| Running USA wire 87, October 30, 2005 |
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Garcia, Kvasnicka Win Marine
Corps Marathon ARLINGTON, Va. - (October 30, 2005) - Carl Rundell already is talking about running next year's Marine Corps Marathon. And for the 37-year-old Birmingham, Mich., resident, maybe the third time will be the charm. "I keep taking a step closer," said Rundell, fifth in 2004 and runner-up on Sunday morning. "I tried all the way." When asked seconds after he crossed the finish line - just 9 seconds off the winner - if he would come back again next year, he quickly replied: "Heck yeah. I moved up three places today." But it wasn't enough to take the 30th Marine Corps Marathon. Ruben Garcia of Mexico gapped him up the ramp onto the 14th Street Bridge at Mile 20 and Rundell never recovered. Garcia hit the tape in 2 hours, 22 minutes, 14 seconds ahead of a record 20,045 starters and more than 19,100 finishers. The women's race was anything but close. Susannah Kvasnicka, running in her second marathon in four weeks, virtually led from the start and won by nearly three minutes in 2:47:07. Kvasnicka, from nearby Great Falls, Va., sliced 50 seconds off her time from the Twin Cities Marathon on October 2. "I have to have my head examined," she joked at the finish line. "I really didn't have expectations. I've never done this before (back-to-back marathons). I planned that at about 10 miles if I didn't feel well to drop out." It was her first victory in seven marathons and a personal record. The big difference between Twin Cities and Sunday was the weather, which reached the 70s at Twin Cities and just the pleasant 60s here. While the 33-year-old Kvasnicka ran uncontested, Garcia and Rundell broke away from a large pack by the half-marathon, which they recorded at 1:11:54. They played cat-and-mouse for much of the 26.2-mile race, testing each other with a 5:10 14th mile as they passed Washington's historic monuments. Until the ramp, Garcia, the #8 ranked Mexican marathoner by the Association of Road Racing Statisticians, quickly put 15 meters on Rundell, and while Rundell would get as close as six seconds in the latter stages, he never could catch Garcia. "He wasn't going to give up," said Garcia about Rundell through an interpreter. "So keeping up was hard. Mile 24 was the hardest (when his hamstring tightened). Only when I reached the finish line did I know I would win." Garcia was the first Mexican to win Marine Corps since 1996. The Mexican military dominated here from 1991-96, triumphant four times and stacking the top 10. This year, Garcia, a Navy corporal, led a 1-5-6-10 Navy finish. Liz Wilson of Eugene, Ore., a two-time Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier ('00/'04) who decided to run the day before the race, was second among the women in 2:49:55, while Emily Brozozowski of Savannah, Ga., was third in 2:54:55. 30th Marine Corps Marathon MEN MASTERS Men (40+) WOMEN MASTERS Women (40+) For full results, go to: MarineMarathon.com Return to top / Return to main page First-Ever Ultramarathon International
Dual Meet on American Soil The San Diego One-Day Race, site of this year's American 24 Hour Run National Championship on November 12-13, 2005, will make history this year by additionally hosting the first-ever ultramarathon international dual meet on American soil. The all-day/all-night event, the longest national championship race in U.S. distance running, will be highlighted by a history-making, head-to-head match between American & Japanese national teams. The 2004 World 24 Hour Run Men's and Women's Champions and all-time Asian 24 hour record holders, Ryoichi Sekiya and Sumie Inagaki, will lead their Japanese teammates on this landmark trip to the USA's west coast, where they will circle the certified one-mile road loop at San Diego's oceanside Hospitality Point nonstop for 24 consecutive hours, along with 80 Americans vying simultaneously for their own national title. AMERICAN TEAM Stephanie Ehret, 42, Boulder, CO JAPANESE TEAM Sumie Inagaki, 39, Kasugai, Aichi, Japan Sekiya and Inagaki are the overwhelming individual favorites in the race. Sekiya (personal best 167.3 miles) ranks 12th among men on the all-time world 24 Hour list, Inagaki (personal best 147.5 miles) 5th among women. Sekiya has finished 2nd, 1st and 4th in the three World 24 Hour Run Championships held to-date, Inagaki has finished 1st and 3rd in the two which she has run. The Japanese have proven to be a formidable team presence at the World 24 Hour as well. In the three years of the world title event's existence, both their men's and women's national teams have never failed to medal (top 3 finishes) and their men's team won gold at the 2005 event in July. But the American men are fielding their strongest team ever in international competition. The established team leader (with a personal best of over 157 miles) is three-time ultra national champ John Geesler. Geesler has also been the top American finisher in the World 24 Hour event every year it has been held. But virtually any of the American men could be top American on any given day. Five of the six men's team members have at least one national 24 Hour title to their credit. Relative youngster Joe Gaebler has the strongest credential, having run over 162 miles to take the 2003 national title exactly two years ago. Gaebler went into a temporary early retirement right after that, but recently made a strong comeback by taking a close second (to Peterson) in the national 100 mile championship in September. The likely leaders of the American women's squad are Stephanie Ehret, Rebecca Johnson and Pam Reed. Reed and Johnson are former national 24 Hour champions, and Reed and Ehret have each been the top American woman at the World 24 Hour, Ehret having notched the highest ever individual place by an American, 3rd (bronze medal) in the 2004 world title event. In that race, she became only the third American women ever to run over 140 miles. But Johnson has been on an upswing for the past full year and recently won the national 100 mile title in an event record. The field's sentimental favorite is recently retired dentist Sue Ellen Trapp of Fort Myers, Fla., who will be competing on the American women's team just six months shy of her 60th birthday. She outdoes Roy Pirrung by two years as the most senior athlete ever named to an Open national team. Trapp has been racing ultramarathons at the world-class level since 1978. During her nonpareil athletic career, she has set four absolute women's world records in a 17-year span at events ranging from 50 miles to 48 hours. She