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Lead Stories: Saturday, September 6, 2008

Podcast 105: TIM BORLAND
TFS’s Oct ‘07 Success Story

Posted November 21st, 2007 at 8:22 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Columns, Success Stories, Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts

TheFinalSprint.com (TFS) is honored to present our monthly Success Story award to individuals who have overcome tremendous obstacles, changed their own lives and/or the lives of others through running, sports or fitness.

I am proud to announce that TFS’s October 2007 Success Story, and my guest on Episode 105 of The Final Sprint Podcast is TIM BORLAND.

On November 4th, Borland finished his 63rd marathon in 63 straight days, a feat never before accomplished. Called the A-T Cure Tour, Borland set out to accomplish this arduous task in order to raise awareness for the A-T Children’s project, a non-profit organization that raises funds to support and coordinate first-rate biomedical research projects, scientific workshops, and a clinical center aimed at finding a cure or life-improving therapies for ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T), a rare, fatal genetic disease that affects children.

Download the podcast to hear Tim discuss his sixty-three-day, cross-country marathon adventure, the challenges he faced along the way, his efforts to fight this horrible disease, his future ultra-running goals and much more!

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Host: Jimmie R. Markham | Guest: Tim Borland
Producers: Jimmie R. Markham, Greg Cherniet
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 21.5 MB | Length: 31:20

Episode sponsored by:
Camelbak - the originator and leader in hands-free hydration.

To learn more Camelbak Elixir, their effective, easy-to-use and portable electrolyte beverage, as well as Camelbak’s running specific hydration systems, please visit www.camelbak.com.

Interested in featuring The Final Sprint Podcast on your site, blog or My Space page? Click here to learn how!

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TFS News Briefs: 10/25/07

Posted October 25th, 2007 at 2:00 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, Olympics, Drugs In Sports, TFS News Briefs

1,362.4 Miles Down, 288.2 Miles To Go for Tim Borland
Tim Borland ran a marathon in Charleston, SC yesterday, his 53rd in as many days, on his way to a 63rd daily marathon in New York City on November 4th, 2007. His goal is to raise money and awareness for The A-T Children’s Project, a non-profit organization that raises funds to support and coordinate first-rate biomedical research projects, scientific conferences and a clinical center aimed at finding a cure or life-improving therapies for ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T), a lethal genetic disease that attacks children, causing progressive loss of muscle control, immune system problems, and a strikingly high rate of cancer, especially leukemia and lymphoma. Borland runs #54 in Greensboro, NC today.
Read more at: [Charleston, SC Live 5 News]

Tyson Gay: “Track & Field Will Persevere”
As a featured guest at the WAVE-3’s Olympic kickoff luncheon, Tyson Gay talked about the Marion Jones affair and the skepticism that comes along with it, his goal of winning Beijing gold in the 100 and 200 and the possibility of running a 9.6 in the 100m and breaking Asafa Powell;s world record. Read more at: [Louisville, KY Courier-Journal]

Profile of Univ. of Kansas’ Colby Wissel, Big 12 Cross Country Defending Champ
As Colby Wissel, winner of the 2006 Big 12 Cross Country Championships and KU record holder of the 3000m Run, prepares to defend his cross-country title, he is contemplating whether to stay in college or turn pro. Read more at: [Kansan.com]
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TFS News Briefs: 10/20/07

Posted October 20th, 2007 at 11:00 AM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, TFS News Briefs

Ode the the Half-Marathon
In advance of the October 28th running of the Koala Health and Wellness Centers and Luke’s Locker Half Marathon, the Houston Chronicle has published an article this week about the surging popularity of half-marathons. According to the article, “there were 10 percent more half-marathons (550) and 10 percent more half-marathon finishers (nearly 600,000) in 2006 than in the previous year.” Read more at: [Houston Chronicle]

When Mother Nature Scoffs Marathon Preparations
Rain, hail, sleet, snow or even extreme heat and gale-force winds. None of these weather conditions may prevent a mailman from making his daily appointed rounds, but they must cause Marathon Race Directors to have nightmares. The LA Times has published an interesting article discussing this very thing. Read more at: [LA Times]

