Running USA wire 66, August 17, 2011

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In this edition:
America's Finest City Half Marathon Professional Field Announced
International Field Expected for the $15,000 Kauai Marathon Speed Challenge
Kaiser Permanente Colfax Marathon Awards Local Charities $23,000
Inaugural N.C. Half Marathon Announced for March 2012

UPCOMING EVENTS

Join Running USA today and have your event listed here, as well as on www.RunningUSA.org
Ragnar Relay Great River, La Crosse, WI, August 19
Runstock 5K, Quantico, VA, August 20
Madison Mini-Marathon & 5K, Madison, WI, August 20
Pikes Peak Ascent, Manitou Springs, CO, August 20
13.1 Marathon: Minneapolis, MN, August 21
Divas Half Marathon, Vail, CO, August 21
Pikes Peak Marathon, Manitou Springs, CO, August 21
Race for Research 5K, Denver, CO, August 21
America's Finest City Half-Marathon, San Diego, CA, Aug 21
Big Wild Life Runs, Anchorage, AK, August 21
Toronto Women's 5K/10K, Toronto, CAN, August 27
Continental Divide Trail Run, Laurel Springs, NC, August 27
USA 10K Trail Championship
35th Crim Festival of Races, Flint, MI, August 27
Challenge Arthritis 5K, St. Paul, MN, August 27
AT&T Giant Race, San Francisco, CA, August 27
IAAF World Championships, Daegu, KOR, Aug 27-Sept 4
Inaugural Pikes Peak Road Ascent, Cascade, CO, Aug 28
La Sportiva Berry Picker Trail Run, Vail, CO, August 28
Santa Rosa Marathon, Santa Rosa, CA, August 28



America's Finest City Half Marathon Professional Field Announced

34th edition draws top American field seeking Olympic Marathon Trials qualifiers; another sold-out field



SAN DIEGO - (August 17, 2011) - The 34th America's Finest City Half Marathon (AFC Half) will have a decidedly American feel to it on Sunday, August 21 when a slew of U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials hopefuls and more than 8,000 runners take to San Diego's scenic, palm tree-lined streets.



Justin Young, the 2008 AFC Half champion and the event's sole American male champion since 1987, will toe the start line with fellow Americans Christian Hesch (Cuesta College; Cal Poly SLO) of Calif., Ben Payne of Florida and 4-time NAIA All-American Paul Robinson of Arizona. Young, a resident of Superior, Colo., won the 31st AFC Half in 1 hour, 5 minutes and 46 seconds.



Hesch, who finished third at the Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Half Marathon (1:04:32), is fresh off his first sub 4-minute mile (3:58.68) at the New Balance Falmouth Mile held last Saturday, August 13 in Falmouth, Mass. The Hollywood resident then cranked out a 34:11 performance at the 7-mile New Balance Falmouth Road Race the next day.



The U.S. men will also line up with 2010 AFC Half runner-up, Benard Langat of Kenya who clocked 1:04:55 in his AFC debut last year, as well as Weldon Kirui of Kenya and Tesfaye Sendeku of Ethiopia.



In the women's field, the absence of two-time defending champion and course record holder, Ethiopian Belainesh Gebre, leaves just one non-American runner in the field - Atalelech Asfaw, also of Ethiopia. Asfaw will be joined by Californians Mary Akor(Muir HS, Pasadena 1994; El Camino College; CS Dominguez Hills; Nigeria; became US citizen in 2003), Lindsay Nelson (Butte College; Chico State), Natasha LaBeaud (Folsom HS 2005; Georgetown 2010) and Jessica Brothers as well as Ariana Hilborn of Arizona. Masters standouts Joanna Zeiger (CO), Erica Baron (NM) and Susan Loken (AZ) will likely battle it out for overall and Masters prize money. Loken, a perennial road race performer, has won the AFC Masters crown four times.



The AFC Half course records are 1:02:24 for the men (Peter Githuka (KEN), 2000) and 1:10:28 for the women (Belainesh Gebre (ETH), 2010). Competitors in the half-marathon will vie for $13,700 in prize money and bonuses.



The 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials minimum qualifying standards at the half-marathon distance are 65 minutes for the men and 1:15 for women on courses that do not exceed 3.25m/km elevation loss. The USATF-certified AFC Half course has an elevation loss of 1.6 m/km, well under the Trials elevation loss limit.



