Monday, September 06, 2010

Quigley, Boulet win USA 20 km titles

NEW HAVEN - Sean Quigley (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Magdalena Lewy Boulet (Oakland, Calif.) took the men's and women's titles Monday at the USA 20 km Championships hosted by the Stratton Faxon New Haven 20K. Quigley ran 59:21 to win by eight seconds over Mo Trafeh (Duarte, Calif.), while Boulet cruised home in 1:07:41 for a 45 second win over Stephanie Rothstein (Flagstaff, Ariz.).



Warm, sunny skies met a record field of more than 6400 as a pack of 15 men led the field through a relaxed opening mile of 4:52. The lead pack included defending champion Brett Gotcher (Flagstaff, Ariz.), Ben Bruce (Eugene, Ore.), James Carney (Flagstaff, Ariz.), Patrick Smyth (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.), Justin Young (Superior, Colo.) and Quigley.



As the pace steadily picked up, the main pack remained largely intact with various contenders taking a turn at the lead. By seven miles, Young had taken charge of the lead pack as it was reduced to Carney, Smyth, Quigley and Trafeh.



Young made several surges, gaining as much as five meters on his rivals only to have the gap closed each time. As the pack raced down the final hill on the course past ten miles, Trafeh made his bid for the title. Opening a 15 meter lead, the race looked to be his but Carney and Quigley fought their way back, catching Trafeh.



At 11 miles, the race looked to be Carney's as he opened a five meter lead but a half mile later Quigley made his move and steadily pulled away to take his first USA road title. Trafeh held on for second, running 59:29, as Carney took third in 59:33. Young held on for third in 59:45 while Smyth rounded out the top-five in 59:54.



In the women's race, Boulet took charge of the lead pack early with a group of six that included Rothstein, Amy Hastings (Flagstaff, Ariz.), Tera Moody (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Clara Grandt (West Union, W.V.) and Nan Kennard (Broomfield, Colo.).



After seven miles, Boulet steadily pulled away from the field, capturing her first U.S. title of 2010. Rothstein finished 45 seconds later to take the runner-up spot in 1:08:26, while Kennard took third in 1:08:38. Grandt and Moody took fourth and fifth in 1:09:02 and 1:09:38 respectively.

33rd Stratton Faxon New Haven Road Race: USA 20K Championships
New Haven, CT, Monday, September 6, 2010

MEN
1) Sean Quigley (PA), 59:21, $8000
2) Mohamed Trafeh (CA), 59:29, $4500
3) James Carney (AZ), 59:33, $2500
4) Justin Young (CO), 59:45, $1500
5) Patrick Smyth (CA) 59:54, $1000
6) Ben Bruce (OR), 59:59, $700
7) Brett Gotcher (AZ), 1:00:21, $600
8) Jason Hartmann (OR), 1:00:44, $500
9) Mike Sayenko (WA), 1:01:00, $400
10) Patrick Rizzo (CO), 1:01:18, $300

WOMEN
1) Magdalena Lewy Boulet (CA), 1:07:41, $8000
2) Stephanie Rothstein (AZ), 1:08:26, $4500
3) Nan Kennard (CO), 1:08:38, $2500
4) Clara Grandt (WV), 1:09:02, $1500
5) Tera Moody (CO), 1:09:38, $1000
6) Loretta Kilmer (NY), 1:09:43, $700
7) Amy Hastings (CA), 1:09:52, $600
8) Kristen Fryburg-Zaitz (CO), 1:09:56, $500
9) Colleen De Reuck, 46, CO, 1:10:23, $400
10) Heidi Westover (NH), 1:10:49, $300

Complete results and more at: www.newhavenroadrace.org





Video highlights



Highlights of the USA 20 km Championships are available in cooperation with RunnerSpace.com at www.USARunningCircuit.com.



About the USARC



The USA 20 km Championships was 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 Quigley and Boulet each taking home $8,000 for the respective men's and women's titles.



The 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. Antonio Vega (Minneapolis, Minn.) leads the men's standings with 44 points, while Boulet's win gives her the women's lead with 31 points.



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 20 km 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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