Carrie Tollefson Hopes to Race Again in January
Read Carrie Tollefson’s latest blog entry as she describes how she is training again “pain-free” and hopes to race again in January. Read more at: [NYRR]
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TFS News Briefs: 10/18/07

Posted October 18th, 2007 at 3:00 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, TFS News Briefs

NYC Marathon Now Has Official Song
The New York Road Runners club has endorsed a song by Kunduru Music titled “New York City.” The song will be prominently featured during NBC’s live TV coverage of the event. 42,000 copies of the single CD will be given to each competitor in a gift bag. Preview / Download the Song at: [iTunes]

Tim Borland Continues His Quest for 63 x 26.2 in 63 days to Fight A-T
Tim Borland continues his quest to run 63 marathons in 63 straight days by running marathon #46 in Huntsville, AL today for the A-T Children’s Project, a non-profit organization that raises funds to support and coordinate first-rate biomedical research projects, scientific conferences and a clinical center aimed at finding a cure or life-improving therapies for ataxia-telangiectasia, a lethal genetic disease that attacks children, causing progressive loss of muscle control,
immune system problems, and a strikingly high rate of cancer, especially leukemia and lymphoma. Read more at: [Google News] [A-T Children’s Project]
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TFS News Briefs: 10/17/07

Posted October 17th, 2007 at 2:30 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, TFS News Briefs

Katie Holmes to Run NYC Marathon
Actress Katie Holmes will run the New York City Marathon and is “determined to complete the race and make [husband Tom Cruise] proud.” Read more at: [CBS 42]

63 Marathons in 63 Days
Follow Tim Borland as he attempts to run 63 marathons in 63 straight days in order to raise awareness of A-T (ataxia-telangiectasia), a lethal genetic disease that attacks children, causing progressive loss of muscle control, immune system problems, and a strikingly high rate of cancer, especially leukemia and lymphoma. Read more at: [Google News]

Bekele Vs. Tadese in Edinburgh X-C Showdown
Six-time World Cross-Country champ Kenenisa Bekele (in photo at right) will take on 2007 world champion (in both cross-country and road running) Zersenay Tadese at the Great Edinburgh International Cross Country meet on January 12th, 2008. The meet will be on the same course as the 2008 world championships. Read more at: [IAAF]

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TFS News Briefs: 10/16/07

Posted October 16th, 2007 at 4:49 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, Olympics

Frank Shorter Picks Culpepper for Trials Win
The legendary Olympic marathon gold medalist Frank Shorter has picked Alan Culpepper as the favorite to win the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials this November in New York if he is “fit and healthy.” Shorter also said that “we are going to send a very strong team.” Read more at: [Boulder Daily Camera]

Cross Country More Than Just About Winning
An article in the Star Tribune illuminates other reasons for running cross-country than just winning. For those plodders out there who will never take home the ribbons or trophies, this article may offer some inspiration. Read more at: [Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune]

2009 European X-C Championships Belong to Dublin
Dublin, Ireland will host the 2009 European Cross Country Championships, according to the European Athletics Council. The event will take place on the Santry Demesne course in north Dublin on December 13th, 2009. Read more at: [The Irish Times]
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TFS News Briefs: 10/14/07

Posted October 14th, 2007 at 4:36 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country

Oregon Men and Women Sweep Hodges X-C Invitational
Both of the Univ. of Oregon cross-country teams, #1 ranked men’s team and the #3 ranked women’s team, swept the Hodges Invitational Saturday. The men’s team scored a near-perfect 16 points while the women scored an impressive 28 points. Read more at: [GoDucks.com]

Univ. of Colorado Coach Mark Wetmore Expects Buffs’ Ranking to Drop
Competing at the Pre-Nationals Cross-Country meet this weekend, the Colorado Buffaloes men’s team, ranked #3 nationally, finished second while the women, ranked #2, finished in sixth place in the white race. After the meet coach Mark Wetmore stated that, “We basically got what we were looking for and where we hoped to be. When the rankings come out, our women will drop a lot but I am pretty sure we can put a big dent into that in the next few weeks. And our men will drop a little bit, which is about what I expected. I thought we were a little over-ranked.” Read more at: [Colorado Buffaloes]

