Running News Daily

Tristan Woodfine Chasing Canadian Title at TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon

The past two years have been mostly good to Tristan Woodfine as he has recorded personal bests over several distances most significantly with his 2:10:39 finish at the 2024 Houston Marathon in January.

That makes him the sixth fastest Canadian marathoner of all time.

This uplift in fortune coincides with his seeking coaching advice from none other than two-time Canadian Olympic marathoner Reid Coolsaet.

Now the 31-year-old Woodfine has confirmed he will race the 2024 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, October 20th, with the objective of running both a fast time and earning the Canadian Marathon Championship title. The event doubles as a World Athletics Elite Label race as well as the Athletics Canada National Marathon Championships.

“It’s local, close, the support is good,“ he says of his choice for an autumn marathon. “The Canada Running Series (team) always does a great job. I have run the course before.

“Getting under 2:10 would be nice, finally. We will see how the rest of the build goes. Ten weeks is still a long timeand things can change for better or worse - hopefully for better - and by the time Toronto comes around I’d definitely love to get a PB and make another step forward there.”

Woodfine, who is currently living just outside of Eganville, Ontario with his wife Madeline, ran the Toronto Waterfront Marathon once before. That was in 2019 when he finished 13th in a time of 2:13:16. But he has twice won the Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon (2022 and 2017) - run concurrently with the full marathon - and has also had success at the Toronto Waterfront 10K. That race includes a long section of the marathon course too.

Credit for his upward trajectory goes to Coolsaet.

“Reid has had so much experience in the sport,” Woodfine says of his coach. “He has got a lot of valuable insights on the training front and beyond. He has done a lot of racesand he knows the deal with which races might work well for your goals, that kind of thing.

“He has got so much experience on any aspect of training, racing, nutrition, injuries, he has seen so much he can really help out.”

One of the differences in Woodfine’s program since his association with Coolsaet comes as a surprise but might well be a valuable lesson for all runners.

“Some of the workouts in the base training period are almost a bit easier than what I was doing (before),” he explains. “I think maybe before I was pushing a bit too hard too early in the training base. So backing off a little bit when coming into the marathon block was probably one of the bigger things.”

Like most runners he has had his share of hiccups, most notably a nagging case of plantar fasciitis that saw him drop out of the Boston Marathon back in April. He blames a mechanical deficiency in his running form. But that is behind him now and as he enters his marathon specific buildup phase he is full of optimism.

Recently he raced the Falmouth Road Race in Massachusetts finishing 11th in 33:33 over the 7-mile course. A successful result at the shorter distance has added to his confidence.

“The last few weeks leading into Falmouth I did get my longer mileage in,” he reveals. “I got a 37km long run in there just to get things ready. The week before Falmouth was 220km. In this (Toronto) buildup block I would like to get up to a maximum of 250 or 260km.”

Besides a personal best, Woodfine is fully aware that a national championship offers the chance for maximum World Athletics points that would count heavily in 2025 World Championships qualifying. Those Championships are set for Tokyo.

“I talked to Reid about trying to qualify for Tokyo,” he admits. “I have had a few sit-downs (with him). I’d get a fair amount of points with another good performance with a strong time. A solid finish in Toronto would put me in a good position.”

Unlike many elite runners Woodfine doesn’t have a shoe sponsor. After completing his paramedic studies at the Ontario Health and Technology College he has put on hold a career in that field to focus on his running. To make ends meet he has been doing some online coaching, a sideline that continues to grow.

“I definitely love helping other runners achieve their goals,” he adds. “I also do some remote work for a pharmacy in the area. It’s best described as inventory and purchasing. It’s very flexible and works great with running.”

Like many elite runners the Olympic Games has been a target for Woodfine. In 2020 he beat the Tokyo Olympics qualifying standard running 2:10:51 at the London Marathon and thought he’d achieved his dream of being an Olympian. But when Cam Levins ran 2:10:14 in Austria six months later it was Levins who was chosen for the team and not Woodfine. This, despite the fact Woodfine had beaten Levins in London by well over a minute.

Despite falling short of the Paris Olympic standard with his Houston Marathon personal best he still harbours an Olympic dream.

“Yes it is still a goal. I try not to put as much emphasis on the Olympics being an ‘all or nothing’, a defining factor of success for my career,” he declares. “I think that can kind of end up making you miserable. Whether you are going to the Olympics or not. For sure, it’s a goal.

