Relay Team of Twelve Americans Complete 3,200 Mile Journey Across the United States as Part of Sportline Steps Across America

LOS ANGELES, July 13 /PRNewswire/ -- On July 18th, Sportline, America's No. 1 brand of pedometers and walking accessories, will wrap up Sportline Steps Across America, a Wal-Mart program that is part of their "Every Day Well-Being" initiative dedicated to spreading the word about the benefits of walking with a pedometer as part of a fit, active lifestyle. The grand finale will take place at Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica, California from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. where the walkers will be welcomed home by Championship Figure Skater Peggy Flemming and commended by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Beginning on April 18th, the Sportline Steps Across America team of 12 Americans and Cabo, a team dog (sponsored by Iams(R)), left New York City on a journey across the United States to encourage Americans to walk with a pedometer for increased health and fitness. To support this effort, specially made Sportline pedometers were created to track the steps taken over more than 3,200 miles in 107 days.

The 12 National Walkers were specially chosen from over 300 people to participate in the program. They hail from Atlanta, Ga., Myrtle Beach, S.C., Coronado, Calif., Los Angeles, Calif., Dallas, Texas, Miami, Fla., Sacramento, Calif., Herndon, Va., Batesville, Ark., Ventura, Calif., and Sedona, Ariz. and range in age from 22 years old to 65 years old. Their inspirational message is important for all Americans: It's easy to step into a more active lifestyle by walking for health, fitness, and fun!

The Surgeon General's HHS Report calls for adults to engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate activity on five or more days each week. Small steps, such as 30 minutes of walking a day can greatly improve health.(1) National Walker Adrienne Wilson of Los Angeles, California, can attest to the motivation of walking with a pedometer, "Prior to stepping across America I really hadn't used a pedometer. Now that I walk with one every day I find myself looking to gain more and more steps each day. It truly helps to set goals." In addition to carrying a Sportline pedometer, each of the National Walkers carried a TracFone prepaid wireless phone to keep in touch with family and friends every step of way.

Along the way, the team has been stopping to participate in "Every Day Well-Being" Expos at Wal-Mart locations on their coast-to-coast route. These events included free health tips, wellness and walking information.

Additionally, the walkers have hosted local "meet and greets" at schools, town halls, and community centers along the walking route teaching thousands of children the benefits of walking as part of a fit, active lifestyle. Their public services efforts were commended by more than seven city mayors who declared "Sportline Steps Across America Day" in their hometowns in recognition of the program's efforts to bring physical fitness and health into their communities.

"Sportline Steps Across America has motivated American's across the country to get up and walk to achieve an overall healthier lifestyle," said Brian Anderson, President of Sportline. "Along the route, the twelve National Walkers conducted more than 140 Educational sessions about the benefits of walking for physical fitness at Elementary Schools and Community Centers. These efforts have helped us to reach more 17,000 children and encouraged them to walk as part of their everyday fitness regime."

Sportline(R) is the Title Sponsor of Steps Across America and TracFone Prepaid Wireless is Presenting Sponsor in cooperation with Wal-Mart and in association with: 7-Up(R) 100% Natural, Centrum(R), Coppertone(R), IAMS(R), Image Fitness, Jif(R) / Smucker's(R), Kodak, Os-Cal(R), PayDay PRO, Weight Watcher's(R) Smart Ones(R), & Wisk(R). Other sponsors include: Advil(R), Alavert(R), Jennie-O Turkey Store(R), Carnation(R) Instant Breakfast(R) from NESTLE, and Otis Spunkmeyer(R). Sportline Steps Across America is an official sponsor of the President's Council for Physical Fitness and Sports 50th Anniversary.

At http://www.stepsacross.com/ visitors can still log-on to learn about the Walkers, read their online diaries, track their progress, find out where to attend special events along the walking route, find out the number of steps taken to date, see photos of the walkers and of the tour, sign up to take the Steps Across America President's Challenge and more.

Steps Across America is a registered trademark of CoActive Marketing Group, .

About Sportline

Sportline has been designing, developing and manufacturing Personal Fitness Monitors for 20 years, distributing them primarily in the sports and active recreational markets as well as through private brand channels. The strength of the Sportline product collection is a result of the company's commitment to design and development focused on quality and innovation. Sportline leads the Fitness Electronics industry across a wide range of product categories from performance pedometers, accelerometers and sport timers to heart rate and hydration monitors. Additionally, the company markets a broad line of fitness walking accessories offering unique storage, safety and reflective solutions. For more information on Sportline, visit us website at http://www.sportline.com/.

About TracFone Wireless, Inc.

TracFone Wireless, based in Miami, Florida, is America's largest prepaid wireless service provider and was the first prepaid wireless MVNO in the U.S. In 1996, the company was the first to introduce a pay-as-you-go wireless service with no contracts, no hidden taxes or fees and no monthly bills. Its prepaid wireless service incorporates a customer-friendly, cost-control feature that displays the exact remaining airtime balance on the phone. TracFone Wireless is a subsidiary of America Movil , , Latin America's largest mobile phone provider, with more than 93 million cellular subscribers across the continent. For more information on TracFone Wireless, visit the web site at http://www.tracfone.com/.

About Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Wal-Mart is committed to helping our customers take care of their health. Every Day Well-Being initiatives highlight health and wellness topics and make them relevant to our customers. Every Day Well-Being is a service mark of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., which operates Wal-Mart Stores, Supercenters, Neighborhood Markets and SAM'S CLUB locations in the United States. The company also operates in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Germany, Guatemala, Japan, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, South Korea and the United Kingdom. The company's securities are listed on the New York and Pacific stock exchanges under the symbol WMT. More information about Wal-Mart can be found by visiting http://www.walmartfacts.com/. Online merchandise sales are available at http://www.walmart.com/.

About President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports

Established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 as the President's Council on Youth Fitness, the Council was later expanded to include Americans of all ages and abilities. Today, the Council is a federal advisory committee of up to twenty members, who recommend programs and initiatives on physical activity, fitness and sports to the President through the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). President George W. Bush established the HealthierUS initiative in 2002 to stress prevention through healthy lifestyle choices, including daily physical activity, sound nutrition, preventive screenings, and safe behaviors. For information about the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, go to http://www.fitness.gov/. To start a physical activity and fitness program, log on to http://www.stepsacross.com/ and sign up to take the President's Challenge.

(1) Butler RN, Davis R, Lewis CB, et al. Physical fitness: benefits of exercising for the older patient. Geriatrics 53(10):46-62. 1998. http://aspe.hhs.gov/health/reports/physicalactivity/index.shtml Media Contact: Lindsay Fowlston (212) 704-8153 lindsay.fowlston@edelman.com