| Running USA wire 82, October 12, 2005 |
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Contacts: Richard Finn, (212) 423-2229 or Maeve Mullally, (212) 423-2294, NYRR Media Relations Tergat and Keflezighi Declared Fit and Ready to Go at the ING New York City Marathon NEW YORK - (October 12, 2005) - The coaches of world record holder Paul Tergat of Kenya and 2004 Olympic silver medalist Meb Keflezighi of the United States declared their athletes healthy and ready to go at the ING New York City Marathon 2005 in statements released on Wednesday by New York Road Runners officials. Both Tergat, 36, and Keflezighi, 30, had been sidelined by leg injuries since the summer, calling into doubt their fitness for the five-borough race on Sunday, November 6. Tergat suffered a slight hamstring injury last month that forced him to withdraw from two scheduled races in England. From his training site in Kenya, however, Tergat's coach, Dr. Gabriele Rosa, said Tergat is on schedule with his training for his ING New York City Marathon debut. "The problem of Paul Tergat now has been completely overcome," said Rosa. "He's okay now. He feels very good, and he's training together with [fellow ING New York City Marathon entrant] Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot. "For New York, he will be ready to run at a very high level, performing like everyone knows him," continued Rosa. Tergat set the marathon world record of 2:04:55 in Berlin in 2003. Keflezighi suffered a tightening of his right quadriceps muscle during the 10,000 meter final at the IAAF World Championships in Helsinki on August 8. He withdrew from the race and has not competed since. Early last month, Keflezighi resumed training with his Team Running USA coach, Bob Larsen, in Mammoth Lakes, Calif. "Meb is completely recovered," said Larsen. "He is now training hard in Mammoth Lakes. Meb's training is progressing very well. He anticipates being very competitive in his third ING New York City Marathon." Last year, Keflezighi finished second (2:09:53, a personal record) in New York to Hendrik Ramaala (2:09:28), notching the highest finish by an American since Bob Kempainen placed second in 1993. He also won the silver medal in the 2004 Athens Olympic Marathon. The ING New York City Marathon men's field, as formidable and deep as any in the storied history of the race, includes defending champion Ramaala of South Africa, reigning two-time world marathon champion Jaouad Gharib of Morocco, reigning Flora London Marathon champion Martin Lel of Kenya, and 2001 New York champion and course record holder (2:07:43) Tesfaye Jifar of Ethiopia. New York Road Runners The ING New York City Marathon Return to top / Return to main page McGregor Wins USA 10K Road
Title To compliment her 2005 USA 10,000 meter track title, Katie McGregor, 28, of Minneapolis, Minn. added the USA 10K road title by running 32 minutes, 26 seconds to win the 29th Tufts Health Plan 10K in Boston on Monday, October 10. At the Columbus Day tradition, a group of five women ran together thru four miles, before Team USA Minnesota's McGregor and Marie Davenport of Ireland began to pull away. With one hundred meters remaining, McGregor drew clear of Davenport who finished two seconds back in 32:28. McGregor's first national road crown was worth $10,150. "It was the perfect race for me because there was a consistent pace and I had a little bit extra at the end for the final kick in the last 500 meters," said McGregor. "It was anyone's race the whole time. There was a good pack and everyone was being pretty careful not to slip on the wet streets. I was surprised today. I wasn't expecting to win it because I'm just getting back into my training. I took one week completely off in September followed by two weeks of easy running after that." Rounding out the top three in the U.S. women's race were defending champion Amy Yoder Begley, national runner-up in 32:45, and McGregor's teammate Carrie Tollefson, third in 33:00. The USA Women's 10K Championship at Tufts closed the 2005 Women's USA Running Circuit (USARC). Nicole Aish, who won last week's USA Marathon Championship at Twin Cities, is the women's grand prix champion with 43 points. Three-time defending champio n Colleen De Reuck - who was 4th at Sunday's LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon - finished second with 34 points and Team Running USA's Jen Rhines was third (27 points). For more information on the USA Women's 10K Championship and the USARC, visit: USATF.org 29th Tufts Health Plan 10K
for Women: USA Championship 1) Katie McGregor, MN, 32:26, $10,150 MASTERS (40+) For more results, go to: TuftsHealthPlan.com Return to top / Return to main page Contact: Jim Estes, LDR Programs Manager, (317) 261-0500 x315; Jim.Estes@usatf.org Team USA Distance Project Announces Twin Cities Marathon as Silver Sponsor USA Track & Field has announced that the Twin Cities Marathon (TCM) has signed on as a charter member of the Team USA Distance Project. TCM, which hosted the recent USA Marathon Championships, has signed as a Silver Level member for the next five years. As a Silver Level member, the Twin Cities Marathon will provide financial support for the Team USA Distance Project and Team USA training centers around the country. "We are excited that Twin Cities has stepped up to get this very important ball rolling," said USA Track & Field President Bill Roe. "As more events around the country realize the importance of developing new American long distance running stars, we know that Twin Cities will be the first among many. This funding will help us broaden our development program reaching from the 5000 meters to the marathon." A partnership of the Long Distance Running Division of USA Track & Field and