“I am in this for another Olympic cycle and hopefully I can be on the start line in LA - the third time is a charm. But I am really focused on each year and trying to enjoy each race for what it is.”

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon is an obvious step forward in his career path.

(09/03/2024) Views: 281 ⚡AMP
by Paul Gains

Kenya’s John Korir claims dominant men’s win at Falmouth Road Race, while Fentaye Azale takes women’s in sprint finish

Kenya’s John Korir flirted with the course record at the Falmouth Road Race on Sunday, dominating the men’s field to win by 51 seconds in 31 minutes, 15 seconds over the seven miles.

Korir took control early and never relented, opening a 23-second gap by the 5K mark. That lead stretched to over a minute through 10K, and the field closed ever so slightly as Korir missed the course record, set last year by Wesley Kiptoo, by just seven seconds. Korir ran the third-fastest winning time in the race’s 52-year history.

“I was confident. I knew I was going to win because I am in very good shape,” said Korir. “I was feeling good, so I decided to go and see how it went.”

It was an entirely different race on the women’s side, where Ethiopia’s Fentaye Azale needed every yard from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights to put away the competition. In the end, Azale edged countrywoman Melknat Wudu by just a second with a winning 36:10. The two came flying down the final hill side by side, but Azale had an extra gear in the final steps.

Emma Bates, the top American woman at back-to-back Boston Marathons, was just six seconds behind the dueling Ethiopians. Another American, Emma Grace Hurley, led a trio across the line just behind Bates.

“It’s always so welcoming here,” said Bates. “People were shouting ‘Emma’ the entire way and I was running with Emma Grace Hurley, so both of us were just soaking up the energy from the crowd.”

Morgan Beadlescomb was the top American on the men’s side, finishing fifth, 66 seconds behind Korir. Three-time champion Ben Flanagan of Canada was seventh.

More than 11,000 runners participated in both races this year.

(08/19/2024) Views: 298 ⚡AMP
by y Amin Touri

Boston Athletic Association names field of professional athletes for 2024 Boston 10K

The Boston Athletic Association announced Wednesday the professional fields for the 2024 Boston 10K, which will be held on Sunday, June 23.

American Olympic marathoners Emily Sisson and Clayton Young will race the new and enhanced course that features scenic views of the Charles River and finishes at Boston Common.

Making his American road racing debut is world-number one ranked road racer Sabastian Sawe, of Kenya, and returning is defending Boston Half champion Abel Kipchumba. 2024 Boston Marathon runner-up Sharon Lokedi and two-time Boston Marathon champion Edna Kiplagat headline the women’s field, while Para Athletics Division winners Marko Cheseto Lemtukei, Atsbha Gebremeskel and Kelly Bruno will compete two months after finishing April’s marathon.

“The Boston 10K presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital kicks off the summer running season,” said Jack Fleming, the president and CEO of the B.A.A. “We’re eager for participants to take on the new course, which will run along the Charles River, over two historic bridges, and across the Boston Marathon finish line before finishing at Boston Common. Leading the way are some of the fastest and most accomplished athletes to race 6.2 miles, some doing so as a tune-up for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”

Sisson and Young locked up their spots on Team USA’s Marathon roster in February, both finishing second in their respective women’s and men’s races. Sisson returns to the Boston 10K after placing second in 2022 and fourth in 2023, while this will be Young’s first B.A.A. event.

From Kenya are Lokedi and Kiplagat, racing in Boston two months after placing on the podium at the 128th Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America. Lokedi is currently the alternate for Kenya’s Olympic Marathon team, and Kiplagat has twice finished runner-up at the Boston 10K. Joining them among international competitors are last year’s Boston 10K second-place finisher Stacy Ndiwa (Kenya), Cherry Blossom 10 Mile champion Sarah Chelangat (Uganda), 2022 Beach to Beacon 10K winner Fantaye Belayneh (Ethiopia), and 2021 Olympic 10,000m sixth place finisher Irine Cheptai (Kenya). Mercy Chelangat, an NCAA Cross Country and 10,000m champion from Kenya, and 2022 Boston Half third-place finisher Hiwot Gebremaryam (Ethiopia) are entered as well.

