Spira Footwear Wins Again At Boston Marathon

Gino Van Geyte wins Boston Marathon Men's Masters Division in revolutionary running shoes with WaveSpring Technology. Spira Shoes on Boston Marathon's Masters winner for second year in a row.

El Paso, TX (PRWEB) April 25, 2008 -- For the second consecutive year, a runner wearing Spira Footwear (www.spirafootwear.com) was victorious at the Boston Marathon's Men's Masters Division as Belgium's Gino Van Geyte, age 41, won Monday's race for men age 40-49 with a time of 2:23:36. Last year's Boston Marathon Men's Masters Division champion Oleg Stizhakov of Russia, a runner with the Foot Solutions Elite Racing Team, again ran in Spira Footwear and finished in third place with a time of 2:24:16.

Spira Footwear -- the running shoes with springs -- is the world's most comfortable and injury-preventative running shoe. Spira's patented WaveSpring technology reduces impact force on a runner's body, which leads to an efficient recovery and less overall stress -- signifying that the WaveSpring technology may be the most significant technical advancement achieved in the footwear industry in recent years. Spira's "spring" shoes were first created in 1999, when uniquely designed wave springs were inserted into the midsole of a pair of running shoes to serve as a cushion. While the technology is ground-breaking and prevents injury and wear and tear, the shoe runs afoul of rules promulgated by he U.S.A. Track and Field (USATF) and the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF), and is therefore can be considered an "illegal" shoe.

Van Geyte heard about Spira's in the running trade press and came to the Spira booth at the Boston's Marathon's Expo and asked to run in a pair. The results were immediate as the Belgian runner won the Masters title the next day.

"Spira Footwear significantly reduces the wear and tear on the body and is especially popular among older runners, so it is to no surprise that two Masters Runners performed so well in our shoes in Boston," said Andy Krafsur, CEO of Spira Footwear. "It's exciting to have our shoes on the Masters Division winner in Boston for a second year in a row and we look forward to seeing more and more runners in our shoes win many more marathons in the future."

Spira running shoes are gaining in popularity among elite athletes as runners have won several top marathons and road races in the shoes in Houston, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, San Jose, Austin, Atlanta, Tucson, Sacramento, Washington D.C., Ottawa and Istanbul. Spira Footwear recently signed a three-year agreement with Disney's Wide World of Sports in which Spira will serve as the official performance footwear sponsor of Disney's Endurance Series events at Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla. and Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif.

Contact:

Ben Sturner

President

Leverage Agency

212-752-2500

Bens @ leverageagency.com

Holly Fields

VP Marketing

Spira Footwear

915 276-9912

hfields @ spirafootwear.com

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