The AFC Half point-to-point course starts at the Cabrillo National Monument runs along the San Diego Bay and through downtown before finishing in historic Balboa Park. The accompanying AFC 5K starts and finishes in Balboa Park.



San Diego's weather forecast for Sunday is ideal for running - cloudy skies and temperatures in the low 60s at the start and mid- to upper 60s at the finish.

Produced by Neil Finn Sports Management, Inc., the 2011 America's Finest City Half Marathon will benefit the Cabrillo National Monument Foundation, Cancer Patients Alliance and other local charities. During its 33-year history, the AFC Half has raised more than $3.4 million for non-profit organizations.



For more information, go to www.afchalf.com or call (760) 692-2900.






International Field Expected for the $15,000 Kauai Marathon Speed Challenge

Defending race champion Michael Wardian leads Challenge contenders for September 4, 2011 event in Hawaii



KAUAI, Hawaii - (August 17, 2011) - The Kauai Marathon is enticing runners from around the world to compete on Sunday, September 4, 2011 for its $15,000 Kauai Marathon Speed Challenge, one of the largest "Speed Challenge" purses offered in a United States running event.



The prize purse is based on a time bonus program: any runner that runs under 2 hours, 30 minutes (male) or 2:45 (female) receives a portion of the $15,000. If multiple runners eclipse the standard, the winner is guaranteed a $2500 bonus for the victory and the remaining prize money is shared amongst all runners who qualify.



Michael Wardian, 37, from Arlington, Virginia will be defending his 2010 Kauai Marathon title where he narrowly missed the $15,000 challenge by running an impressive 2:30:52. Wardian has been on a tear in 2011 winning the San Francisco Marathon, qualifying for the Olympic Trials with a 2:17:40 marathon and taking 3rd place in his debut at the 135-mile Badwater Ultramarathon through Death Valley.



Wardian will have to contend with young upstart Tyler McCandless who defeated Michael at the 2011 Grandma's Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota. McCandless comes into the Kauai Marathon with the fastest marathon time this year with a 2:17:15.



Both Wardian and McCandless will be under pressure from a group of U.S.-based Kenyan athletes competing for the Duma Runner's Club. David Tuwei who has a 2:13:44 marathon personal best from Grandma's Marathon in 2008. Joining Tuwei will be Richard Kandie who hopes to improve upon last year's Kauai Marathon performance where he led from the start, but failed to finish. Kandie has a marathon best of 2:22:24. Rounding out the field will be John Menune with a marathon best of 2:24:36.

In the women's race, Ezzhani Nazha, 33, of Morocco has the fastest seed time in the race with a personal best of 2:35:23. Rumi Otani, the winner of the 2011 Iwaki City Sunshine Marathon in Japan, will challenge her. Becki Lassley, the 2010 Kauai Marathon women's winner, will return to defend her title.



The third Kauai Marathon is going to be held on Sunday, September 4th beginning at 6:00am. The marathon, half-marathon and relay events will all start on Poipu Road in front of the Poipu Shopping Village. The first 11 miles are run together before the half-marathoners veer off into Kukui'ula Resort for their finish while the marathoners and relay teams head up Koloa Road to the neighborhoods of Lawai and Kalaheo. Upon completion of the event, all finishers receive a commemorative medallion. The marathon finisher's party is located on the ocean front lawn at The Sheraton Kauai Resort beginning at 8:00am. Race participants as well as supporters can enjoy food, refreshments and live entertainment until the early afternoon.



The online registration deadline for this world-renowned event is fast approaching ending on Tuesday, August 30, 2011 at 11:59 Pacific Standard Time. Race packets, bibs and participant bags must be picked up at the Expo at the Sheraton Kauai Resort on Friday, September 2, 2011 or Saturday, September 3, 2011.



For more information or to register for this spectacular event, visit: www.thekauaimarathon.com






Kaiser Permanente Colfax Marathon Awards Local Charities $23,000

Event's Corporate Cup Challenge winners honored at Denver Athletic Club



DENVER - (August 16, 2011) - The winning teams in the Kaiser Permanente Colfax Marathon Corporate Cup Challenge were honored at a breakfast at the Denver Athletic Club on Monday morning, August 15. Local companies put together five person teams to run the 26.2 mile race on May 15, 2011. 77 teams participated in Denver's only corporate relay race. Kaiser Permanente awarded a total of $23,000 to local charities on behalf of the winning teams.