From the USA is 2015 Boston Marathon champion Caroline Rotich, B.A.A. High-performance team member Abbey Wheeler, 2024 USA 15K third-place finisher Emily Durgin and former American 10,000m record holder and U.S. Olympian Molly Huddle.

The men’s international field is headlined by Sabastian Sawe, the top-ranked road racer in the world and the 2023 World Athletics Half Marathon champion. Sawe, of Kenya, has run 26:49 — fastest in the field — and will be making his American road racing debut.

From Kenya are Boston Half reigning champion Abel Kipchumba, 2023 Falmouth Road Race winner Wesley Kiptoo, and 17-time NCAA champion Edward Cheserek. Also from Kenya is Alex Masai, third in 2023.

Beyond Clayton Young, American men on the starting line will include recent USA 25K national champion Diego Estrada, 1:00:02 half marathoner Teshome Mekonen, and B.A.A. High Performance Team member Josh Kalapos. Kalapos finished 17th at February’s U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Marathon.

Hermin Garic returns in the men’s wheelchair division as a two-time defending champion, timing 22:44 last year. He’s joined by Michelle Wheeler, a top entrant in the women’s wheelchair division, who was runner-up last year.

In the Para Athletics Divisions, Brian Reynolds — who set a world record 41:09 at last year’s event for T61-64 Classification (lower-limb impairment) is back with sights on the podium again. Marko Cheseto Lemtukei and Kelly Bruno — each of whom won the T62-T64/T42-T44 Division at the 128th Boston Marathon — will compete, as well as Atsbha Gebremeskel, the two-time Boston Marathon T46 (upper limb impairment) Para Athletics Division champion. More than 25 athletes will participate in the Para Athletics Divisions and Adaptive Programs at this year’s Boston 10K. Nearly $20,000 — an event record — in prize awards are available to top-three finishers across Vision Impairment (T11-T13), Upper Limb Impairment (T45-T46), Lower Limb Impairment (T61-T64), Coordination Impairment (T35-T38) classifications.

The Boston 10K presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital will be the second event of the 2024 B.A.A. Distance Medley, a year-long series featuring the Boston 5K (April), Boston 10K (June), and Boston Half (November). While open registration is sold out, limited spots are still available through Brigham and Women’s fundraising team.

(05/23/2024) Views: 605 ⚡AMP
by Jamy Pombo Sesselman

Hellen Obiri dominates Falmouth Road Race; Wesley Kiptoo equals 19-year-old men’s course record

Hellen Obiri is making a habit of winning in Massachusetts this year.

After kicking away from the field to win April’s Boston Marathon and dominated the BAA 10K in June, Obiri made it a triple crown with a win at Sunday’s Falmouth Road Race. After leading the pack through the 5K mark, the two-time Olympic silver medalist built up a 25-second lead through 10K and cruised to the win on the 7-mile course in 35 minutes 13 seconds.

“The uphill was terrible for me,” Obiri said. “But I knew after that it was downhill and it was an incredible finish.”Emily Sisson, the American record holder in the marathon, was the runner-up, 19 seconds behind Obiri.

In the men’s race, Kenya’s Wesley Kiptoo made his move much earlier, setting a strong pace from the gun. Kiptoo was already 12 seconds clear of the field at 5K and 20 seconds up the road at 10K, breaking the tape in 31:08, which matched the course record set by Gilbert Okari in 2004.John Korir and Edwin Kurgat made it a Kenyan sweep on the podium. Former BYU star Clayton Young was the top American, finishing fifth.

Daniel Romanchuk, of Maryland, captured his fifth Falmouth victory in the men’s wheelchair division, taking 25 seconds off his own course record to finish in 21:13.

Susannah Scaroni broke her own women’s wheelchair course record, going practically unchallenged to finish in 24:38, 52 seconds faster than her record-setting time last year.

“I always like pushing things farther and farther,” she said. “I don’t think I have ever done a more beautiful course.”

 

(08/20/2023) Views: 539 ⚡AMP

Obiri, Sisson to Face Off in ASICS Falmouth Road Race

Two high-profile and highly-competitive women in distance running will headline the international elite field at next week’s ASICS Falmouth Road Race. Hellen Obiri and Emily Sisson, both making their Falmouth debut, will face off on the roads for the third time this year when they line up for the seven-mile race on Sunday, Aug. 20.

