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High-Performance Babolat Tennis Shoe With Michelin Sole Debuts in U.S. The Team All Court Shoe Selected by Tennis Champion, Andy Roddick

New York — Leaders in their respective markets, Babolat and Michelin have combined their expertise, passion for innovation and resources to develop the first tennis shoe with a Michelin sole for sale in the United States.

Babolat, tennis specialists since 1875, began the project by analyzing tennis players’ movements and their specific needs on different types of playing surfaces.

“When we started thinking about the sole, it was quite natural for us to turn to Michelin - the recognized experts in managing ground contact,” said Eric Babolat, president and CEO of Babolat. “After our first meeting we realized that our business philosophies, heritage of innovation, technical resources and mutual desire to improve the performance of tennis enthusiasts would complement one another and make for a successful partnership.”

With the technical expertise of Michelin, a special outsole was jointly developed that combines side-to-side boosting, shock absorption and comfort, with abrasion resistance for top performance during play.

The Team All Court is the first in what will be a six-model line of durable, high-performance tennis shoes sold in the United States. Andy Roddick, 2003 U.S. Open Champion, recently signed an agreement to wear Babolat tennis shoes starting in January 2006. Roddick has played with Babolat racquets and strings since he was a Junior. The 2005 French Open runner-up Mariano Puerta is already wearing Babolat shoes.

“Babolat has always been there for me and I’m glad to expand this relationship into shoes”, said Andy Roddick. “Footwork is a critical part of today’s game. I look forward to working together with the Babolat and Michelin teams to develop shoe technologies that will give me the edge over my opponents.”

The Team All Court ($99.00 MSRP) will be debuting in the United States in late August. In March 2006, the full line of Babolat tennis shoes will be available in the U.S. via a network of tennis and pro specialty retailers. At that time, five additional models of Babolat tennis shoes will be added, including two women’s, two additional men’s and one junior model.

Launched in France, Spain, Italy, Germany and Austria in 2003, then in Japan, Brazil, and other markets in 2004, the Babolat line of tennis shoes has already achieved outstanding success. With its high level of technical performance, the innovative Babolat-Michelin partnership, the excellent adaptation of the concept to the players’ needs and its attractive design, the Babolat Team All Court has become a best seller among avid tennis players. According to the Sports Marketing Survey, a dealer’s opinion survey for Europe, Babolat tennis shoes are the number one selling shoe for both premium and junior categories at tennis specialty shops.

About Babolat
Inventor of tennis strings 130 years ago in France, Babolat is one of the world leaders in tennis racquets. Today, with U.S. operations centered in Boulder, Colorado, the Babolat brand provides players with a complete range of tennis equipment from racquets, strings and accessories to shoes and bags. Distributed in over 100 countries, Babolat is the #1 racquet & strings brand used by the Top 100 ATP & WTA players, including Andy Roddick, Rafael Nadal, the 2005 French Open Champion, Carlos Moya and Kim Clijsters. To find out where Babolat products are sold, log on to www.babolat.com or call 877.316.9435.