still holds the absolute American women's 24 Hour record of 145.2 miles. Trapp had been inactive for the past three years due to a series of injuries, but is now healthy and on her way back to top form. Trapp is joined as a national team member by fellow 59-year-old Japanese Tomohiko Yaegashi, the pair serving as testament to delayed effect of aging on athletic performance in long-range ultra competition. In fact, counting all of the national team members from both countries, and removing the anomalous youngster Gaebler from the equation (the exception which proves the rule?), the average age of these world-class athletes is over 45 years old. Further information on the event, including live progress reports during the race and results immediately afterwards, can be found on the websites of the American Ultrarunning Association and the host event at: AmericanUltra.org or SanDiego1DayRace.com Return to top / Return to main page Austin Marathon Foundation Announces Freescale Austin Marathon Olympic Development Program AUSTIN, Texas - (October 27, 2005) - The Austin Marathon Foundation has announced that the Freescale Austin Marathon - slated for February 19, 2006 - is implementing a unique and innovative support program for athletes trying to qualify for the 2008 Olympic Trials. Offering perfect running weather, a supportive race staff and a new, faster course, the Freescale Austin Marathon offers a great opportunity for Olympic Trials hopefuls to attain the qualifying standard early in the qualifying period. The dreams for future Olympians start in Austin. Austin is FAST Austin is Cool How the Elite Athlete Program Works A Qualified Athlete Receives: The Freescale Austin Marathon is committed to doing everything possible to help U.S. athletes attain the Olympic Trials standard. For more information about the Freescale Austin Marathon Olympic Development Program, contact Greg McMillan at greg@freescaleaustinmarathon.com or (877) 478-4265. For more information about the Freescale Austin Marathon, go to: FreescaleAustinMarathon.com Return to top / Return to main page Contact: Chris Brienza, (212) 808-1358; Chris.Brienza@Rodale.com Runner's World Named to Ad Age's Magazine A-List NEW YORK - (October 25, 2005) - Runner's World magazine last week was one of only 10 magazines selected to Advertising Age's 2005 Magazine A-List, the coveted annual ranking of the publishing industry's top titles based on circulation, ad pages, editorial excellence and buzz in the buying community. Runner's World came in at number seven overall, cited by the Ad Age editors in particular because it has "leveraged its core mission to draw in" a strong advertising presence among non-endemic brands in particular. This marks the first year in its 39 years that Runner's World, which will close the year with records for both ad revenue and ad pages for the third straight year, has been selected to the A-List Runner's World was the only sports title named to
the list. The complete Ad Age 2005 Magazine A-List is: The Ad Age honor caps a historic year for Runner's World, which began with the magazine being one of only a handful of titles to earn multiple nominations for the 2005 National Magazine Awards, the highest editorial honor in the industry. Runner's World has also already been ranked number one overall on Adweek magazine's 2005 "Hot List" for titles with less than $50 million in revenue the previous year, and Runner's World's creative team, led by Design Director Robert Festino, was selected by Adweek as its Creative Team of the Year for 2005 above all others in the industry. This marks the third straight year that Runner's World has grown ad revenue by at least 30% and ad pages by at least 10%, a streak only three other magazines - US Weekly, Real Simple and Elle Girl - have matched. Runner's World has also already announced that it will increase its circulation rate base from 600,000 to 615,000 as of January 2006, marking the 10th straight year it has increased rate base and a jump of more than 18% since year-end 2003. "It's a tremendous honor to have Runner's World recognized by Advertising Age as one of the top magazine properties," said VP/Publisher Andrew Hersam. "It's especially gratifying that at a time when the media landscape is so celebrity driven, so dominated by glam and gossip, Runner's World has broken through with best-in-class compelling narrative, solid service journalism and clean, sophisticated visual energy. "This has attracted the youngest, most affluent, most active audience of any magazine. An audience that serves our advertisers very well." About Rodale's Runner's World
Return to top / Return to main page Contact: Cher Cox, (312) 505-7555; CCox@devineracing.com Devine Racing Elevates Steve Miller to CEO CHICAGO - (October 26, 2005) - Less than two months after joining Devine Racing as President / COO, Steve Miller, former Director of Global Sports Marketing and 10-year veteran at Nike, has been named President and Chief Executive Officer for Devine Racing. Co-founder Chris Devine made the announcement stating, "Steve Miller has proven to be every bit the leader we expected him to be. Giving him the title of CEO now allows Steve to perform all of his duties without any constraints. From a business standpoint, as we acquire more events and gain critical mass globally, he has the credentials and qualities to get the job done. He's proven that he's got what it takes to deal at the CEO level with all our current and future partners." Established to bring a new level of quality and professionalism to amateur road racing events in major market cities, Devine Racing currently owns the Los Angeles Marathon, the "New" Las Vegas Marathon, which will make its inaugural run down the famed Las Vegas Strip on Sunday, December 4, the Salt Lake City Marathon, the Chicago Half Marathon and the Chicago BIG 10K. Committed to the celebration of individual accomplishment, Devine Racing believes it has the responsibility to deliver the highest level of professional service in the industry - for participants, sponsors and the communities where races are held. This obligation stems from Devine Racing co-founder Chris Devine's passion for running and respect for all runners. Building a consistently exceptional experience for the athletes is the focus of Devine's business, thus growing the value associated with competitive distance running for all involved. For further information on Devine Racing, visit the website at DevineRacing.com or call (312) 640-9700. Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Services Director (805) 696-6232, fax (805) 696-6252 |