This year, Obiri has won half marathons in the United Arab Emirates and New York City before winning the Boston Marathon in April. Since her Boston victory, Obiri has also won the B.A.A 10K and was runner-up in the Mastercard New York Mini 10K. Last weekend, she won the Beach to Beacon 10K in Maine.

“The roads and the people of Massachusetts have been good to me so far this year,” said Obiri, a two-time world champion and two-time Olympic silver medalist for Kenya. “I know it will not be easy, but I hope I can keep my record going. It will be nice to test myself before I get back into my preparations for an autumn marathon.”

For Sisson, Falmouth is part of the build up to this fall’s Bank of America Chicago Marathon where she will attempt to lower her own American record of 2:18:29 in the event. This past January, she also set the American record in the half-marathon (since broken by Kiera D’Amato) and won the USATF 15km title for the third consecutive year.

“I have not had the chance to race Falmouth before, but I have wanted to ever since I started spending summers in New England,” said Sisson, a graduate of Providence College. “I’m excited for my first Falmouth Road Race to be in the build up to Chicago. I cannot wait to line up in a few weeks time!”

Other top contenders include 2021 Falmouth champion and last year’s runner-up Edna Kiplagat, U.S. 5K Champion Weini Kelati and reigning U.S. 10 Mile champion Fiona O’Keeffe.

Fresh off a victory at last week’s Beach to Beacon 10K in Maine, Addisu Yihune will attempt back-to-back New England wins. The 20-year-old Ethiopian leads the men’s field.

Last year’s third place finisher, David Bett is returning in 2023. Other contenders include 2022 Los Angeles Marathon champion John Korir, two-time Pittsburgh Half Marathon winner Wesley Kiptoo and 2019 NCAA Cross Country Champion Edwin Kurgat.

In the Wheelchair Division, sponsored by Spaulding Rehabilitation, Daniel Romachuk, who set the course record in 2019, will chase his fifth Falmouth win. He championed last year’s race by three and a half minutes over Hermin Garic, the 2021 Falmouth winner who is also returning this year.

In the women’s race, 2022 champion and course record holder Susannah Scaroni will defend her title. Scaroni has dominated the road circuit in 2023 winning the Boston Marathon, New York Mini 10K and AJC Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta. Scaroni will face 2021 women’s champion Emelia Perry and 2022 third place finisher Yen Hoang who won the B.A.A. 10K earlier this year.

The 51st running of the ASICS Falmouth Road Race is the culmination of an entire weekend of running that kicks off with the Falmouth Elite Mile, held this year on Friday evening for the first time. The women’s field is led by former Oregon standout Susan Ejore of Kenya and three-time NCAA Champion Dani Jones. It also includes Belmont, Massachusetts high school phenom Ellie Shea.

The men’s race will welcome the deepest men’s field in its history. Olympic gold medalist Matthew Centrowitz will make his first trip to Falmouth to toe the start line with some of the nation’s top middle-distance runners. Past winner Craig Engels also returns this year as does Seekonk, MA native Johnny Gregorek, a World Championship qualifier who won the Guardian Mile in Cleveland last month and Vince Ciattei who won last weekend’s Beale Street Mile in Memphis.

In the Wheelchair division, both Romanchuk and Garic will also compete as will Scaroni, Perry and Hoang in the women’s race.

“From the track to the roads, there is going to be exciting racing to witness all weekend in Falmouth,” said Jennifer Edwards, Executive Director of Falmouth Road Race, Inc. “It’s an honor to welcome so many legends and future legends of the sport who will lead our field of 10,000 to the finish line.”

The Falmouth Track Festival which includes the Falmouth Elite Mile will be held at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 18 at Falmouth High School. The ASICS Falmouth Road Race gets underway at 9 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 20 with athletes running the traditional course starting in Woods Hole and ending at Falmouth Heights Beach.

(08/11/2023) Views: 753 ⚡AMP

Bill Rodgers is set to run his 43rd Quad-City Times Bix 7

In 1978, Bill Rodgers entered 30 road races and amazingly, astonishingly, he won 27 of them.

Over the course of his running career, he won 22 marathons, all during a thoroughly incredible 10-year period from 1974 to 1983.

He doesn’t win anything anymore, not even in his age group, but the 75-year-old Boston resident is still running, and he will be coming back to run the Quad-City Times Bix 7 for the 43rd time on July 29.

