Sealy Supports America's Best

    ARCHDALE, N.C., June 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Sealy, the largest bedding
 manufacturer in the world and the Official Mattress Supplier of the 2004 U.S.
 Olympic Team, is leveraging its Olympic supplier status to align itself with
 some of the best American athletes competing in the XXVIII Olympiad in Athens,
 Greece, to be held August 13-29.
     Through its "Sealy Supports America's Best" program, Sealy has signed
 sponsorship agreements with 12 athletes across a range of popular Olympic
 sports, including track & field, swimming and women's soccer.  In addition to
 providing each athlete with a new Sealy Posturepedic mattress set, Sealy is
 also providing funds to help offset their training expenses.  "Each athlete in
 the program has an excellent chance to earn a spot on The U.S. Olympic Team
 and potentially win a medal in their respective sport," according to David
 Evans, Vice President of Marketing Communications at Sealy.  Sealy's Hopefuls
 program will create additional excitement for the upcoming Games with
 consumers and Sealy employees, and especially for Sealy's retailers.
     "Sealy is proud to support some of our country's best athletes, and we
 look forward to watching them compete in Athens," said Evans.  "This Olympic
 program benefits our retail partners by providing them with timely, eye-
 catching point-of-sale materials that feature the 12 athletes who comprise our
 Olympic Hopefuls team.  It also gives retail sales associates some common
 ground on which to talk to customers, as Sealy has selected athletes in the
 most popular and most talked about Olympic sports."
     Sealy will be featuring the program in select trade advertising and in a
 special micro-site on its Sealy.com website, beginning later this summer.  The
 athletes participating in Sealy's Olympic program are (bios available on
 request):
 
      Amy Acuff, track & field
      Catherine Reddick, soccer
      Eric Fonoimoana, beach volleyball
      Ian Crocker, swimming
      Jennie Finch, softball
      Laura Wilkinson, diving
      Lenny Krayzelburg, swimming
      Logan Tom, indoor volleyball
      Morgan Hamm, gymnastics
      Neil Walker, swimming
      Toccara Montgomery, women's wrestling
      Tyree Washington, track & field
 
     In addition to the Olympic athletes program, Sealy recently began airing
 four new national Olympic-themed television spots.  The spots are set in
 athletic training center dorm rooms and spoof the ways Olympic athletes might
 get into bed using the physical attributes of their respective sports.  In
 each spot, the athletes fall into deep, restful sleep after experiencing the
 comfort of a Sealy Posturepedic.
 
     Sealy, Inc.
     Sealy is the largest bedding manufacturer in the world.  In the U.S.,
 Sealy serves more than 7,000 retail outlets in all 50 states.  Including its
 subsidiaries, Sealy has 31 manufacturing plants in the United States, Canada,
 France, Italy, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico.  There are a total of 12
 international licensees operating in Spain, Portugal, Australia, Israel,
 Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Saudi Arabia, Japan, New Zealand, Thailand, South
 Africa, the Bahamas and the United Kingdom.  In addition to its licensees,
 Sealy has a joint venture in Southeast Asia and Korea.
     Sealy produces and sells a full range of mattresses under the Sealy, Sealy
 Posturepedic(R), Stearns & Foster and Bassett brand names.  Sealy-branded
 licensed products include: crib mattresses, sheets, pillows, mattress pads and
 comforters, office chairs, futons and sleep sofas.  More information on Sealy,
 Inc. can be accessed at http://www.sealy.com.
 
     Contact:
      Kris Kriofske
      336.774.9229
      kris.kriofske@mullen.com
 
 

SOURCE  Sealy, Inc.