Winningest male athlete in NCAA history continues his success in
professional career with sixth straight victory and achieves a new road
personal best
MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Skechers celebrates 17-time NCAA national champion Edward Cheserek’s win
at the 2019 Carlsbad 5000 in Carlsbad, CA on Sunday, April 7. At the
event known as the World’s Fastest 5K, the Skechers Performance elite
runner crossed the finish line in 13:29, tying the International
Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) road world record, achieving
a new road 5K personal best, and crossing the finish line 25 seconds
ahead of the next runner.
Skechers Performance elite runner Edward Cheserek wins, achieves new personal best and ties the world record at Carlsbad 5000. (Photo: Business Wire)
Skechers Performance elite runner Edward Cheserek wins, achieves new personal best and ties the world record at Carlsbad 5000. (Photo: Business Wire)
Cheserek was joined on the podium by fellow Skechers Performance elite
Reid Buchanan, who finished third with 13:56.
“This race is legendary, and it’s been a goal of mine to win, and today
I not only won, but tied for the road world record and achieved a new
road PB (personal best)—it’s a great accomplishment,” said Cheserek, who
raced in Skechers GOrun Razor 3 Hyper™ shoes. “With Meb (Keflezighi) now
involved in this event, it’s even more special—he’s in a class of his
own and he’s part of the Skechers family. Skechers has supported me from
incredibly lightweight custom racing spikes to cheering me on today. I
can’t wait to race here again next year.”
Since the inaugural race in 1986, the World’s Fastest 5K has been more
than just a catchy tagline. Numerous records have been set throughout
the past 33 years, and the Carlsbad 5000 is an ever-tested proving
ground for racing. Skechers Performance elite marathoner Meb Keflezighi
headlines a group of local running industry leaders who took ownership
of the event in 2018.
“I love that one of my fellow Skechers Elite runners took home the
victory today!” added Meb Keflezighi. “It’s been an honor to join the
management team for Carlsbad 5000, and we all agree that Edward is an
amazing athlete and a deserving successor to the greats who have left
their mark on the World’s Fastest 5K.”
“We’re incredibly fortunate to be with Edward on this journey and so
proud of what he’s already accomplished after transitioning from college
to elite professional competition,” said Michael Greenberg, president of
Skechers. “He’s an inspiration to runners around the globe and an
amazing member of the Skechers Performance Team. We look forward to many
more events where he’s competing in our Skechers GOrun® footwear.”
Originally from Kenya, Cheserek attended Saint Benedict’s Preparatory
School in New Jersey, where he was named the Gatorade 2013 National
Cross Country Runner of the Year, before choosing to continue his
collegiate career at distance running powerhouse, University of Oregon.
In 2013, Cheserek became the first freshman in school history to win the
NCAA National Cross Country Championships, and would then go on to
repeat as cross country champion in his sophomore and junior years. By
the end of his collegiate career, Cheserek was the winningest male
athlete in NCAA Division I athletics’ history with a combined 17
national championships in cross country plus indoor and outdoor track
and field. After going pro in September 2017, he set a new PR in the
indoor mile with a win at the 2018 Boston University Valentine
Invitational. Wearing custom Skechers GOrun racing spikes, his time of
3:49.44 placed him at #2 all-time on the world record list for that
distance.
Since its debut with the first model of Skechers GOrun worn by Meb
Keflezighi in 2012, Skechers Performance footwear has earned respect
throughout the running world and won numerous awards within the footwear
industry—including the Skechers GOrun Razor 3 Hyper™ recently being
named Editors’ Choice by Runner’s World. The entire Skechers
GOrun collection for men and women is available at Skechers retail
stores and skechers.com as well as select retail partners.
About Skechers U.S.A., Inc.
Based in Manhattan Beach, California, Skechers (NYSE:SKX) designs,
develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle footwear for men,
women and children, as well as performance footwear for men and women.
Skechers footwear is available in the United States and over 170
countries and territories worldwide via department and specialty stores,
more than 3,000 Skechers Company-owned and third-party-owned retail
stores, and the Company’s e-commerce websites. The Company manages its
international business through a network of global distributors, joint
venture partners in Asia and the Middle East, and wholly-owned
subsidiaries in Canada, Japan, India, throughout Europe and Latin
America. For more information, please visit about.skechers.com and
follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that are made
pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include,
without limitation, Skechers’ future domestic and international growth,
financial results and operations including expected net sales and
earnings, its development of new products, future demand for its
products, its planned domestic and international expansion, opening of
new stores and additional expenditures, and advertising and marketing
initiatives. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of
forward-looking language such as “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,”
“estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project,” “will be,” “will continue,”
“will result,” “could,” “may,” “might,” or any variations of such words
with similar meanings. Any such statements are subject to risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those projected in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause
or contribute to such differences include international economic,
political and market conditions including the challenging consumer
retail markets in the United States; sustaining, managing and
forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any significant
customers; decreased demand by industry retailers and cancellation of
order commitments due to the lack of popularity of particular designs
and/or categories of products; maintaining brand image and intense
competition among sellers of footwear for consumers, especially in the
highly competitive performance footwear market; anticipating,
identifying, interpreting or forecasting changes in fashion trends,
consumer demand for the products and the various market factors
described above; sales levels during the spring, back-to-school and
holiday selling seasons; and other factors referenced or incorporated by
reference in Skechers’ annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2018. The risks included here are not exhaustive. Skechers
operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New
risks emerge from time to time and the companies cannot predict all such
risk factors, nor can the companies assess the impact of all such risk
factors on their respective businesses or the extent to which any
factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ
materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given
these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Moreover,
reported results should not be considered an indication of future
performance.
Media Contact:
Jennifer Clay
Skechers
[email protected]
Source: Skechers U.S.A., Inc.