Rodgers said he thought he had done the Falmouth Road Race on Cape Cod about 35 times and the Cherry Blossom 10-miler in Washington, D.C., perhaps 30 times.

He never has entered any race as frequently as he has the Quad-City Times Bix 7, which is holding its 49th event this year. 

“And the Bix is probably the most challenging of them all,’’ Rodgers said. “But it’s a race I remember so well from that first time in 1980. I was still young and I could duke it out and I could race. Now I just try to hang on.’’

A man who once logged hundreds of miles in training each week now jogs 25 to 30 miles a week. He has done about 10 races this year, including Cherry Blossom. He said he now just went back to some of the old events he did during his heyday.

“But I’m back in the pack,’’ he said. “I’m way back in the pack because I’m 75 years old. It’s like a whole different thing. My strength used to be that I was a marathoner and I could do high mileage. I was a high-mileage runner. I wasn’t as quick as some runners, but I could do the mileage.’’

Not anymore. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Rodgers had a chance to sift through almost 50 years of running logs and he calculated that he has done more than 1,500 races and run at least 190,000 miles in his lifetime.

Most automobiles don’t last that long. And Rodgers hasn’t had the benefit of having a change of tires or periodic oil changes.

His body is feeling the effects of all that mileage. When he enters races now, he frequently finds himself trailing runners of a similar age who have fewer miles on their personal odometers.

“What I’m seeing is I see a lot of these runners who are in their 60s and 70s and they’re all ahead of me, but they just started running pretty recently or something,’’ he said.

He steps up to a new age group this year but doesn’t figure on being a contender to win it. The Quad-City Times Bix 7 course record for men ages 75-79 is 54 minutes, 58 seconds. Rodgers’ finishing time a year ago was 1:08:43.

Despite that, he still enjoys running.

“Now when I do 30 miles a week, I feel like when I was doing 100 miles a week,’’ he said. “I feel good, relatively speaking. No complaints with regards to running. I think it’s a great way to live.’’

Rodgers won the Quad-City Times Bix 7 the first two times he came here, in 1980 and 1981, and finished in the top 10 on seven occasions.

However, he is remembered almost as much for other years.

In 1995, he paused as he was coming down Kirkwood Boulevard to catch women’s leader Olga Appell just as she collapsed from heat exhaustion. He made sure that Appell received medical attention before jumping back into the race.

(07/14/2023) Views: 701 ⚡AMP

Olympic Steeple Bronze Medalist Benjamin Kigen And World XC Champ Beatrice Chebet Lead Fields For BAA 5k

Patriots’ Day Weekend will kickoff with exciting competition, as international and U.S. stars take to the roads for the 2023 B.A.A. 5K presented by Point32Health, and the 2023 B.A.A. Invitational Mile on Saturday, April 15.

Among the professional athletes entered in the B.A.A. 5K are reigning champions Charles Philibert-Thiboutot (Canada), Marcel Hug (Switzerland), and Jenna Fesemyer (USA), while recently crowned world cross country champion Beatrice Chebet of Kenya will make her Boston road racing debut. Local Bay State stars Johnny Gregorek and Ellie Shea will compete in the B.A.A. Invitational Mile, a three-lap race starting and finishing on Boylston Street.

“This year’s professional fields blend together experience with up-and-coming stars for the B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile,” said Mary Kate Shea, B.A.A. Director of Professional Athletes. “Participants, spectators, and running enthusiasts will get to witness world class competition at shorter distances two days before the 127th Boston Marathon."

International standouts will be at the front of the B.A.A. 5K, led by Kenya’s Benjamin Kigen – an Olympic bronze medalist in the 3000m steeplechase from 2021—and Philibert-Thiboutot, who set a Canadian national record at the 2022 B.A.A. 5K en route to winning in 13:35. Philibert-Thiboutot’s countryman Ben Flanagan, a three-time Falmouth Road Race winner, as well as reigning B.A.A. Half Marathon champion Geoffrey Koech of Kenya, are also entered. Leading the American contingent is Olympian Mason Ferlic, two-time World Cross Country participant Emmanuel Bor, U.S. Road Mile champion Eric Avila, and NCAA All-American Morgan Beadlescomb.

