Torrence set to defend men's title, Wurth-Thomas, Pierce lead women's field at USA 1 Mile Road Championships
INDIANAPOLIS - David Torrence (Oakland, Calif.) is set to return to Minneapolis to defend his 2009 title, while 2008 Olympians Christin Wurth-Thomas (Springdale, Ark.) and Anna Pierce (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.) are among the women's favorites at Thursday's USA 1 Mile Road Championships. The event will be hosted through 2012 by the Medtronic TC 1 Mile.
Last year, Torrence made his mark in the history books by winning the first ever road mile championship, and although he is the first man to break four-minutes for a road mile in the state of Minnesota, he will have his work cut out for him in 2010. Leading the contenders will be 2008 Olympian at 1,500 meters Lopez Lomong (Colorado Springs, Colo.). Set to challenge Torrence and Lomong will be 2010 Team USA World Indoor Championships team member Garrett Heath (Winona, Minn.) and Dan Huling (Columbus, Ohio), who finished the 2009 season as the top-ranked steeplechaser in the U.S.
Challenging Wurth-Thomas and Pierce for the women's title will be 2009 NCAA Division I Indoor mile champion Sarah Bowman (Warrenton, Va.), and local favorite Heather Dorniden, who finished third at this year's USA Indoor Championships 800 meters.
Athletes will compete for a total prize purse of $22,500, with the men's and women's USA Champion earning $4,000 each. This year's race will also feature a pair of $10,000 "Time Bounties," if the men's and women's champions better four minutes and 4:32, respectively.
Video highlights
The USA 1 Mile Road Championships will be streamed live in cooperation with RunnerSpace.com at www.USARunningCircuit.com. The women's race is scheduled to begin at 7:53 p.m. C.S.T and the men will start at 8:03 p.m.
About the USARC
The USA 1 Mile Road Championships are the fourth stop on the 2010 USA Running Circuit (USARC). The 2010 USARC is a USA Track & Field road series, featuring 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.
The 2010 USARC will once again see a record amount of circuit prize money for a non-Olympic year with total prize purse of $623,850 offered by host events. U.S. athletes will also have the opportunity to qualify for various Team USA events, including the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships and the Chiba International Ekiden.
The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USARC race (15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1), with a final $12,500 grand prix purse ($6,000, $4,000, and $2,500) for the top three men and women point scorers overall. The USARC points at the USA Marathon Championships will be doubled.
The mission of the USA Running Circuit is to showcase, support, and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USARC and its races have provided over $6 million dollars to U.S. distance runners.
For more information on the 2010 USA 1 Mile Road Championships visit www.USARunningCircuit.com.
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.
For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org
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