Nike Running Delivers Motivational Tools to Help Prepare Marathon
Participants
CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 10, 2008--Nike (NYSE:NKE) today
announced a new multi-year agreement with Bank of America to become
the official footwear and apparel sponsor of the Bank of America
Chicago Marathon(R), beginning with the October 12, 2008 race, as well
as the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle(R).
As an event sponsor for the next five years, Nike will provide the
official merchandise for race participants, personnel and pacers, and
will operate a comprehensive 17-week marathon training program in
Chicago, beginning in June 2008, to prepare and motivate all
participants.
To complement this training program and to support the global
group of runners who participate in the Bank of America Chicago
Marathon, Nike Running has made available two new products to evolve
the Nike+ experience, giving runners more options for how they want to
run and train. Available today, the Nike+ SportBand is a wristwatch
that also monitors a runner's steps, allowing runners to "See How They
Run," checking time, pace, distance and calories burned, with a
glance. The Nike+ SportBand watch face is a detachable USB link that
captures all the run data from a sensor located in the runner's Nike+
ready footwear.
Nike+ Coach is a runner's own personal online trainer --
empowering runners with the information and motivation needed to train
for a 5K, a 10K, half-marathon or full marathon -- and an easy,
accessible way to connect to the world's largest global running
community at nikeplus.com. As of February 2008, Nike+ runners have run
more than 50 million miles on nikeplus.com -- the equivalent of
completing more than 1.9 million Chicago Marathons.
"Both debut and elite runners can now rely on Nike for the 24/7
support they need to get it done, gut it out and take on the
remarkable challenge of participating in one of the world's preeminent
marathons," said Leslie Lane, Nike global vice president for running.
"We will bring a new energy and our distinct passion to this 31-year
institution that has hosted many thrilling finishes and exceptional
accomplishments, including Paula Radcliffe's world record-shattering
performance in 2002. We are honored to enter into a relationship with
Bank of America, another blue-chip brand with a rich history of
promoting sports excellence."
"As a leader in the running industry, Nike has demonstrated a
longstanding passion for the sport, and we are excited to welcome them
as new partners to our Chicago-based running events," said Bank of
America Illinois President David Rudis. "Leveraging their expertise is
consistent with our commitment to strengthening and growing our
events, and ushering in an exciting new era for the Bank of America
Chicago Marathon."
Local Commitment
The Marathon sponsorship is the cornerstone of Nike Chicago's
efforts to support the more than 1 million runners in the Chicagoland
area, explained Daryl Jones, general manager, Nike Chicago.
"We are proud of our commitment to and support of local runners of
all levels," said Jones. "Nike Chicago has created and sponsored many
races, as well as supported several local elite running teams. We also
provided area high school coaches with educational clinics and look
forward to improving a Chicago-area running track later this year."
One of the five races comprising the World Marathon Majors, the
Bank of America Chicago Marathon is the second largest marathon in the
United States, attracting 45,000 runners every year.
About Nike+
With Nike+, runners never have to train alone again. Nike+ enables
footwear to talk to an iPod nano or Nike+ SportBand, giving instant
performance information and real-time feedback during a run. Like a
personal coach or training partner, Nike+ puts this information at
runners' fingertips, in the process creating a Nike+ revolution. As of
February, 2008, Nike+ members have run over 50,000,000 miles, logged
over 14,000,000 runs and issued over 450,000 challenges. Nike+ has
also created the world's largest running club at nikeplus.com, a
global running community where Nike+ members can log their run data,
track their progress, utilize training tools, and connect with other
members all over the world.
About Nike
NIKE, Inc. based near 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; Cole Haan Holdings Incorporated, which
designs, markets and distributes luxury shoes, handbags, accessories
and coats; Umbro Ltd., a leading United Kingdom-based global football
(soccer) brand; and Hurley International LLC, which designs, markets
and distributes action sports and youth lifestyle footwear, apparel
and accessories. For more information, visit www.nikebiz.com.
About the Bank of America Chicago Marathon
The Bank of America Chicago Marathon will host its 31st annual
running on Sunday, October 12, 2008 as 45,000 participants advance to
the start line, embarking on the culmination of 45,000 personal
journeys. Along with the massive field of recreational runners, the
26.2-mile course will welcome a full field of world-renowned
professional athletes drawn to the flat, fast, urban setting and the
potential to break world and national records. The professionals will
compete for a portion of the $579,000 prize purse and points in the
World Marathon Majors series which will crown its 2007-08 male and
female champions with $500,000 each at the close of 2008. Since the
inception of its charity program in 2002, the Bank of America Chicago
Marathon has generated more than $38 million for a variety of
charitable causes including $10.5 million in accordance with the 2007
event alone. Registration for the race is available online at
chicagomarathon.com until the participant capacity of 45,000 is
reached. For more information, visit chicagomarathon.com.
About Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial
institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle market
businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking,
investing, asset management and other financial and risk-management
products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in
the United States, serving more than 59 million consumer and small
business relationships with more than 6,100 retail banking offices,
nearly 19,000 ATMs and award-winning online banking with nearly 24
million active users. Bank of America is the No. 1 overall Small
Business Administration (SBA) lender in the United States and the No.
1 SBA lender to minority-owned small businesses. The company serves
clients in 175 countries and has relationships with 99 percent of the
U.S. Fortune 500 companies and 83 percent of the Global Fortune 500.
Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New
York Stock Exchange. www.bankofamerica.com
CONTACT: Nike
New York Media Relations, 212-367-4447
or
Bank of America
Joe Goode, 617-434-7314
SOURCE: NIKE, Inc.