Nike Pro Elite
2009
Two pieces of graphite-grey kit from a season when “Pro Elite” was a rumour even among collectors — the year of a six-for-six Golden League, a shared million and an American win in New York.
Nike Pro Elite 2009 is the oldest Nike athlete-issue cycle in our archive — matt graphite kit from the last season of the Golden League, issued to contracted athletes and never retailed.
This page reads the team's season first — the circuit, the jackpot, New York and the signing in Oregon — then the cycle's design and both archive pieces.
Part of our Brand Series — the full story is in The History of Nike Pro Elite. Jump to the full cycle collection or browse the category.
- What it is
- The oldest Nike cycle in our archive — graphite athlete issue from 2009
- The circuit
- Golden League: Richards six wins from six over 400 m, 48.83 in Brussels
- The jackpot
- $1M split three ways — Richards, Bekele and Isinbayeva; two of the three in Nike
- Bekele
- Six for six over 5000 m — 12:55.31 to close Brussels
- New York
- Meb Keflezighi 2:09:15, 1 Nov — first American winner since 1982
- The signing
- Galen Rupp turns pro with Nike and joins the Oregon Project
- The nuance
- Fraser: Nike athlete since 2008, Puma federation kit — both true at once
- In our archive
- 2 pieces of the graphite 2009 issue
The Circuit Before the Diamond League
In 2009 the top of the sport was still the Golden League: six meetings, one million dollars for anyone who won their event at all six. Three athletes did it, and two of them raced in Nike. Sanya Richards went six for six over 400 m — 49.57 in Berlin on 14 June, then Oslo, Rome and Paris, 48.94 in Zürich, and 48.83 in Brussels on 4 September, the fastest time run by anyone that year. Kenenisa Bekele, a Nike athlete for more than two decades, matched her over 5000 m and closed Brussels in 12:55.31. They shared the jackpot with Yelena Isinbayeva, $333,333 each.
The six wins (table)
| Date | Meeting | Time | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14 Jun 2009 | Berlin | 49.57 | Win |
| 3 Jul 2009 | Oslo | 49.23 | Win |
| 10 Jul 2009 | Rome | 49.46 | Win |
| 17 Jul 2009 | Paris | 49.34 | Win |
| 28 Aug 2009 | Zürich | 48.94 | Win |
| 4 Sep 2009 | Brussels | 48.83 | Win |
New York, and a Signing in Oregon
The roads gave the Nike season its most American moment. On 1 November, Meb Keflezighi — a Nike athlete then, two years before the brand let his contract lapse and Skechers picked him up — won the New York City Marathon in 2:09:15, the first American man to do it since Alberto Salazar in 1982. Earlier that summer, ahead of the Berlin Worlds, Galen Rupp had turned professional with Nike and joined Salazar's Oregon Project: the signing that would carry the Nike distance programme through the next decade.
One more contract from that year matters to collectors. Shelly-Ann Fraser signed with Nike in 2008 and stayed seventeen years; in September 2025 the brand hung a banner at its Oregon headquarters calling her the most decorated 100 m sprinter in history. On a championship track, though, she wore the Puma kit of Jamaica's federation. Personal sponsorship and federation kit are two different contracts, and knowing which one a garment came from is the first thing this archive checks.
The Berlin World Championships that August belong to the federations, not to this page: Team USA raced them in the Nike kit of USATF and Kenya in the Nike kit of Athletics Kenya, and those medals live in our country histories.
From this cycle · in the archiveNike Pro Elite 2009 Women Competition BriefsThe matching competition briefs of the 2009 allocation — matt grey, one white Swoosh, nothing else.60,00 €View piece →The Kit of the Cycle
The 2009 cycle is the quietest Nike ever issued: graphite on anthracite, matt grey half tights and briefs with nothing but a plain white Swoosh. Pure function, from an era before super-kits, launch events or colourways with names — which is exactly why so little of it survives.
Construction follows the athlete-issue rules our authentication guide covers: competition-weight cloth, race cuts, no retail run. “Pro Elite” is the athlete-channel label collectors use — the programme Nike itself keeps off the shelves. Federation kit is a different contract: what USATF or Athletics Kenya wear at a Worlds lives in our country pages, not here.
From this cycle · in the archiveNike Pro Elite Team 2009 Women Short TightsGraphite short tights from the oldest Nike issue we hold — the era when Pro Elite was a rumour.80,00 €View piece →The Full Cycle in the Archive
Every piece we hold from the 2009 cycle, grouped by edition — in-stock first, sold pieces dimmed and documented, refreshed against live stock. The full brand story is in the Nike pillar.
What is Nike Pro Elite 2009 kit?
Athlete-issue Nike competition kit from the 2009 season — matt graphite half tights and briefs with a plain white Swoosh, issued to contracted athletes and never sold at retail. It is the oldest Nike cycle in our archive: two women's pieces.
What did Nike athletes do on the 2009 circuit?
Sanya Richards won the 400 m at all six Golden League meetings, closing with 48.83 in Brussels, the fastest time of the year, and Kenenisa Bekele did the same over 5000 m. They shared the million-dollar jackpot with Yelena Isinbayeva. On the roads, Meb Keflezighi won the New York City Marathon in 2:09:15, the first American man to win it since 1982.
Was Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce a Nike athlete?
Yes — personally sponsored by Nike from 2008 until her retirement in 2025, a partnership Nike honoured with a banner at its headquarters. On championship tracks she wore Jamaica's Puma federation kit; the two contracts coexist, and knowing the difference is basic kit literacy.
How do I recognise a 2009 Nike athlete-issue piece?
Graphite grey on anthracite, matt finish, a plain white Swoosh and nothing else — no prints, no volt, no branding beyond the mark. Competition cuts with no retail equivalent.
Sources and References
- Wikipedia — 2009 IAAF Golden League — the six meetings and Richards’s six times
- CNN — trio eye $1m jackpot in Golden League finale (4 Sep 2009) — the three-way split, 48.83 and Bekele’s 12:55.31
- Wikipedia — 2009 New York City Marathon — Keflezighi 2:09:15, 1 November 2009
- Wikipedia — Meb Keflezighi — first American winner since Salazar 1982; Nike contract not renewed 2011, Skechers from December 2011
- Wikipedia — Galen Rupp — turned professional in 2009 ahead of the Berlin Worlds
- CITIUS Mag — Bekele leaves Nike after two decades (2023) — Bekele as a Nike athlete for more than twenty years
- Nike honours Fraser-Pryce (2025) — the 17-year Nike partnership dating to 2008, and the Oregon banner
- ESPN — USATF and Nike to 2040 — Nike as USATF’s kit supplier since 1991 — the federation contract, distinct from athlete issue