NATION

In a surprise move Nike Vice President Robert J. Strasser resigned on Friday, effective immediately.

The company, based in Beaverton, Ore., called the resignation “amicable.”

But the 39-year-old marketing executive could not be reached for comment. Once called “the man who saved Nike,” Strasser was considered instrumental in engineering a turnaround in the company’s fortunes in 1985, partly by introducing Nike’s popular “Air Jordan” line of sneakers and athletic clothing.