On the women’s side, 2023 World Cross Country champion Beatrice Chebet and bronze medalist Agnes Ngetich (Kenya) will take on World Athletics Championships 3000m steeplechase bronze medalist Mekides Abebe (Ethiopia), all racing the B.A.A. 5K for the first time. The United States will be well represented in the women’s professional ranks, with reigning USA 5K national champion Weini Kelati, defending B.A.A. Invitational Mile winner Annie Rodenfels, 2022 USA Club Cross Country champion Bethany Hasz, Olympian Marielle Hall, and 2022 USATF 10,000m bronze medalist Natosha Rogers all racing. Rodenfels and Hasz are members of the B.A.A. High Performance Team, training in Boston under coach Mark Carroll.

International standouts will be at the front of the B.A.A. 5K, led by Kenya’s Benjamin Kigen – an Olympic bronze medalist in the 3000m steeplechase from 2021—and Philibert-Thiboutot, who set a Canadian national record at the 2022 B.A.A. 5K en route to winning in 13:35. Philibert-Thiboutot’s countryman Ben Flanagan, a three-time Falmouth Road Race winner, as well as reigning B.A.A. Half Marathon champion Geoffrey Koech of Kenya, are also entered. Leading the American contingent is Olympian Mason Ferlic, two-time World Cross Country participant Emmanuel Bor, U.S. Road Mile champion Eric Avila, and NCAA All-American Morgan Beadlescomb.

On the women’s side, 2023 World Cross Country champion Beatrice Chebet and bronze medalist Agnes Ngetich (Kenya) will take on World Athletics Championships 3000m steeplechase bronze medalist Mekides Abebe (Ethiopia), all racing the B.A.A. 5K for the first time. The United States will be well represented in the women’s professional ranks, with reigning USA 5K national champion Weini Kelati, defending B.A.A. Invitational Mile winner Annie Rodenfels, 2022 USA Club Cross Country champion Bethany Hasz, Olympian Marielle Hall, and 2022 USATF 10,000m bronze medalist Natosha Rogers all racing. Rodenfels and Hasz are members of the B.A.A. High Performance Team, training in Boston under coach Mark Carroll.

(03/23/2023) Views: 1,065 ⚡AMP

Kenya’s Edna Kiplagat upgraded to 2021 Boston Marathon champion

Edna Kiplagat of Kenya has officially become a two-time Boston Marathon champion. The BAA elevated Kiplagat to 2021 Boston Marathon winner on Tuesday after the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) handed down a six-year suspension to former 2021 champion Diana Kipyokei. Kipyokei tested positive for triamcinolone acetonide (a corticosteroid)–a banned anti-inflammatory substance–post-race in Boston.

Kipyokei was also suspended for providing misleading information in her attempts to explain her use of the substance, including “fake documentation which she alleged came from a hospital,” according to the AIU. Kipyokei’s provisional suspension was announced Oct.14, but began on June 27 and her six-year ban has been backdated to June.

Kiplagat is now a two-time Boston Marathon champion, after winning the race in 2017 (she also ran to second in 2019). Kiplagat, 43, is widely regarded as one of the all-time greats in distance running.

Dubbed the “Queen of Persistence,” Kiplagat has competed at both the Olympic and World championship marathons, taking gold twice at the World champs in 2011 and 2013, and silver in 2017. Kiplagat has run all six of the Abbott World Marathon Majors.

The Colorado-based athlete won the Abbott World Marathon Series VIII (2013–14) and was named the Series V (10–2011) champion following the disqualification of Russian athlete Liliya Shobukhova. 

Kiplagat won both the London Marathon (2014) and New York Marathon (2010) with many second-place finishes. In 2021 she won the 7-mile (11.3 km) Falmouth Road Race, running away from the field in the second half of the race to break the tape in 36 minutes, 52 seconds.

 

(12/21/2022) Views: 797 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne

Ironman World Championship champion's "chunky" shoes spark controversy

Last week at the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, Norway’s Gustav Iden ran a 2:36 marathon after a 180-kilometre bike and 3.8 km swim, earning his first world championship title. Iden ran a new marathon record on the Kona course in a unique pair of On’s carbon-plated running shoes, the Cloudboom Echo 3, which have a reported stack height of 50 mm, which is outside of World Athletics legal stack height rule of 40 mm for road-running events.

