The Women's Sports Foundation Announces Advanta, ESPN, Gatorade, Moving Comfort, a Division of the Russell Corporation and the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company as Presenters for the 25th Annual Women's Sports Foundation Awards Dinner.

NEW YORK -- Event To Raise An Estimated $1 Million For Nonprofit Organization 

The Women's Sports Foundation(R) today announced Advanta, ESPN, Gatorade, Moving Comfort and The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company as co-presenter sponsors of the organization's 25th Annual Salute to Women in Sports Awards Dinner on Monday, October 18, at the Waldorf=Astoria in New York City.

"The Women's Sports Foundation is thrilled to have five amazing corporations on board for our largest fundraiser of the year. Advanta, ESPN, Gatorade, Moving Comfort and the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company have demonstrated that they are socially responsible companies committed to advancing the health and wellness of girls and women through sports and fitness," said Dawn Riley, Women's Sports Foundation President. "We recognize and applaud their sincere dedication and passion to this cause and appreciate their collaboration with our efforts."

The Annual Salute to Women in Sports Awards Dinner gathers the most decorated and celebrated female athletes together with celebrities from film and television to show support for the efforts of the Foundation, honor legendary heroes and to celebrate the best individual and team performances of the year. This annual event is expected to raise more than $1 million for grassroots programming for girls' and women's sports. Nearly 100 outstanding female athletes are expected to attend, including Women's Sports Foundation Founder and Honorary Chair Billie Jean King (tennis), legendary athletes Donna de Varona (swimming), Nancy Lieberman (basketball), Lyn St. James (auto racing) and Julie Krone (horse racing) as well as champion athletes Natalie Coughlin (swimming), Dominique Dawes (gymnastics), Julie Foudy (soccer), Lisa Fernandez (softball) Misty May and Kerri Walsh (volleyball).

As a first year co-presenter, Advanta is promoting the important role women in business can play in encouraging girls and female athletes. As one of the largest credit card issuers to small business owners, Advanta communicates to millions of women in business every year and is developing programs with Women's Sports Foundation to encourage business women to serve as mentors to young girls.

"Advanta is proud to support the Women's Sports Foundation as they relentlessly strive to support and encourage the leadership potential and well-being of girls and women through sports and physical activity. Since its inception, Advanta has been particularly sensitive to the challenges women face in business and athletics. In fact, Advanta began its business by offering credit opportunities to women. Over 50 years later we continue to avidly support women through our relationship with the Women's Sports Foundation. We congratulate the Women's Sports Foundation, Billie Jean King and all those women being honored for their hard work, strength and courage. We look with hope to the future generations of women who will benefit and be motivated by their achievements."

- Dennis Alter, Chairman and CEO, Advanta.

Advanta focuses on the small business market and related community, providing funding and support to the nation's small businesses through innovative products and services. Using its direct marketing and information based expertise, Advanta identifies potential customers and provides a high level of service tailored to the unique needs of small business. Advanta is one of the nation's largest issuers (through Advanta Bank Corp.) of MasterCard business credit cards to small businesses. Since 1951, Advanta has pioneered many of the marketing techniques common in the financial services industry today, including remote lending and direct mail, affinity and relationship marketing. Learn more about Advanta at www.advanta.com. Advanta will continue its longstanding commitment to supporting the success of women in business by launching a suite of work/life balance programs that help busy women achieve maximum performance through a healthy, active lifestyle. Advanta provides financial support and resources with a focus on community development, the arts, health and human services and education through its Advanta Foundation that was established in 1990.

A benefactor of the fundraiser since its inception, ESPN will partner with the Women's Sports Foundation dinner for the fourth consecutive year.

"Women's sports have been part of ESPN's fabric for each of our 25 years. We are committed to continually showcasing the spectacular achievements of the world-class athletes celebrated. Together with ABC Sports and ABC News, we salute our friend and colleague Robin Roberts, along with the other honorees, and wish the Women's Sports Foundation continued success."

- George Bodenheimer, President, ESPN, Inc. and ABC Sports

ESPN, the year-round leader in women's sports television coverage, features a wide variety of events and sports, including women's basketball, soccer, golf, tennis, figure skating, softball, action sports and much more. ESPN, Inc., is the world's leading multinational, multimedia sports entertainment company featuring a portfolio of over 40 multimedia sports assets. The company is comprised of seven domestic television networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes (to be launched around the new year), ESPN Now, ESPN Today), ESPN HD (a high-definition simulcast service of ESPN), ESPN Regional Television, ESPN International (networks and syndication), ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, ESPN The Magazine, SportsTicker, ESPN Enterprises, ESPN Zones (8 sports-themed restaurants), and other growing new businesses including ESPN Broadband, ESPN Wireless, ESPN Video-on-Demand, ESPN Interactive and ESPN PPV. Based in Bristol, Ct., ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc., which is an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. The Hearst Corporation holds a 20 percent interest in ESPN.

