The 2006 USA Track & Field Award Winners

INDIANAPOLIS - At the 28th Annual USA Track & Field Convention this past week, a plethora of honors and awards were distributed. Below are the big winners:

JESSE OWENS AWARD
Sanya Richards, sprints
Jeremy Wariner, sprints

HALL OF FAME
Lynn Jennings, distance
Dan O'Brien, decathlon
Kevin Young, hurdles
Rex Cawley, hurdles
Ben Eastman, middle distance
Matt McGrath, hammer throw
Bill Nieder, shot put
Ollan Cassell, sprints / administrator

GIEGENGACK AWARD
Dr. David Martin, Atlanta, GA

HELIODORO & PATRICIA RICO LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Pat and Heliodoro Rico, Croton-on-Hudson, NY

PRESIDENT'S AWARDS
USATF President Bill Roe honored 12 USATF contributors with President's Awards during Wednesday night's 2006 Annual Meeting Opening Session. Below are the honorees.

Cliff Bosley - Race Director, Bolder Boulder 10K

The Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women - Includes the Celebration of Health and Fitness including a 1K Walk for Kids, Pre-Race Aerobics, a Post-Race Stretch, as well as a sports massage, body composition testing, cholesterol screenings and literature distribution on how to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Twin Cities Marathon - Often referred to as the "nation's most beautiful urban marathon", Twin Cities has built a strong two-day series of events, most of which finish on the capitol campus in St. Paul.

Lawson Van Kuren - Event organizer, youth athletics enthusiast, association administrator

Inez Finch - She has served her Association down in Georgia in a variety of capacities, and currently is the Club Contact.

Ken Ferguson - Law & Legislation committee member, restructuring task force member

Curt Clausen - Three-time Olympian, athlete advocate and a race walking proponent; Budget and Law & Legislation committee member

Brenda Taylor - 2004 Olympian, restructuring task force member

Mark Timmons - Coaches Advisory member of Law & Legislation, Cross Country enthusiast

Linda Melzer - Officials chair, long-time USATF official

Linda Phelps - Association officer, national committee and task force member, regional coordinator, official, administrator and Youth chair

Pete Rhinehart - Chairman of USATF's Audit Committee, formulator of initial USATF Code of Ethics

OTHER AWARDS
Visa Humanitarian Athlete-of-the-Year
Lauryn Williams, Miami, FL

Nike Coach-of-the-Year
Clyde Hart, Waco, TX

Youth Athlete-of-the-Year
Gabrielle Mayo, Raleigh, NC

Masters Athlete-of-the-Year
Bill Collins, Houston, TX

At the annual Awards Breakfast on Saturday, December 2, USATF's distance running committees also presented the following 2006 award winners for their contributions to the sport.

USATF Distance Running Awards

MEN'S LDR
Robert E. DeCelle Memorial Award
(Outstanding Male Long Distance Runner)
Dan Lincoln, Fayetteville, AR

Scott Hamilton Award
(Tribute to a leader in the LDR association program)
Keith and Kevin Hanson

H. Browning Ross Merit Award
(For contribution and service)
Joe Newton, Elmhurst, IL

WOMEN'S LDR
Runner-of-the-Year
Marla Runyan, Eugene, OR

Marja Bakker Contributor-of-the-Year
Irene Herman, San Francisco, CA

MOUNTAIN / ULTRA/ TRAIL
Ted Corbitt Ultra Distance Runner-of-the-Year Award
Karl Meltzer, Sandy, UT

Ruth Anderson Ultra Distance Running Athlete-of-the-Year
Nikki Kimball, Bozeman, MT

Masters Ultrarunner-of-the-Year Award
Dan Verrington, Bradford, MA
Anne Riddle-Lundblad, Asheville, NC

Mountain Runner-of-the-Year
OPEN: Nicole Hunt, Deer Lodge, MT; Simon Gutierrez, Alamosa, CO
MASTERS: Lisa Goldsmith, Nederland, CO; Simon Gutierrez, Alamosa, CO

MUT Council Contributor-of-the-Year
La Sportiva / GoLite

CROSS COUNTRY
Athletes-of-the-Year
Blake Russell, Marina, CA
Adam Goucher, Portland, OR

MASTERS LDR
Outstanding Athletes of 2006
40-44
Dennis Simonaitis, Draper, UT
Colleen De Reuck, Boulder, CO
45-49
John Tuttle, Villa Rica, GA
Carmen Troncoso, Austin, TX
50-54
Pete Orban, Claremore, OK
Kathryn Martin, Northport, NY
55-59
Gary Romesser, Indianapolis, IN
Nancy Rollins, Evanston, IL
60-64
Gerard Malaczynski, Bloomfield Hills, MI
Jan Holmquist, Burlington, MA
65-69
Bill Borla, Torrington, CT
Barbara Miller, Modesto, CA
70-74
Bill Riley, Centerville, MA
Ginette Bedard, Howard Beach, NY
75-79
Joe Fernandez, Fairhaven, MA
Toshiko D'Elia, Ridgewood, NJ
Lois Gilmore, Janesville, WI
80-84
Lou Lodovico, Ellwood City, PA
Helen Klein, Rancho Cordova, CA
85-89
Bill Tribou, Granby, CT
Louise Rossetti, Saugus, MA
90-94
John Gray
Marion Downs, Denver, CO
95-99
Vernon Schaefer*, Davenport, IA
Kathryn West*
*Also Paul Spangler Athlete-of-the-Year (oldest masters age group winner)