Iden was allowed to wear these shoes in competition, since professional triathletes do not have to comply with any rules over their choice of running shoes, World Triathlon has confirmed.

Despite regulations in athletics governing shoe technology–such as limiting the sole thickness–World Triathlon stated they will not follow World Athletics standards and no checks are being made on any of the footwear being worn.

Some fans of the sport are calling for World Triathlon to follow suit in controlling stack height for competition. The second-and third-place finishers, Sam Laidlow of France and 2020 Olympic champion Kristan Blummenfelt, both wore the WA-legal shoes Nike Alphafly Next% and Asics Metaspeed Sky 2.

Iden said this in a post-race interview with his sponsor On:

World Athletics rules state the sole must be no thicker than 40 mm and that the shoes must not contain more than one rigid or embedded plate that runs the full length of the shoes. The Cloudboom Echo 3 has a single carbon plate that runs the full length of the shoe.Canada’s Ben Flanagan also wore the Cloudboom Echo 3 during his win at the 2022 Falmouth Road Race.

Since the seven-mile road race is not sanctioned by World Athletics, elites are allowed to wear shoes which are normally not allowed at national championship road races.

Iden won in the Ironman World Championships in his Kona debut with a time of 7:40:24, taking 11 minutes off the previous course record time from 2019. On, who signed Iden in the week leading into the race, was given a green light from Ironman for the Norwegian to wear the shoe.

(10/22/2022) Views: 1,422 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine

Some races are down since the pandemic took charge of road racing for a couple of years but there is some good news

Even marquee events have seen declines of 25 percent or more between 2019 and 2022.  

Across the country, many road races are returning after the COVID-19 pandemic forced them into a two-year hiatus. But runners haven’t yet come back to those events in the same numbers as they were turning out in 2019.

A few examples from the first eight months of 2022: 

The BAA 10K in June had 5,144 finishers, down from 8,003 in 2019, a decrease of 35 percent. 

The Utica Boilermaker 15K in July had 5,848 finishers, which was up from 2021, when it had 3,480, but down from the 2019 tally of 11,194, for a three-year decrease of 47 percent. 

In Colorado, the Cherry Creek Sneak, a 5K, 5-miler, and 10-miler in Denver, had its final running in 2022 after 40 years. Combined participation in the three events had already been falling before the pandemic, and it fell an additional 38 percent between 2019 and 2022 (from 3,390 finishers to 2,092). 

Larger, well-known events haven’t been immune from the declines. The Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run in April in Washington, D.C., had 2,700 fewer runners, for a decline of 15 percent. 

The Falmouth Road Race in Massachusetts and the Beach to Beacon 10K in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, two popular destination summer road races, saw declines of 24 percent and 16 percent, respectively. The town of Falmouth reduced the field size of the race to 10,000 runners this year (from its usual 12,800) but only 8,610 finishers appear in the results. 

Jean Knaack, CEO of the nonprofit Road Runners Club of America, wrote in an email to Runner’s World, “We are seeing a slow recovery in 2022, and we are tracking with participation data showing about 84 percent return.” 

Why aren’t runners coming back to events? Industry experts cited many theories: 

The economy: “I think inflation will be a factor for 2023 as events plan and people pick what events they can afford to run,” wrote Knaack. The cost of travel to races—for flights, hotels, rental cars, gas—has gone up. So, too, have race entry fees for many events, especially for runners who wait until the last minute to register. 

Competing events: Long-postponed weddings are back on. So are family vacations. The annual road race might need to take a back seat this year. 

COVID concerns: Many runners worry about contracting COVID at a race, or they get sick at an inopportune time, keeping them from the starting line. 

Shifting priorities: Erin Vandenberg, 42, for years raced at least monthly, often more, at distances from 5K to the marathon. Running a race with coworkers and then getting drinks after in downtown Chicago was a common occurrence. But she always felt a certain pressure to be training hard and performing well, worried what the time read on the clock at the finish.

Since the pandemic, she has taken a new approach to running. “I want to enjoy it; not stress myself out about it,” she said. “I don’t know that getting up at 5 a.m. to hit a certain pace and worry whether I’m fueling correctly is how I want to spend my time.” 

Vandenberg has run three races in 2022—including one with her dog. 

