Running USA wire 70, September 2, 2010

USA 20K Championships to be streamed live at www.USARunningCircuit.com

INDIANAPOLIS - (September 2, 2010) - Brett Gotcher (Flagstaff, Ariz.) and Colleen De Reuck (Boulder, Colo.) return to the 33rd running of the Stratton Faxon New Haven Road Race to defend their USA 20K titles on Monday, Labor Day. The event has hosted the USA Championships since 1993 (men) and 2001 (women).

On the men's side, Gotcher, 26, (left, PhotoRun) will face a strong field that includes 2010 USA 15K champion Mo Trafeh (Duarte, Calif.), who was runner-up to Gotcher at this race in 2009. Joining them in the chase for the national title will be 2008 USA 20K champion James Carney (Flagstaff, Ariz.) and 2010 USA Half-Marathon Championship runner-up Patrick Smyth (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.).

In the race for the women's crown, 2004 U.S. Olympian De Reuck, 46, will face 2008 Olympic marathoner Magdalena Lewy Boulet (Oakland, Calif.) as well as USA 7 Mile Championships runner-up Amy Hastings (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.). Also in the mix should be 2009 Team USA World Championship marathoners Tera Moody (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Zoila Gomez (Alamosa, Colo.).

The USA 20K Championships is the eighth stop for men and the sixth for women on the 2010 USA Running Circuit (USARC) and will pay $40,000 in U.S. prize money with $8000 going to the respective men's and women's national champions.

The USARC, a USA Track & Field road series, features USA Championships from one mile to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners. The circuit features ten events each for men and women. Antonio Vega (Minneapolis, Minn.) leads the men's standings with 44 points, while his Team USA Minnesota teammate Katie McGregor (St. Louis Park, Minn.) leads the women with 30 points.

The USA 20K Championships will be streamed live beginning at 8:40am EST Monday in cooperation with RunnerSpace.com at: www.USARunningCircuit.com

20,000 plus expected at 10th Labor Day weekend tradition; post-race concert by REO Speedwagon and Pat Benatar

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - (September 1, 2010) - The event that helped turn its city around while starting the half-marathon boom will welcome more than 20,000 runners to the oceanfront streets of Virginia Beach for the 10th Dodge Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon presented by SunTrust on Sunday, September 5.

Joining the ranks of Olympic medalists who have competed in Virginia Beach will be Beijing Olympic Marathon gold medalist Constantina Dita of Romania. Along with her crowning Olympic triumph in 2008, Dita won the 2005 IAAF World Half-Marathon Championship held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and also the 2004 Chicago Marathon. Her personal best for the half-marathon is 1:08:07, set en route at the 2006 Chicago Marathon.

"Many other athletes have told me often that the Virginia Beach race is one of their favorite events of the year, and I am looking forward to my first opportunity to compete there," said Dita, known as an aggressive front-runner when in form. "It should be even more special this year, with the race's 10th anniversary. It seems every year there is a very deep field of the top runners, so I expect the competition should be great in 2010."

Chief among her rivals will be fellow Romanian Nuta Olaru, the 2004 Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach champion, and 2009 Rock 'n' Roll San Antonio Marathon champ. Leading the U.S. contingent in the women's race is 28-year-old Samia Akbar of Herndon, VA. Akbar earned All-America honors and set eight school records while at American University. This past May, the 2009 Army Ten-Miler winner finished runner-up at the USA 25K Championships in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Wearing bib #1 in the men's race will be 2007 Chicago Marathon champion Patrick Ivuti of Kenya. Ivuti owns a half-marathon PR of 59:27 and has run faster than one-hour four times in his career. While Ivuti will be making his debut appearance in Virginia Beach, fellow Kenyan Yusuf Songoka returns for the fourth time in search of his first win after three straight podium finishes in 2005-07. Songoka arrives with confidence off a win and marathon PR of 2:08:55 earlier this year in Hannover, Germany. The Kenyan men will be challenged by a strong contingent of Japanese runners led by former 30K world record holder Takayuki Matsumiya.

"The roster of champions at Virginia Beach rivals any event over the last decade," said Toni Reavis, race historian, who will be calling the race for FSN with Olympian Todd Williams. "This year VB rookies Dita and Ivuti take on the experienced hands of Olaru and Songoka. Bragging rights and prize purses are waiting to be harvested as the summer season gives way and the fall marathon countdown begins."

While the U.S. 20K road championship is being contested in New Haven, Connecticut, the U.S. field in Virginia Beach will be led by John Crews, a three-time marathon winner who is attending graduate school in Raleigh, North Carolina. Crews won the North Carolina USATF Half Marathon Championship earlier this year with a PR of 1 hour, 5 minutes, 20 seconds. Local pride rests with Ryan Carroll of Portsmouth, VA, who earned DII All-American Honors on the track at Barton College and East Carolina University.

"We are looking forward to two close and exciting races," said Matt Turnbull, Elite Athlete Coordinator. "The form and personal records of the leading athletes in both the men's and women's field suggest they are all capable of running a quick and competitive contest."

The Dodge Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon celebrates its tenth anniversary on Labor Day Weekend, Sunday, September 5, 2010 with more than 20,000 participants. Festivities begin with a two-day Health & Fitness Expo at the Virginia Beach Convention Center on Friday, Sept 3 and Saturday, Sept 4. The Health & Fitness Expo is free and open to the public, and features over 80 exhibitors with the latest in endurance sports gear and nutrition products. Online registration has closed, but there is still an opportunity to register in person at the expo.

