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Lead Stories: Monday, October 13, 2008

Slattery Wins U.S. Women’s 8-K Title

Posted September 27th, 2008 at 8:00 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Road Racing

Sara Slattery of Lafayette, Colo., won today’s U.S. Women’s 8-K Championship in Akron, Ohio. For the 26 year-old athlete, who won the Pan Am Games 10,000m title in 2007, it was her first ever U.S. open title on any surface.

Slattery went for victory early, sharing the lead with race favorite Katie McGregor. They passed the first mile in 5:05, while a chase pack of eight women, including Amy Rudolph, Molly Huddle, Renee Metivier-Baillie and Lindsey Anderson, kept them in sight. On a gradual uphill in the sixth kilometer, Slattery eased away from McGregor and Metivier-Baillie, who had come up from the chase group, and found herself with a ten meter lead.
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USATF Fills Men’s 10-K Championship Void

Posted January 30th, 2008 at 8:04 AM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Road Racing

When their annual convention closed last December in Honolulu, USA Track & Field had a noticeable void in their national championships calendar: there was no 10-K road championship for men. That competition was hosted successfully last year by the Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta, Ga., but because the Peachtree takes place every year on July 4 — right in the middle of the U.S. Olympic Trials — hosting the championship there was a non-starter for 2008.

Enter the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10-K in Richmond, Va., one of the fastest growing road races in the United States. Last year’s edition saw 20,587 finishers, an increase of 25% from a year earlier. USATF announced today that they had awarded the 10-K championship for men to this event, which will be held for the 9th time on April 5.
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Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k to host USA Men’s 10 km Championship

Posted January 29th, 2008 at 10:30 AM by Jamal Walker

Section: News & Results, Road Racing

USA Track & Field has announced that the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k will host the 2008 edition of the USA Men’s 10 km Championship on April 5, in Richmond, Va.

The fourth-largest 10 km in the U.S., the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10K had more than 25,000 runners in 2007 and will feature a total of $25,000 in prize money with $7,500 for the champion. Top U.S. men. including Olympian Dan Browne, are expected to join the 2008 field.
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Kastor wins USA Women’s
10 km Championship

Posted October 8th, 2007 at 6:16 PM by Martin Kennedy

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

2004 Olympic marathon bronze medalist Deena Kastor (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.) cruised to victory at the 2007 USA Women’s 10 km Championship, running 32:01 today at the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women in Boston.

Kastor and two-time defending women’s 10 km champion Katie McGregor (Minneapolis, Minn.), pulled away from the field during the opening 800 meters and by the first mile mark, Kastor passed in 5:00 with a five-second lead over McGregor.

A second 5:00 mile propelled Kastor to a 15-second lead. As she continued her tour of Memorial Drive, Kastor steadily built her lead, reaching the finish 40 seconds ahead of McGregor, who finished in 32:41.

The race for third saw 2007 USA Half-Marathon champion Elva Dryer (Gunnison, Colo.), outrun 2007 USA 20 km champion Alicia Shay (Flagstaff, Ariz.), and Rebecca Donaghue (State College, Pa.), Dryer was timed in 32:53 with Shay and Donaghue finishing in 33:05 and 33:09, respectively.
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Abdirahman dominates USA Men’s 10 Mile Championship

Posted October 7th, 2007 at 6:55 PM by Jamal Walker

Section: News & Results

Abdi Abdirahman (Tucson, Ariz.), captured his third USA Men’s 10 Mile title in a row this weekend at the Medtronic Twin Cities 10 Miler, running an event record of 47:34, to finish 13 seconds ahead of local favorite Jason Lehmkuhle (Minneapolis, Minn.).

Despite warm temperatures and high humidity (72 degrees/88 percent), Abdirahman dominated from the gun. Passing the first mile in 4:42, only Dan Browne (Portland, Ore), the recent 2007 USA 20 km and 5 km champion, Lehmkuhle, and James Carney (Boulder, Colo.) dared try to match strides with the two-time U.S. Olympian.
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Star-studded field set for USA Women’s 10 km Championship on Monday in Boston, MA

Posted October 5th, 2007 at 12:28 PM by Jamal Walker

Section: News & Results

2004 Olympic marathon bronze medalist Deena Kastor (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.); two- time defending women’s 10 km champion Katie McGregor (Minneapolis, Minn.); and defending U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women’s Marathon champion Colleen De Reuck (Boulder, Colo.) will lead the field for Monday’s USA Women’s 10 km Championship in Boston, Mass. The Championship will be hosted for the 13th time by the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women.

As McGregor looks to win her third consecutive 10 km road title she will face challenges from Kastor, and De Reuck, but the trio also will see competition from a 2007 USA Half-Marathon champion Elva Dryer (Gunnison, Colo.) and 2007 USA 20 km champion Alicia Craig (Flagstaff, Ariz.).

