparel and accessories.