SPIRA FOOTWEAR RUNNER OLEG STRIJAKOVA WINS MASTERS OVER 40 BOSTON MARATHON

BOSTON - Oleg Strijakov of Russia won the Masters “Over 40” Boston Marathon Monday wearing a pair of “banned” Spira running shoes, featuring the patented WaveSpring (TM) technology. Strijakov won the race for men age 40 and over in 2:28:55. “We are very proud of Oleg and all of the runners who ran with Spira shoes in Boston,” said Andy Krafsur, President and CEO of Spira Footwear. “We hope that Oleg’s well-deserved victory stands.”

Spira footwear, the running shoes that feature “springs” in its shoes, filed a lawsuit in U.S. Federal District Court last

Monday against the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) and the United States Association of Track and Field (USATF), the rule making bodies for Track and Field both internationally and domestically, alleging that application of IAAF and USATF Rule 143 which purportedly bans spring technology for competition constitutes a violation of the Sherman Anti Trust Act and a restraint of trade.

Spira (www.spirafootwear.com) owns the patent rights to the WaveSpring technology in footwear. Spira alleges that the USATF rules prohibiting spring technology has effectively prohibited its ability to gain market acceptance of its technology as most elite runners will not compete in Spira products for fear of disqualification or sanction by the USATF. The USATF governs all competitive track and filed events and road racing in the U.S. including the Olympic Trials.

The IAAF rule, as amended in December, 2005, requires that shoes for competition be submitted for approval to the IAAF's technical committee. Spira alleges it followed the IAAF guidelines by submitting its shoes for approval in September, 2006. Despite repeated requests for a determination of its legality, Spira has yet to be provided with a response. Other Spira runners excelling during the Boston Marathon include early leaders Jared Nyamboki and Josphat Ongeri of Kenya as well as Tamrat Ayalew of Ethopia who finished in 2:18:02 and Birhanu Wukaw of Ethopia who finished in 2:25.44.

CONTACT:
Ben Sturner – 917-547-8758