Team / Award Money / Charity
Companies with most Corporate Cup teams / participants:
1) UPS, $4000 - Children's Hospital Foundation
2) Dean Evans and Associates, $2500 - Children's Hospital Foundation
3) Saunders Construction, $1500 - Family Homestead



Fastest teams (all men):
1) Team Encana, 2:58:05, $2500 - The Family Tree
2) Johnson Control, 3:17:35, $1500 - Children's Hospital Foundation
3) Black Mambas (Dean Evans and Associates), 3:30:13, $1500 - Hospice of St. John



Fastest teams (all women):
1) Denver Athletic Club Women, 3:47:48, $2500 - Mile High Squash
2) Allonill, $1500 - Autism Society of Colorado
3) The Cereal Killers (Dean Evans and Associates), $1500 - American Cancer Society



Fastest teams (mixed):
1) The Hyatt Riot (Hyatt), 3:11:26, $2500 - Special Olympics of Colorado
2) Matrix Design Group A (Matrix Design), 3:16:49, $1500 - Cancer League of Colorado
3) Noble Energy, 3:26:15, $1500 - Tennyson Center for Children



The sixth Kaiser Permanente Colfax Marathon took place May 14-15, 2011 and included the full marathon, half-marathon and marathon relay, as well as the new Colfax 5K and kid's race. Established by the cities of Aurora, Denver and Lakewood to encourage Coloradans to be healthier, the marathon has established itself as an iconic race for the mile-high city. The race supports local charities and nonprofits by providing one of the country's biggest fund-raising platforms through the DaVita Charity Partners Program. Visit www.runcolfax.org or follow us on twitter @runcolfax or facebook.com/runcolfax.






Inaugural N.C. Half Marathon Announced for March 2012

Runners to hit the pavement at famed Charlotte Motor Speedway



CABARRUS COUNTY, N.C. - (August 17, 2011) - On Sunday, March 25, 2012, thousands of runners will descend on the 1.5-mile quad-oval at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the racing-themed N.C. Half Marathon and 5K. The race expects 3,000-5,000 participants in the first year.



"This high energy race offers something for everyone. Whether you are veteran runner or training for your first 5K, the N.C. Half Marathon will be one race you won't forget," said Lauren Carpenter, sports and recreation sales manager of the Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau. "We want folks to experience the thrill of running around the legendary Charlotte Motor Speedway and come back to watch the professionals drive the same course at more than 190 mph in the fall!"



The N.C. Half Marathon and 5K is a collaboration between the Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Charlotte Motor Speedway, Richard Petty Driving Experience and Continental Event and Sports Management Group LLC. Continental has produced exceptional running events including the Divas Half-Marathon Series held in various cities across the United States and Puerto Rico.



"From day one, we knew that Cabarrus County would make a great place for the N.C. Half Marathon at Charlotte Motor Speedway," said Robert Pozo, president and chief executive officer of Continental Event and Sport Management Group. "We know that this will make a winning combination for runners, stock car racing enthusiasts and even the regular 'Joe' who wants a themed race which is not like the many others."



The unique race course encompasses the three major tracks at the Charlotte Motor Speedway complex. Participants will begin at the 1.5-mile speedway's Start / Finish Line, run up and down zMAX Dragway and pass the Dirt Track with a return to the speedway. Pit Road will serve as the race's final stretch and the awards ceremony will be held in Victory Lane.



Each mile will be marked by racecars provided by Richard Petty Driving Experience and the Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau. Bands, DJs and cheerleaders flanking course will add an extra dimension of excitement to the race. Participants can take advantage of stock car ride-alongs provided by Richard Petty Driving Experience, live music, food and drinks during the post-race celebration.



"Cabarrus County is 'Where Racing Lives,' and the perfect place to host a race-themed half-marathon organized by such an outstanding race production company," said Donna Carpenter, president and chief executive officer of the Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau. "We expect the inaugural N.C. Half Marathon and the Bureau's partnership with Continental to yield excellent results for the county, making this a signature event for many years to come."



For more information and to register for the N.C. Half Marathon and 5K, go to: www.nchalfmarathon.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/nchalfmarathon







Contact Information


Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Director, ryan@runningusa.org, (805) 696-6232




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