On Sunday night, 70s and 80s super band REO Speedwagon and rock diva Pat Benatar will put on a post-race concert to remember.

For more information, go to virginia-beach.competitor.com or call at (800) 311-1255.

His 2:10:36 at 2010 race was fourth fastest U.S. marathon debut

HOUSTON - (Sept. 2, 2010) - Brett Gotcher, who recorded the fourth fastest debut marathon ever by an American earlier this year in Houston, will return for the 2011 Chevron Houston Marathon to be held on Sunday, January 30.

"I'm thrilled to be returning to Houston for my next attempt at the marathon," said Gotcher (left, PhotoRun), a graduate of Stanford University. "The entire Houston Marathon Committee has been so supportive over the years and I'm thankful to be racing there again this year. I have so many good memories from racing in Houston in the past and I'm looking forward to making some new ones this January."

The 2011 race will mark the first marathon for 26-year-old Gotcher since placing 7th at the 2010 race in 2 hours, 10 minutes, 36 seconds.

"In his 2010 marathon debut here, Brett became the fastest American ever at our race. We are really looking forward to seeing what he can do with another year of targeted training under his belt and the experience that he gained running our course last January," said Race Director Brant Kotch. "We want to provide Brett with a platform on which he can continue to build momentum in the run-up to the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials."

Gotcher currently resides in Flagstaff, Arizona, where he trains with the adidas-sponsored McMillan Elite group, coached by Greg McMillan.

"The Houston Marathon Committee and its foundation have been great supporters of our efforts to aid in the resurgence of U.S. distance running," said McMillan, who has coached Gotcher for the past three years. "We were honored that they invited Brett to debut at the Chevron Houston Marathon in 2010. His race was a great kick start to his marathoning career and we are excited to return to Houston for his second marathon where he hopes to continue his drive toward Houston's 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials."

Houston will host the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Marathon on Saturday, January 14, 2012, a first for a single city to host both the men's and women's events at the same Trials.

Established in 1972, the Houston Marathon Committee, Inc. (HMC), a Running USA Founding Member, annually organizes the nation's premier winter marathon and companion half-marathon, 5K and kids' fun run. The four race weekend events annually attract more than 30,000 participants from 50 U.S. states and 20 foreign countries. More than 7,500 volunteers help organize the races, which is Houston's largest single-day sporting event. In addition to hosting numerous world-renowned road races, including the USA Men's and Women's Half Marathon Championships since 2005 and 2007 respectively, and the 1992 U.S. Women's Olympic Marathon Trials, the HMC will host the 2012 U.S. Men's and Women's Olympic Team Trials - Marathon on January 14, 2012.

For more information, visit houstonmarathon.com or call (713) 957-3453.

Sub-2:30:00 for men, sub-2:45:00 for women needed to earn a piece of the prize; second edition set for Sunday, September 5

The 2010 Kauai Marathon, set for Sunday, September 5 in Poipu Kauai, Hawaii is enticing runners from around the world to compete for the first ever $15,000 Kauai Marathon Challenge. This new feature is one of the largest "Speed Challenge" purses offered in a U.S. running event.

Numerous American and international athletes will be competing for the prize and they are led by two-time Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier Michael Wardian (left, PhotoRun). The Arlington, Virginia resident won the bronze medal at the 2009 World 50K Championships. Wardian, 36, has competed in more than 100 marathons, as well as a number of ultra marathons and triathlons around the world. In March 2010, he won the SunTrust National Marathon in Washington, DC in 2 hours, 21 minutes, 58 seconds.

Hailing from the Duma Runner's Club in Minnesota are two Challenge contenders Richard Kandie and Moninda Marube of Kenya, both elite runners that have been competing in marathons around the country for the past 3 years. Most notably, Kandie placed second at the Bayshore Half Marathon last May in 1 hour, 6 minutes, 1 second, while Marube won the Christie Clinic Illinois Marathon on May 1.

Other contenders include: JT Service, winner of the inaugural Kauai Marathon; Japeth Ng'ojoy, who ran 2:34:10 in his debut marathon last February at Jacksonville, Florida, and Masanori Hagitani, winner of the Iwaki City Sunshine Marathon in Japan.

All Kauai Marathon participants that are officially registered in the marathon are eligible for the $15,000 Kauai Marathon Challenge. Time standards eligible for the Kauai Marathon Challenge are a sub-2:30:00 for men and a sub-2:45:00 for women.

The first participant of each sex under the set time standards will be awarded with a $2500 bonus. In addition, ALL runners (male and female combined) under the standard receive an equal amount of the remaining speed challenge prize money. For example, if both the male and female standard is eclipsed by the top finisher of each sex then all of the participants under the set standards split a portion of $10,000. The top available prize is $15,000 if only one athlete of either gender reaches the standard.

On Saturday morning, marathon co-hosts ultra superstar Dean Karnazes and Runner's World's Bart Yasso will lead an informal 3-5 mile pre-race fun run for registered runners and non-registered local residents to soak in the marathon spirit.

The second edition offers certified USATF and AIMS marathon and half-marathon courses. For more information, go to: www.thekauaimarathon.com