Providence's Rudolph, Huddle finish 3-4 at USA Women's 8K Championship
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Projo Running BlogProvidence Journal sports writer Carolyn Thornton blogs the Rhode Island running scene. |
September 29
From Running USA Wire: Slattery Wins USA Women's 8K Title at Akron AKRON, Ohio - (September 27, 2008) - Sara Slattery of Mammoth Lakes, Calif. put a disappointing summer of running in Europe behind her by winning the USA Women's 8K Championship in Akron, Ohio on Saturday. Slattery, 26, covered the near 5 mile course in 25 minutes, 54 seconds to best Katie McGregor and two-time USA 8K champion Amy Rudolph, who ran 25:56 and 26:01, respectively. "This summer I ran times I was running in college," said Slattery who earned her first USA title and $7500. "I was running timid. So today I wanted to go out there and run the way I always run." That would be leading from the start, and pressing the pace, which the Team Running USA athlete did. Slattery was at point for a pack of nine women as they passed the first mile in 5:05. A half a mile later, two-time Olympian Elva Dryer was off the back of that pack. At two miles (10:22), the pack was seven, with Slattery still grinding, and a mile later (15:35) it was three: Slattery, McGregor and Renee Metivier-Baillie, and that's when Slattery made her move to win, stringing out McGregor and Metivier-Baillie and all the women behind them. "I was not surprised at the move," said McGregor of Team USA Minnesota. "[To win] you've got to run tough and take chances and that's what she did." But it got close. The finish was in the Akron Aeros baseball stadium and as they entered Slattery was slowly and McGregor was closing. The gap was two seconds at the end, after which Slattery promptly collapsed on her back. "I usually push it until I fall down, so that was not unusual," she said. McGregor, who was running back in her home region - she is from the Cleveland area - revealed she is in the middle of training for the ING New York City Marathon. Behind her, Rudolph, also a two-time Olympian, closed well for third. The USA Women's 8K Championship was the featured event during the 6th Road Runner Akron Marathon. That race, plus relays, drew more than 10,000 runners and was won by Birhanu Wukaw Zeleke (2:23:13) and 40-year old Sarah Plaxton (2:57:56). "We're thrilled to host a national championship," said race co-chair Bret Trier. "Next year, we hope to combine it with another one." The USA Women's 8K Championship was also the seventh stop on the 2008 USA Running Circuit (USARC) for women. The USARC, a USA Track & Field road series, features USA Championships from 5K to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners. The fourteenth edition for the men and thirteenth for the women, the 2008 USARC has seven events for men and nine events for women. Defending USARC champion Deena Kastor currently leads the women's standings with 45 points, while Magdalena Lewy Boulet and McGregor are tied for second with 24 points each. USA Women's 8K Championship 1) Sara Slattery (CA), 25:54, $7500 Complete results at: AkronMarathon.org 
September 25
Joan Benoit-Samuelson was named the Athlete of the Week by USA Track & Field for her record-setting performance at Sunday's CVS Caremark Downtown 5K. Here is more on what she did, courtesy of the race and (add)ventures: Women's Marathon Legend Joan Benoit Samuelson Breaks National Record at 2008 CVS Caremark Downtown 5K Becomes American record holder for women's 50 - 54 age group category Woonsocket, R.I. (September 24, 2008) - Race officials for the 2008 CVS Caremark Downtown 5K today announced that 1984 Gold Medalist Olympian Joan Benoit Samuelson set a national record for her age category while competing in Sunday's 5K race in Providence. Best known for her achievements as a Marathoner, the National Track & Field Hall of Famer covered the CVS Caremark Downtown 5K course in a women's 50 to 54 age-group record of 17 minutes and 24 seconds. The previous record of 17 minutes and 28 seconds was set by Shirley Matson in Carlsbad, California in 1991. As a result of Benoit Samuelson's accomplishment, she has been named USA Track & Field's Athlete of the Week. Photo courtesy of George Ross "This is an amazing accomplishment," said Charlie Breagy, Race Director of the CVS Caremark Downtown 5K. "At age 52, Joan has set a 5K national record which marathon runners are not known to do! Running the 5K in such a fast time after such a long marathon career is truly remarkable. We're quite happy that she broke the record here at the CVS Caremark Downtown 5K and look forward to having Joan back again." While a senior at Bowdoin College in Maine, Benoit Samuelson entered the 1979 Boston Marathon as a virtual unknown and wound up setting an American women's record. She won the Boston Marathon for a second time in 1983 despite having undergone surgery in both Achilles tendons in 1981. Then, she won the Olympic trials in 1984 just 17 days after knee surgery. Benoit Samuelson will forever be remembered for her dominating performance in the inaugural Olympic women's marathon in1984 when she beat a field that included other marathon legends such as Grete Waitz, Rosa Mota, Ingrid Kristiansen and Lisa Martin. She is also known for her running achievements in the 1980s when she held the U.S. record for the second fastest time ever by a woman. The 2008 CVS Caremark Downtown 5K also saw other records broken, including registrants tallying over 8,700 - surpassing the previous 2007 record of 7,000 registrants; a record number of Olympians competing in the 5K - eight in all; and a picture perfect day with temperatures in the high 70's. Winners of the 2008 CVS Caremark Downtown 5K included Anthony Famiglietti, a New York native now living in Tennessee who won the Men's division with a late surge and a time of 13 minutes and 41 seconds. Famiglietti represented the United States in the Beijing Olympics steeple chase. In the women's division, Shalane Flanagan, a bronze medalist at the Beijing Olympics in the 10,000m and a native of Marblehead, Mass., defended her 5K national title when she won the CVS Caremark Downtown 5K with a time of 15 minutes and 28 seconds. For complete results on the 2008 CVS Caremark Downtown 5K, go to www.cvsdowntown5k.com. The Web site also features pictures and video from the race.