major U.S. events and running related corporations, the Team USA Distance Project is devoted to sustaining the long-term development of elite USA distance athletes, enabling them to compete successfully in domestic and international competitions and major championship events. Team USA Distance Center programs such as Team Running USA, Team USA Minnesota, the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project and the Big Sur Distance Project have made significant progress toward bolstering the strength of U.S. long distance running. The newly expanded program will ensure that they are supported through the next quadrennium. With the new support of partners such as TCM, the Team USA Distance Project will provide yearly funding to the existing network of Team USA Distance Centers as well as support athlete and coaching summits leading to major international competitions. This partnership will maintain a collective commitment to developing athletes through the next Olympiad and beyond. The current Team USA Distance Centers that will benefit from this support are Team USA Minnesota, the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project, the Big-Sur Distance Project, Team Running USA and ZAP Fitness. Additional centers may be named at a later time. Find more Team USA Distance Project information at: USATF.org Return to top / Return to main page Contact: Sarah Irvin, (614) 443-4565 or Heather Biddulph, (614) 299-8704 26th Columbus Marathon Set for October 16 COLUMBUS, Ohio - (Oct. 6, 2005) - Thousands of runners and walkers are in final preparation for the 26th running of the Columbus Marathon and Columbus Marathon Relay on Sunday, Oct. 16, 2005. "For the first year ever, we've been forced to cap the Columbus Marathon Relay at 850 teams," said Mike Collins, executive director of the Columbus Marathon. "The relay continues to grow exponentially each year and we're implementing the cap to ensure that all our runners and walkers enjoy a great Columbus Marathon experience." According to Running USA's Road Running Information Center, the 2004 Columbus Marathon was the 18th largest marathon in the United States. To continue its great running tradition, the Columbus Marathon is offering runners and walkers even more fun along the course. A new partnership with the Ohio National Guard will get the marathon started with a full color guard and fly-over. In addition, there will be at least 12 designated Columbus Marathon neighborhood parties along the course sponsored by Panera Bread and barbershop quartets, rock bands, jazz groups, polka bands and more will entertain runners and walkers along the route. The Columbus Marathon weekend kicks off on Friday, Oct. 14 when the Columbus Marathon Expo presented by WOW! Internet and Cable and NewsCenter opens at Battelle Hall from noon to 7:00pm. The Expo will feature more than 60 running and health and fitness related booths, Family Fun Zone with activities for kids of all areas, interactive games including the Ohio National Guard climbing wall, running and walking seminars and participant registration and packet pickup. The Expo will re-open on Saturday, Oct. 15 from 9am-7pm The first-ever Columbus Marathon Ringling Bros. Red Nose Children's Run festivities and registration will begin at 11:30am at Franklin Park, with the actual races taking place at 1:00pm. The shotgun will go off for the 26th running of the Columbus Marathon and Relay at 8:00am Sunday, Oct. 16 in downtown Columbus from the corner of Broad and High St. The wheelchair racers will get an early start at 7:50am. The Columbus Marathon is presented by Nationwide and Discount Drug Mart and supported by WOW! Internet and Cable, ASICS, Delta Airlines and the Ohio National Guard. This year's race will feature more than 5,000 marathon runners, walkers and wheelchair racers, 850 relay teams, 1,800 volunteers and 100,000 spectators. Runners and walkers can still register for the Columbus Marathon, Columbus Marathon Relay and Columbus Marathon Ringling Bros. Red Nose Run online at ColumbusMarathon.com (thru Oct. 14), by mailing in the paper application or in-person at the Columbus Marathon Expo on Friday, Oct. 14 or Saturday, Oct. 15. For more information, please call (614) 421-RUNN or visit ColumbusMarathon.com. Return to top / Return to main page Contact: Steve Shepard, RRCAHouston@aol.com; Jean Knaack, convention@rrca.org Houston Striders to Host the 49th RRCA Annual Convention The Road Runners Club of America is pleased to announce that the Houston Striders will host the 2006 Road Runners Club of America Annual Convention. The 49th annual convention will be held in Houston, Texas March 8-12, 2006 at the Hyatt Regency Houston Hotel in downtown Houston. The annual convention will be hosted in conjunction with the HEB Bayou City Classic 10K, the RRCA National Championship for 2006, which will be run March 11, 2006. The Convention will be packed full of features that
will put the best of Houston, Houston running and the Road Runners Club
of America on display and include: Save the date, March 8-12, 2006, on your calendar and plan to attend the Road Runners Club of America's 49th Annual Convention in Houston, Texas. With the azaleas in full bloom, the weather in Houston during the Convention is expected to be in the mid sixties to low seventies with low humidity! Please visit RRCA.org for information on registration and to visit the official 49th Annual Conference website. For more information on the Houston Striders, visit HoustonStriders.com and also visit the HEB Bayou City Classic website at BayouCityClassic.org to learn more about the RRCA 10K National Championship. Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Services Director (805) 696-6232, fax (805) 696-6252 |