The USA Women’s 10 km Championships is the final race on the women’s 2007 USA Running Circuit (USARC). The USARC is a USA Track & Field road series, featuring USA Championships from 5 km to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners. The thirteenth edition for the men and twelfth for the women, the 2007 circuit has nine events for men and seven for women.
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Akron to host 2008 USA Women’s USA 8 km Championship

Posted September 27th, 2007 at 2:35 PM by Martha Jones

Section: News & Results

The women’s Long Distance Running Committee of USA Track & Field (USATF) has announced that Akron, Ohio, has been selected to host the 2008 USA Women’s 8 km Championship. The championship will be held as part of the Road Runner Akron Marathon next September and will be organized by the Akron Marathon Charitable Corporation.

Marking the return of the 8 km distance to the women’s USA Running Circuit (USARC) schedule for the first time since 2005, Akron, which has formerly played host to the North American Men’s Relay Championship (2003-’04), will host the event on September 27, 2008.

“The Leadership of the Akron Marathon Charitable Corporation is excited and honored to be awarded this opportunity to host the 2008 USA Women’s 8 km Championship race,” said Dave Hunter, spokesman for the Akron Marathon Charitable Corporation. “We look forward to working closely with USATF to stage an outstanding and competitive championship race for the elite athletes, the fans, USATF, and our community.”
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Aramco Houston Half Marathon to host USA Half Marathon Championships through 2011

Posted September 7th, 2007 at 7:21 PM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: News & Results, Marathons

The Aramco Houston Half Marathon has extended its commitment to host the USA Half Marathon Championships through 2011, USATF has annoucned. The event has previously hosted the USA Men’s Half Marathon Championship (2005-’06) and both the men’s and women’s championships in 2007.

“Houston has traditionally been a great proving ground for new U.S. talent,” said Bill Roe, USATF President. “The support that Houston and Aramco Services Company have put forth both in the race as well as in key funding for the USA Distance Project will continue to keep the momentum moving forward for USA long distance athletes.”

The 2008 USA Half-Marathon Championships will be held in conjunction with the thirty-sixth running of the Chevron Houston Marathon on January 13, and will be the first race on the 2008 USA Running Circuit (USARC).

The USA Half Marathon Championship races have attracted some of America’s top young runners. In 2007, that field included Ryan Hall of Mammoth Lakes, Calif., who clocked an American record 59:43 over the 13.1-mile course, obliterating the previous record set by Mark Curp in 1985. Hall’s time shaved 1:12 off the old record and made him the first American to break the 1 hour barrier in the half marathon distance.
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Browne claims third win at USA 20 km Championships; Alicia Shay takes women’s title

Posted September 4th, 2007 at 8:32 AM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: News & Results

2004 Olympian Dan Browne (Portland, Ore.) returned to New Haven for the first time since 2003 to lead the men’s field at the 2007 USA 20 km Championships, winning his third title (2001, 2002) at that distance today in 59:15. Two-time NCAA 10,000 meter champion Alicia Shay, formerly Craig (Flagstaff, Ariz.), claimed her first USA women’s title in 1:06:56. The race was hosted by the 30th annual Stratton Faxon New Haven 20K.

A group of about 12 men cruised through the first 10 km in 30:10 before Browne, Jason Lehmkuhle (Minneapolis, Minn.), James Carney (Boulder, Colo.) and Ryan Sheehan (Rochester Hills, Mich.) made their break from the pack with a 4:31 mile.

Shortly after eight miles, Sheehan fell off the pace while Browne, Carney and Lehmkuhle each took their shot at breaking away. As the trio passed 11 miles, Browne made one more move, covering the 12th mile in 4:31 and bringing him to the finish 19 seconds up on Carney (59:38). Lehmkuhle finished third in 59:42, with Sheehan and Ryan Shay (Flagstaff, Ariz.) rounding out the top five in 1:00:33 and 1:01:21 respectively.
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Abdirahman, Hall lead top field at USA Men’s 10 km Championships

Posted July 2nd, 2007 at 4:00 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

2007 10,000 meter track champion Abdi Abdirahman (Tucson, Ariz.) leads the men’s field for the USA Men’s 10 km Championship on Wednesday, July 4, in Atlanta. The championships are hosted by the Atlanta-Journal Constitution Peachtree Road Race.

Abdirahman, who won his third track title last week at the AT&T USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Indianapolis, will face-off with 2007 USA Half-Marathon Champion and American Record holder Ryan Hall (Big Bear Lake, Calif.); 2006 USA 25 km champion and American Record holder Fernando Cabada (Bloomington, Ind.), and Brian Sell (Rochester Hills, Mich.), the 2006 USA Half-Marathon champion.
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