As the sponsor of the Foundation's GoGirlGo! educational program and the Ambassador/Scholarship program for physically active leaders between the ages of 13-18 who contribute to both their school and their community, Gatorade is a co-presenter of the Dinner for the third straight year.

"When people ask us why we are such passionate partners of the Women's Sports Foundation, we have a very simple answer. Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly and the U.S. women's soccer team, Lisa Leslie and the U.S. women's basketball team, Kerri Walsh and her volleyball teammates. The U.S. women's softball team, Candace Parker, Alyson Felix, Heather O'Reilly, swimmers, gymnasts, divers, runners and anyone else who suits up every four years and every day in between. No one gives young girls the chance to be world-class athletes and world-class women like the Women's Sports Foundation. That is why we are here now and always will be."

- Cindy Alston, Vice President, Equity Communications, The Gatorade Company

Gatorade(R) Thirst Quencher, the nation's leading sports drink, is backed by 35 years of research. Gatorade is scientifically formulated and athletically proven to quench thirst, replace fluids and electrolytes and provide carbohydrate energy to enhance athletic performance. Gatorade was born on the football fields at the University of Florida and is the official sports drink of the NFL, NBA, WNBA, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, US Soccer, WUSA and numerous professional, collegiate and amateur teams and events throughout the world. Gatorade is manufactured by PepsiCo Beverages and Foods, a division of PepsiCo. For more information, visit www.gatorade.com.

Through its continued support of athletic performance, Moving Comfort, a division of Russell Corporation, will be a co-presenter at the Foundation's annual dinner for the second year in a row.

"For nearly 30 years, Moving Comfort and the Women's Sports Foundation have shared the same vision of encouraging and motivating women through sports and physical activity. We are proud to have the opportunity to continue our support of women athletes as a national partner of the Women's Sports Foundation and GoGirlGo! As a co-presenter of the Salute to Women in Sports Awards Dinner, we join others in honoring the award winners for their amazing accomplishments as athletes and as women. The phenomenal women honored at the awards dinner inspire women of all ages through their athletic endeavors and their strength of character. At Moving Comfort, we believe 'a fit woman is a powerful woman,' and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to honor and support this group of truly powerful women."

- Cheryl Barre, President, Russell Women's Division

Since 1977 when Moving Comfort introduced the first women's specific running apparel, it has been a leader in developing technically superior athletic gear for women. Led by founders Ellen Wessel and Elizabeth Goeke, the Chantilly, Virginia-based company designs and engineers sport bras, underwear, shorts, tops, pants and outerwear. "A fit woman is a powerful woman(R)," is Moving Comfort's mantra and its guiding principle. The brand is distributed nationwide through sporting goods, outdoor, travel and running specialty stores. In 2002, Moving Comfort was acquired by the Russell Corporation and will launch a merchandise program where a portion of the proceeds of Moving Comfort products sold through retail, catalog and online will go toward GoGirlGo! grants.

Another first time co-presenter, The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, has come on board as a national sponsor and headed up, in conjunction with the Foundation, the SportsGirl Award program. They have honored 50 young females, one per state, who excel in their sport and demonstrate leadership skills on and off the field and will continue to support the advancement of girls in sport.

"The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company is a proud first time sponsor of the Women's Sports Foundation and GoGirlGo! As a co-presenter of the Annual Salute to Women in Sports Awards Dinner, Wrigley shares in the mission of advancing the lives of girls and women.

We stand behind the powerful movement started by Billie Jean King and are firm believers that today's young girls are tomorrow's future leaders. Championing the award for SportsGirl 2004 is a direct reflection of our commitment to the passionate salute of today's inspired young girls."

-Melanie Domer, Director, Consumer Marketing, The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company

For more than 100 years, the spirit of innovation has made Wrigley one of the world's best known and best loved companies today, with exciting new products, new markets and new ideas. Though publicly traded since 1923, the company has been led by the Wrigley family since it was founded in 1891 by William Wrigley Jr. In all, four generations of Wrigleys have led the company. Wrigley products are a part of everyday life in more than 180 countries around the world. For all its success worldwide, Wrigley's values have not changed. They believe in treating everyone - consumers, employees, partners, distributors, retailers and the community at large - with trust, dignity and respect.

Founded in 1974 by Billie Jean King, the Women's Sports Foundation is a national charitable educational organization seeking to advance the lives of girls and women through sports and physical activity. The Foundation's Participation, Education, Advocacy, Research and Leadership programs are made possible by gifts from individuals, foundations and corporations. The Foundation is located in Nassau County, N.Y. For more information, please call the Foundation at 800-227-3988 or visit www.WomensSportsFoundation.org, www.GoGirlGo.com or AOL Keyword: WSF.