Otto Essig Award: Meritorious Service to Masters LDR
Don Lein, Pittsboro, NC

For a complete listing of the other USATF award winners and more USATF Annual Meeting news, go to: USATF.org

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Chevron Houston Marathon, Aramco Houston Half Marathon Sell Out In Record Time
Field Limit of 15,000 Reached Six Weeks Ahead of Race Weekend; Sponsorships Set Record

HOUSTON - (December 1, 2006) - The 2007 Chevron Houston Marathon and Aramco Houston Half Marathon are sold out.

The annual road races - slated for Sunday, January 14, 2007 - reached their combined field limit of 15,000 runners this week. A participation limit was established prior to the 2005 event as a way to ensure course safety and provide runners with an optimum race experience. For the 2007 race weekend, 7,050 runners have registered for the marathon, while 7,950 runners have signed up for the half-marathon.

The field for the Chevron Houston Marathon is expected to be the largest in the 35-year history of the event.

"Reaching our field limit six weeks before the event shows that the Chevron Houston Marathon and Aramco Houston Half Marathon have reached new heights," said Race Director Brant Kotch. "Demand is at an all-time high and runners from around the world are realizing what local runners have known for years - Houston is a great place to run."

The Chevron Houston Marathon's prominence in the sport was recently recognized by running magazine Marathon & Beyond, which scored the race second out of 54 marathons in its national rankings.

In addition to reaching its participation limit, the Chevron Houston Marathon has attracted a record number of sponsors for the 2007 race as Sponsorship packages sold out in October.

"Sponsors want to be part of a successful event, and we're fortunate to have tremendous support from Chevron and Aramco Services Company, in addition to our new partners, JetBlue Airways and Hummer," said Director of Marketing & Race Development Steven Karpas.

Including the fields for the Houston Press / Smart Financial Credit Union 5K and the Texas Children's Hospital Kids' Fun Run, more than 20,000 participants are expected to run in Houston during the weekend of Jan. 14, 2007.

The Chevron Houston Marathon, a Running USA Founding Member, is the nation's premier winter marathon, annually attracting participants from all 50 U.S. states and several foreign countries. In 2006, nearly 20,000 runners took part in four marathon weekend events (marathon, half marathon, 5K run and children's fun run). The Chevron Houston Marathon offers the only closed marathon course in Texas and is ranked among the top five in the nation by the Ultimate Guide to Marathons for fastest course, organization and crowd support. More than 5,000 volunteers work the race, which is Houston's largest single-day sporting event.

For more information, visit the marathon website at ChevronHoustonMarathon.com or call (713) 957-3453.

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Rodale Named Official Media Partner of XTERRA

HONOLULU - (November 30, 2006) - Rodale Inc., the authoritative source for trusted content in health and wellness worldwide with magazine properties including Men's Health, Women's Health, Runner's World, Bicycling and Mountain Bike, and TEAM Unlimited, owners of the XTERRA brand, have announced an exclusive agreement that will make Rodale the official media partner of the XTERRA USA Championship Series, the XTERRA World Championship and the XTERRA Trail Run Series.

As part of the agreement Rodale will provide in-kind advertising for XTERRA Race, XTERRA TV and XTERRA Gear properties in exchange for on-course and on-site visual presence and integrated marketing opportunities for Rodale publications at XTERRA events. Rodale will also be recognized in XTERRA advertising, athlete communication bulletins, sponsor relations' functions and will have naming rights to one of the XTERRA event functions, such as "The Rodale Athlete Recovery Tent" and "Rodale VIP Viewing Area."

"Bringing Rodale into the XTERRA family is a big win for us and our athletes," said TEAM Unlimited President Janet Clark. "As the leader in health-related, cycling and running publications, Rodale reaches our core market of adults that lead active, outdoor lifestyles and together we'll be able to create a bigger footprint for XTERRA's "Live More" philosophy."

"We're delighted to become part of the XTERRA community as the official media partner of XTERRA's race series. At Rodale, we encourage our readers to live active, healthy lifestyles, and XTERRA's adventure races are exciting displays of those dedicated to embodying the company's mission," said Bouker Pool, Sports Marketing Director, Rodale.

The agreement positions Rodale as the official media partner through 2008, and affords Rodale the opportunity to include its extensive clientele into sponsorship roles at XTERRA events. In addition, TEAM Unlimited will collaborate with Rodale to produce custom XTERRA publications.

"This sponsorship is another step forward for us in our drive to make XTERRA the leading lifestyle and adventure sports brand in the world," added TEAM Unlimited CEO Tom Kiely.

For more information on Rodale, visit: Rodale.com and for TEAM Unlimited: XTERRAplanet.com

Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Director
(805) 696-6232
Ryan@RunningUSA.org | www.RunningUSA.org