Coming Events
Return to top / Return to main page

U.S. Olympian Deena Kastor Returns to the Road at 30th Anniversary Shamrock Shuffle 8K
Country's largest 8K attracts race record 30,000 participants

CHICAGO - (March 23, 2009) - After injury forced her to drop from the 2008 Beijing Olympic Marathon field at the 5K mark, decorated U.S. runner Deena Kastor will make her return to road racing on Sunday, March 29 at the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K. In so doing, Kastor, 36, will return to the site where she set the current U.S. women's 8K record in 2005 (24 minutes, 36 seconds).

"After more than 6 months of recovery and training, I am so excited to race again," said Kastor from her home in Mammoth Lakes, Calif. "Chicago has a special place in my heart as a city where "luck" has been on my side both at the 8K in 2005 and again later that year at the marathon distance. I look forward to starting my 2009 racing season at the Shamrock Shuffle 8K. It is just my style to be in a race where there is so much enthusiasm and excitement on the starting line."

Kastor's 2005 Chicago appearance was preceded by her Olympic Marathon bronze medal performance in the 2004 Athens Games. Her medal was the first for a U.S. woman in the marathon since Joan Benoit (Samuelson) won the inaugural gold in 1984 at Los Angeles.

Following her 2005 Shamrock Shuffle triumph, Kastor returned to Chicago in October to win the Chicago Marathon in 2:21:25. The following spring she set the current U.S. women's marathon record with a 2:19:36 win at the Flora London Marathon.

The three-time Olympian will lead the 30th Shamrock Shuffle field on Sunday, March 29 featuring 32,500 participants in the 8K run (30,000, the country's largest 8K) and 5K Fitness Walk (2,500). The annual rite of spring for local fitness enthusiasts begins and ends in Chicago's historic Grant Park.

In advance of the event, a two-day Health & Fitness Expo featuring more than 75 industry-related exhibitors will take place at Navy Pier on Friday, March 27 and Saturday, March 28. The Expo is free and open to the public as is the event day race course. The event will conclude with its traditional post-race party in Grant Park featuring live musical entertainment by Maggie Speaks.

More information on the event including course maps, street closures and how to get involved can be found at ShamrockShuffle.com.

Return to top / Return to main page

MDS Nordion 10K Offers $100,000 World Record Bonus

OTTAWA, Canada - (March 25, 2009) - Runners interested in smashing the world record for the 10 kilometer distance could be $100,000 richer if they do it in Ottawa on May 23.

Run Ottawa has announced it will offer the largest Canadian prize purse ever to any man or woman who breaks the current world record at its MDS Nordion 10K.

Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia holds the men's 10K world road record of 27 minutes, 2 seconds - from 2002 in Doha, Qatar. The women's world record of 30:21 was set by Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain in 2003 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

"The Ottawa Race Weekend is a world class event," said Manny Rodrigues, Vice President, Run Ottawa. "So we've put together a world class prize to attract the sport's top runners to Ottawa."

The 2008 MDS Nordion 10K attracted more than 8,400 runners, and the race champions were Julius Kiptoo of Kenya and Emebet Bacha of Ethiopia in 28:37 and 32:43, respectively.

The MDS Nordion 10K event record was set by Ottawa Race Weekend's Race Director John Halvorsen in 1988, who burned up the 6.2 mile course in 28:12.

"The MDS Nordion 10K is a highly recognized, competitive race that continues to attract world class athletes," said Steve West, President, MDS Nordion. "We're excited about the new prize and hope it will motivate this year's runners to beat the world record."

The Ottawa Race Weekend will take place May 23-24, 2009.

The 23rd MDS Nordion 10K will be held Saturday, May 23 at 6:30pm. The race will start on Laurier Avenue near Elgin and finish at the Ottawa Race Plaza, located near Ottawa City Hall.

ABOUT THE OTTAWA RACE WEEKEND
The Ottawa Race Weekend, Canada's premier running festival, combines competition, participation and fundraising to make a distinctive contribution to the health of the community. The 2008 Ottawa Race Weekend welcomed more than 32,873 participants in seven races, including the Ottawa Marathon and the MDS Nordion 10K. Run Ottawa, the organization behind the Ottawa Race Weekend, is run by a volunteer Board of Directors. For more information, visit: RunOttawa.ca

Return to top / Return to main page

AT&T Dash for the Cash Contestant Selected for Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K
Midlothian mom Anne Parker runs for $2500 prize; Dash for the Cash pros vs. people scoreboard tied at 2-2

RICHMOND, Va. - Anne Parker, who describes herself as a homemaker, mother of four with a busy schedule, a part-time job teaching pre-school, and a neighborhood runner, has been selected to win $2500 on Saturday, March 28 as the 2009 Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K AT&T Dash for the Cash contestant.

"I started running about four years ago," said Parker, a Midlothian resident who teaches pre-school three days a week at Salisbury Church of the Redeemer. "I'm a mom juggling an everyday schedule with kids and laundry and grocery shopping and work; running is time for me."

Parker was chosen at random from over 28,000 people who were registered for the 10K as of the March 1 contest deadline and will be given a head start when the race gets underway at 8:30am. To win the $2500 cash prize, she will have to out-run the rest of the field to the finish line. Based on the predicted time she listed on her race entry form and her past performances in the Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K, she will be given a headstart on the course and will attempt to cross the finish line before any of the professional athletes, who will be running the full 10K (6.2 miles). If an elite runner finishes first, he will claim both the 5th AT&T Dash for the Cash prize and the $2000 first place purse for the Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K.

"I think it's pretty exciting," added Parker who has two boys and two girls between the ages of 11 and 21. "I've read about it in the newspaper. And last year when my husband, Robert, and I crossed the finish line we saw the guy who won holding his check so we knew he won it."

This will be Parker's fourth Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K. To help her prepare for the AT&T Dash for the Cash, Parker is getting coaching and guidance over these last few weeks from the contest's honorary coach Bart Yasso, who is race and event promotion director and contributing writer for Runner's World magazine.

"I'm not fast, I'm not slow, I'm just middle of the road," she said.

This is the fifth year of the AT&T Dash for the Cash Contest. The four previous races have seen two contestants and two professional athletes win the prize.

For more information on the 10th Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K presented by POWERade, go to: SportsBackers.org

Return to top / Return to main page

NBC's "The Biggest Loser: Couples" Contestant Dane Patterson to Run Country Music Marathon
Controversial contestant will run for redemption

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - (March 16, 2009) - Organizers of the Country Music Marathon & ½ Marathon have announced that Dane Patterson, a Season 7 contestant on NBC's "The Biggest Loser: Couples," is running the 2009 Country Music Marathon on Saturday, April 25 in Nashville, Tenn.

Patterson's recent attempt to complete a full marathon after being eliminated from the show caused controversy when it aired during a "Where Are They Now?" segment on "The Biggest Loser: Couples." Patterson hopes running the marathon will be a personal milestone and public redemption to prove he can complete the full race.

He is welcoming runners to sign up to "Run with Dane" as he challenges himself on the 26.2 mile Country Music course on Saturday, April 25. Patterson, who is 27, had planned on running another marathon in April to show that he can complete a race.

"I am thrilled to have this opportunity and encourage others runners to come out and join me on the course," said Patterson.

Runners can go to CMMarathon.com and sign up to "Run with Dane."

"We are very excited that Dane has chosen our race to run in order to prove that he can run and complete a marathon," said Adam Zocks, general manager of the event. "People who come to run Music City have the experience of a lifetime."

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