From USA Track & Field: McGregor leads talented field at USA Women's 8 km Championships INDIANAPOLIS - Two-time USA 10 km champion Katie McGregor (St. Louis Park, Minn.) leads the field at Saturday's USA Women's 8 km Championships in Akron, Ohio. The championship race will be an invitation-only event, held in conjunction with the Road Runner Akron Marathon. McGregor will face a strong field that includes 2008 USA 20 km champion Jill Steffens (Athens, Ga.); two-time Olympian and 2008 20 km runner-up Elva Dryer (Gunnison, Colo.); and two-time USA 8km champion Amy Rudolph (Providence, R.I.). The runner-up at last weekend's USA 5 km Championships, Renee Metivier-Baille (Flagstaff, Ariz.) will lead additional contenders Molly Huddle (Providence, R.I.), Carrie Messner-Vickers (Vail, Colo.) and Rebecca Donaghue (State College, Pa.), who respectively finished third, fourth and fifth last weekend in Providence. The depth of the field continues with the addition of 2008 Olympic steeplechaser Lindsey Anderson (Ogden, Utah) and Sara Slattery (Boulder, Colo.), the 2005 NCAA Division I champion at 10,000 meters. Sponsored by the Akron Community Foundation, the championship will start at 7:30 a.m. and will feature a total of $23,500 in prize money with $7,500 going to the champion. The USA Women's 8 km Championship is the seventh stop on the 2008 USA Running Circuit (USARC) for women. The USARC is a USA Track & Field road series that features USA Championships from 5 km to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners. The fourteenth edition for the men and thirteenth for the women, the 2008 USARC has seven events for men and nine events for women. Deena Kastor leads the women's standings with 45 points and Dan Browne leads the men with 44 points. 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 $4 million dollars to U.S. distance runners. For more information on the 2008 USA Women's 8 km Championships visit www.usatf.org.
September 21September 18
PROVIDENCE - With a star-studded field that includes eight current or former Olympians, more than 7,600 runners and walkers already entered and another 1,000 expected to register over the weekend, Sunday's CVS Caremark Downtown 5K will go down in the record books. The pre-registration numbers for the 3.1-mile race, scheduled to start at 11:15 a.m. on Francis Street in front of the State House, have already surpassed last year's record total of 6,994. "The fact that this has become such a great family event and maintained its world-class status is the vision we had since day one," said race director Charlie Breagy. "We strive every year to make it a better experience for everybody." Among those Olympians expected to contend for the USA Track & Field National 5K Championship, which will be contested at this race for the seventh-straight year, is defending champion Shalane Flanagan. The Marblehead, Mass. native, who holds the American records for 3K, 5K and 10K, is fresh off her bronze medal performance in the 10,000 meters at the Summer Games in Beijing. Flanagan will be challenged by former Olympians Marie Davenport and Jane Gakunyi. A 10-time All-American and NCAA 5,000-meter champion while she was at Providence College, Davenport won the women's Downtown 5K title in 2004 - the same year she ran the 10,000 meters for Ireland at the Summer Games in Athens. Meanwhile, the master's field will be graced by Joan Benoit-Samuelson, who captured the gold in the inaugural Olympic women's marathon in 1984 in Los Angeles. On the men's side, the lead pack should include 2008 Olympian and 2006 U.S. 5K champion Anthony Famiglietti, who competed in the 3,000-meter steeplechase last month in Beijing, placing 13th. Fellow U.S. Olympians Matt Tegenkamp, a finalist in the 5,000 meters at this year's Games, and Dan Browne, who competed in both the 10,000 meters and the marathon at the 2004 Olympics, will also be shooting for the top spot among the Americans. Michael Bartoszak, who competed in the marathon for Poland at those Olympics, will be battling Famiglietti, Tegenkamp and Browne for the overall men's crown. Benoit-Samuelson, Flanagan, Famiglietti, Brown and Tegenkamp will all participate in a question-and-answer and autograph session, Saturday at 4 p.m. at Waterplace Park in Providence. As always, the 5K will be accompanied by the popular youth racing series with nearly 1,600 youngsters registered for the 21 morning races, which are broken down by grade and gender, beginning with the girls' 1-to-3-year-old 50-meter race at 8 a.m. Once again included in that series will be the "All Kids Can" Inspirational 200-meter Run/Walk, to be held at 9:28 a.m. As of this week, 53 youngsters with disabilities have registered to run in that