Ritzenhein named Athlete of the Week

For Immediate Release
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Contact:
Vicky Oddi
USA Track & Field
Communications Coordinator
317-713-4670; Vicky.Oddi@usatf.org


Ritzenhein named Athlete of the Week

INDIANAPOLIS - Dathan Ritzenhein has been named USA Track & Field's Athlete of the Week after setting the American record in the men's 5,000 meters Friday at the at the Weltklasse meet in Zurich, Switzerland.


A 2008 Olympic marathoner, Ritzenhein broke Bob Kennedy's 13-year-old American record by almost two seconds, crossing the line in 12 minutes 56.27 seconds. It was an almost 20 second personal best for Ritzenhein, which makes him the fastest American in history and only the third American ever to run under 13 minutes. The previous record of 12:58.21 was set by Kennedy in Zurich in 1996.


Now in its eighth year, USATF's Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on the USATF website. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.


2009 USATF Athlete of the Week Winners: January 6, Mason Finley; January 13, Amber Campbell; January 20, Josh Cox; January 27, German Fernandez; February 3, Ashton Eaton; February 10, Shalane Flanagan; February 17, Galen Rupp; February 24, Dexter Faulk; March 3, Terrence Trammell; March 10, Diana Pickler; March 17, Galen Rupp; March 24, Sumi Onodera-Leonard; March 31, German Fernandez; April 7, Cyrus Hostetler; April 14, Curtis Beach; April 21, Kara Goucher; April 28, Mason Finley; May 5, Chris Derrick; May 12, Natalie Willer; May 19, Will Claye; May 26, Nadine O'Connor; June 2, Tyson Gay; June 9, Dwight Phillips; June 16, Galen Rupp; June 23, Kami Semick; June 30, Dawn Harper; July 7, Raevyn Rogers; July 14, Ryan Crouser; July 28, Anton Krupicka; August 11, Rita Hanscom; August 19, Christian Cantwell; August 26, Trey Hardee; September 1, Dathan Ritzenhein.


BEST MARKS WEEK ENDING AUGUST 30

MEN

100 - 9.95 Doc Patton (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
200 - 20.56 Thomas Hunter (unat) - Merksem, BEL 9/29
400 - 44.21 LaShawn Merritt (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
800 - 1:44.86 Nick Symmonds (OTC Elite) - Zurich, SUI 9/28
1500 - 3:36.94 Lopez Lomong (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
5000 - 12:56.27 Dathan Ritzenhein (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28 AMERICAN RECORD
110H - 13.17 Terrence Trammell (TSA) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
400H - 49.25 Bershawn Jackson (Nike) - Padova, ITA 8/29
HJ - 2.23/7-3.75 Andra Manson (Nike) - Tallinn, EST 8/25
TJ - 17.04/55-11 Brandon Roulhac (HPC Elite) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
JT - 80.11/262-10 Mike Hazle (Nike) - Tallinn, EST 8/25

WOMEN

100 - 10.86 Carmelita Jeter (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
400 - 48.94 Sanya Richards (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28 World leader
800 - 2:02.22 Morgan Uceny (Reebok) - Padova, ITA 8/29
1500 - 3:59.38 Anna Willard (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28 U.S. leader
100H - 12.48 Dawn Harper (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
HJ - 1.98/6-6 Chaunte Howard (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
PV - 4.61/15-1.5 Chelsea Johnson (Nike) - Zurich, SUI 8/28
LJ - 6.72/22-0.75 Hyleas Fountain (Nike) - Tallinn, EST 8/25
HT - 67.53/221-6 Amber Campbell (Mjolnir) - Padova, ITA 8/29
JT - 55.73/182-10 Rachel Yurkovich (Oregon) - Riga, LAT 8/26



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