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Four 2006 U.S. Olympic Team Hopefuls Training to Compete in the 2006 Olympic Winter Games Join Team 24 Hour Fitness

Posted on: Thursday, 24 February 2005, 09:00 CST

SAN RAMON, Calif., Feb. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- 24 Hour Fitness, official fitness center sponsor of the 2006 U.S. Olympic Team, today announced partnerships with four elite U.S. athletes vying to make the 2006 U.S. Olympic Team and medal next winter in the Olympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy. As part of the relationships, this group of athletes -- Team 24 Hour Fitness -- will lend their support, voices and images to the company's advertising, publications, marketing and promotional materials, as well as provide personal appearances. The four athletes selected share 24 Hour Fitness' approach for success: setting goals, working hard, seeing results and having fun along the way.

24 Hour Fitness is proud to offer support to athletes from a variety of sports who all display an exemplary commitment to physical fitness and wellness:

Alpine Skiing

* Daron Rahlves -- 2005 has been a great season for Rahlves who recently

placed second at the World Championships in Bormio, Italy. With six

World Cup victories, twelve podiums and a World Championship gold

medal, the California native is one of the most successful men's

downhill ski racers in U.S. Ski Team history. His 2004 season included

four wins -- two downhills and two super G -- and featured the first

World Cup downhill win by an American on U.S. soil since 1984.

Freestyle Skiing

* Jeremy Bloom -- The 22-year-old Colorado native recently clinched the

2004/05 Overall World Cup Grand Prix title with his sixth consecutive

Cup win in Sauze D'Oulx, Italy. Bloom has nine World Cup moguls wins

and two World Championship medals during his young career. On the World

Cup circuit he held the overall moguls title in 2002, won duals gold at

the 2003 Worlds and in 2004 posted five podiums, including one win.

Snowboarding

* Gretchen Bleiler -- Bleiler recently landed three consecutive 540s to

win gold in the talent-packed women's superpipe at the 2005 Winter X

Games. She is a two-time U.S. National Champion and won more halfpipe

competitions in 2003 then any other female competitor. The two-time

Vans Triple Crown Winner achieved the highest score ever recorded in

the women's superpipe at the 2003 Chevy Truck U.S. Snowboard Grand

Prix.

Speed Skating

* Jennifer Rodriguez -- In January, Rodriguez, a Miami native who trains

in Park City, UT claimed the women's World Sprint Speedskating

Championship, becoming the first U.S. skater to do so in nine years.

During the 2003-2004 season, she was ranked first overall in the 1000m

World Cup rankings and second overall in the 1500m. The two-time

Olympian (1998, 2002) was a bronze medalist in both the 1000m and 1500m

in the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City.

"It's a thrill to join Team 24 Hour Fitness alongside so many outstanding athletes," said Jeremy Bloom. "In the competitive landscape of the Olympic Games, training is crucial, and working with a company that understands and supports that mindset is ideal in helping me reach all of my personal goals."

"24 Hour Fitness is thrilled to offer support to four of America's most inspiring U.S. Olympic hopefuls," said Brad Fogel, Chief Marketing Officer, 24 Hour Fitness USA. "We continue to work with U.S. athletes who demonstrate our company's commitment to inspire people to lead a healthier lifestyle through sport and fitness."

These new partnerships build on the company's commitment to U.S. Olympic athletes past and present, as Team 24 Hour Fitness joins the 24 Hour Fitness family of other leading U.S. Olympians such as Lance Armstrong, Andre Agassi, Magic Johnson, Jennie Finch, Rulon Gardner, Shane Hamman and more.

All sponsored U.S. athletes will have complete access to all 24 Hour Fitness locations, most of which operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. These locations are outfitted with the latest state-of-the-art equipment and amenities designed to help the group on their road to Torino and their continued training beyond the 2006 Olympic Winter Games.

"The first time I stepped foot in a 24 Hour Fitness, I was really impressed," said Daron Rahlves. "The staff is incredibly knowledgeable and helpful and the equipment is second to none. Every workout is important to me, and I feel like I have a whole team of people helping me succeed."

Commitment to Athletes

This new group of Team 24 Hour Fitness athletes represents one facet of the company's commitment to U.S. Olympic athletes and hopefuls. Other strategies designed to help U.S. athletes achieve the highest successes include:

* Memberships: 24 Hour Fitness provides eligible U.S. Olympic athletes

and hopefuls with a number of free and reduced-rate memberships. This

gives U.S. athletes access to the network of more than 330 24 Hour

Fitness gyms while they are on the road for training and competitions.

* Flexible employment opportunities: 24 Hour Fitness created employment

opportunities for U.S. Olympic hopefuls that provide flexible

scheduling for training and competition purposes. The jobs offer

athletes an opportunity to work in a related industry to their

interests and the chance to get a full personal trainer certification.

* Fitness Centers: To provide U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams with the

most state-of-the-art equipment as possible, 24 Hour Fitness completed

and funded all renovations to the strength and conditioning gym at the

U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. Upgrades to

the gym at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, N.Y. are

expected to be completed in February 2005 and renovations to the U.S.

Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. will begin thereafter.

* 2006 U.S. Olympic Team Training Facilities: 24 Hour Fitness is also

creating fitness facilities for the U.S. Olympic Team onsite at the

Olympic Winter Games in Torino. These onsite training facilities will

supply U.S. athletes with an opportunity to continue their training 24

hours a day throughout the Games.

About 24 Hour Fitness

24 Hour Fitness, a long time fan of the Olympic Movement, and officially became a U.S. Olympic Team sponsor in April 2003, with the sponsorship lasting through 2008. For more than a decade, 24 Hour Fitness has cheered for and rallied behind the Olympic movement in the U.S. by sponsoring eight National Governing Bodies, including USA Cycling, USA Judo, USA Softball, USA Track & Field, USA Volleyball, USA Water Polo, USA Weightlifting and USA Wrestling.

Headquartered in San Ramon, Calif., 24 Hour Fitness, an innovative leader in the health and fitness industry, serves more than 2.7 million members in over 300 clubs across 16 different states. Originating in 1983 as a one-club operation, 24 Hour Fitness was designed by Mark S. Mastrov with the vision of making fitness a way of life by creating the ultimate in multi-sport fitness centers and making them affordable and accessible to people of all abilities and fitness levels. Please call 1-800-204-2400 or visit http://www.24hourfitness.com/ for more information and to find the location nearest you.

24 Hour Fitness

CONTACT: Shannon May, 24 Hour Fitness, +1-925-543-3184; Cheryl Herbert,USOC, +1-719-866-4566; Kerry Slatkoff, Ketchum Sports Network,+1-646-935-4184, for 24 Hour Fitness

Web site: http://www.24hourfitness.com/

Source: PRNewswire

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