#1 Ranked Stanford Women’s X-C Wins Pre-NCAA InvitationalThe Stanford women’s cross-country team took first place at the Pre-NCAA Invitational in Terra Haute, IN Saturday, scoring 102 points. Senior Teresa McWalters, a four-time All-American, led the Cardinals with a 2nd place finish in a time of 20:01. Susan Kuijken of Florida State won the race with a time of 19:55.5. Read more at: [Stanford Cross-Country]
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TFS News Briefs: 10/08/07

Posted October 8th, 2007 at 2:20 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Track & Field, Drugs In Sports, Trail / Ultra

Novelist Credits Track & Field for Changing His Life
Nicholas Sparks, whose 12th novel “The Choice” has just been published, credits track and field for changing his life. Sparks said that that track, “taught me more about discipline and perseverance and character than any class I’ve ever taken, because to be good, you need to show up every day, rain or shine. And for me, I was talented, but I was not supremely talented. To get where I was, I had to outwork people, and it taught me to do that.” Read more at: [San Jose Mercury News]

Sunday: 26.2 Miles. Monday: 26.2 miles. Tuesday…
Another day, another marathon for Tim Borland, the California runner who is running 63 of them in 63 straight days in order to to raise awareness of ataxia-telangiectasia, a degenerative disease that leads to a lack of muscle control. Today Borland runs in Detroit on his way to the 63rd marathon on November 4th in New York City. Read more at: [Detroit Free Press][A-T Children’s Project]

Chicago Marathon Official Has “Never Seen a Finish Like That”
Pat Savage, DePaul’s track and field and cross-country coach who was head referee at yesterday’s Chicago Marathon, said that, “it was really close. Yet at the same time, you could see that one man was ahead of the other man.” Savage believes that the marathon will eventually have to go to some kind of photo-finish electronic system. Read more at: [Chicago Tribune]
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TFS News Briefs: 10/06/07

Posted October 6th, 2007 at 12:39 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Track & Field

Chicago Marathon: Preview of Elite Athletes
LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon executive director Carey Pinkowski discusses the World Marathon Majors and his event’s place in it, saying, “I’ll have some good athletes. You’ve got to have a fast group (not just one fast runner). Hopefully, you’d like to see a group of guys pushing each other. Collectively, if we can get the right group of guys running fast, you have more bets on the table and hopefully, the chemistry surfaces.”
Read More at: [Chicago Marathon]

The Impending Demise of Track & Field
Here you go: a media feeding frenzy. Be sure to watch them pick the meat off Jones’ bones before it’s all gone. Apparently the demise of Track & Field is imminent. Read thousands of articles of negative media coverage about our favorite sport at: [Google News]
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TFS News Briefs: 10/04/07

Posted October 4th, 2007 at 3:07 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field

Udine, Italy Prepares to Host Road Running World Championships
Udine, Italy will play host to the 2007 IAAF World Road Running Championships on Sunday, October 14th, 2007 on a fast, mostly flat, three-loop, half-marathon course. Kenyan Evans Cheruiyot, who won last year’s race in Udine, will return to compete against fellow Kenyan Samuel Wanjiru, the current half-marathon world record holder (58:33), and Zersenay Tadesse, the defending world champion who won in 2006 over a 20K course in Debrecen, Hungary. In the women’s race, Lornah Kiplagat will defend her title. The world record is 1:06:44, held by South African Elana Meyer since 1/15/1999. Read more at: [IAAF]

Blanka Vlašić Wins 2007 European Athlete of the Year Award
Blanka Vlašić, coming off a stellar season in which she high jumped her way to a world championship, won 18 of 19 competitions and made multiple assaults on the world record all season long, has become the first Croatian and the first high jumper to win the European Athlete of the Year award. Read more at: [EuropeanAthletics]

In-Race Runner Tracking Available for Chicago Marathon
You can now register for electronic updates (via text message or e-mail) of the statuses of your favorite Chicago Marathon runners as they cross three checkpoints: 15K, halfway point, 35K and Finish Line. Register at: [ChicagoMarathon.com]
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