event. Nearly 1,700 other runners representing schools from Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut will compete in the CVS Caremark Downtown 3K Inspiration School run, which will conclude a full day of racing. Those runners will set out from the State House at 2:15 p.m. "When we had races in Ireland, there were always youth races before the race for adults," said Breagy, a native of County Louth, Ireland. "Children were always included and that is how most young Irish and English runners got their start in the sport. This was the vision the guys and I had when we started this off back in 1990. "Many of the kids that started running in the (Downtown 5K) youth races continued to run and have won state championships," he added. "Many have gone on to get running scholarships. I think the youth races introduce young runners into the sport and the overall event inspires them. This along with all the great recreation programs, middle school programs and high school programs provide a platform for the youth runners to continue in the sport all the way to college." Given the large crowds expected for Sunday's race, Breagy strongly advises entrants who still need to enter or who need to pick up their race packets to do so on Saturday, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m., at race headquarters, located at the Renaissance Providence Hotel, 5 Avenue of the Arts, next to the State House and Providence Place Mall. Registration and race packet pick-up will also be held on race morning from 7:15-10:45. In addition to avoiding long lines, runners can save some money by registering on Saturday. The entry fee is $25 on Saturday and $30 on Sunday. Entry fee for the kids' races is $15. For more information, log on to http://www.cvsdowntown5k.com or call the race hotline at (401)751-7287.
September 17
Catch a special sneak preview of the Olympians slated to run the CVS Caremark Downtown 5K WHEN: Saturday September 20th, 4 p.m.
September 13
Whether you're a veteran of the roads or just taking your first steps, there is a race for you at next Sunday's CVS Caremark Downtown 5K, which will include an extensive youth racing series and a high school 3K along with the main 3.1-mile road race in Downtown Providence. "The fact that this has become such a great family event and maintained its world class status is the vision we had since day one," said race director Charlie Breagy. "Each year it seems to get bigger and better. We strive every year to make it a better experience for everybody." The youth racing series will consist of 21 races broken down by grade and gender, beginning with the girls' 1-to-3-year-old 50-meter race at 8 a.m. It will once again include an "All Kids Can" Inspirational 200-meter Run/Walk, to be held at 9:28 a.m., for youngsters with disabilities. Following the 5K event - which will start at 11:15 a.m. and will feature Olympic bronze medalist (10,000 meters) Shalane Flanagan, Olympic steeplechaser Anthony Famiglietti and 2004 Olympian Dan Browne - the CVS Caremark Downtown 3K Inspiration School run will kick off from the State House at 2:15 p.m. As of last week, close to 40 high school teams from Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut had registered for the 3K. Close to 30 more teams representing various middle schools, elementary schools and pre-schools around the state had also registered to participate in the youth races. "When we had races in Ireland, there were always youth races before the race for adults," said Breagy, a native of County Louth, Ireland. "Children were always included and that is how most young Irish and English runners got their start in the sport. This was the vision the guys and I had when we started this off back in 1990. "Many of the kids that started running in the (Downtown 5K) youth races continued to run and have won state championships," he added. "Many have gone on to get running scholarships. I think the youth races introduce young runners into the sport and the overall event inspires them. This along with all the great recreation programs, middle school programs and high school programs provide a platform for the youth runners to continue in the sport all the way to college." Groups have until Tuesday to register on-line. Once a team captain establishes an account, creating a username and password, on the race Web site - http://www.cvsdowntown5k.com - team members can register online clicking on the "Register Online'' and then "Team Member'' links and filling out the entry form. Additional information about all of the events to be held that day is available on the race web site or by calling the race hot line at (401) 751-7287.
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