Not every race is down. Michelle La Sala, president of race management company Blistering Pace, says two of the events her company works on—the Big Sur Marathon and the Napa Marathon—have emerged largely unscathed from the pandemic. Big Sur was down only 240 runners (6.8 percent) and registration is tracking strongly for 2023. Same for Napa, which “should grow significantly this year,” La Sala said. 

The bigger “bucket list” marathons, with a few exceptions, are not having any problems at all, she said, while smaller, regional races, without a compelling point of differentiation, are “on the struggle bus.”

Grandma’s Marathon along Lake Superior in Minnesota was off only 6.4 percent in 2022 from its 2019 tally, and well up from 2021. The Eugene Marathon, in May in Oregon, and the Missoula Marathon, in June in Montana, were both well ahead in finisher numbers, although many might have been deferred entries from the cancellations of 2020 and 2021. Vandenberg has a deferred entry from the Chicago Marathon in 2020, and she plans to use it in 2023. 

John Mortimer, owner and founder of Millennium Running in Bedford, New Hampshire, sounded an optimistic note as well. Millennium has 30 of its own events of varying distances, manages and times others, and it has a running store. Sales are strong at the retail location, showing him that people continue to walk and run, even those who took it up during the pandemic. 

And race participation in Millennium events continues to be robust, in part, because the company developed a time trial start system during the pandemic as an alternative to a mass start race. For many months, they had the only events happening in New England. 

The company kept in frequent contact with runners and tried to make the race experience safe and convenient for them. They continue to offer the option to make any race a virtual race, up until the last minute, if runners would otherwise have to be a no-show at an event—thereby ensuring the runners would at least be mailed their tee shirts and medals. 

That policy will continue, Mortimer said. “Every week we’re shipping out apparel and medals and bibs,” he said. “We’re trying to make it easy for the participant to be a part of the running community.” 

The effort aimed at keeping relevant has paid off, Mortimer said, and registrations for most of the company’s events haven’t declined. The same can’t be said, he knows, for races that have been off for two years. 

For them, “It’s out of sight, out of mind,” he said. “People have moved on.”

(09/18/2022) Views: 996 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World

Keira D’Amato Will Attempt to Lower Her American Record at Berlin Marathon

After winning the Falmouth Road Race on Sunday morning, Keira D’Amato confirmed that she will be running the Berlin Marathon on September 25 in an attempt to lower her own American record.

D’Amato set the current record of 2:19:12 in Houston in January, eclipsing Deena Kastor‘s 16-year-old American record of 2:19:36.

“I think I can run faster than I did in Houston, and I’m going to go to try to prove it in Berlin,” D’Amato told Citius Mag after Falmouth, confirming what many insiders expected as she wasn’t listed in the NY or Chicago elite fields and former NY elite athlete coordinator David Monti had previously tweeted out (but then deleted) that D’Amato was headed to Berlin.

This will be D’Amato’s second Berlin Marathon. In 2019, she finished 17th in 2:34:55 in what was then a PR of more than six minutes. This time around, she will be looking to run more than 35 seconds per mile faster.

As the American record holder, D’Amato would have attracted a hefty appearance fee from either of the two American major marathons this fall, Chicago and New York. She also would have had more time to recover from her last marathon, an eighth-place finish at the World Championships on July 18 (there are 10 weeks between Worlds and Berlin; there are 12 weeks between Worlds and Chicago and 16 between Worlds and NYC).

But D’Amato typically bounces back quickly between races — she won Falmouth less than five weeks after Worlds — and did not log a full buildup for Worlds as she was named as a late injury replacement for Molly Seidel barely two weeks before the championships. Additionally, American records result in big endorsement bonuses from shoe sponsors.

Berlin has become the go-to course for world record attempts in recent years, as it has hosted the last seven men’s world records and was also the venue of choice for Shalane Flanagan‘s American record attempt in 2014 (Flanagan fell short of the AR but still ran her lifetime best of 2:21:14). But three of the last four women’s world records have fallen in Chicago, including the current mark of 2:14:04 set by Brigid Kosgei in 2019. Either would have been fine options for an American record attempt; the better option may come down to weather on race day.

(08/23/2022) Views: 1,056 ⚡AMP
by Jonathan Gault

Ben Flanagan wins his third Falmouth Road Race

Kitchener, Ont. native Ben Flanagan has done it again, winning his third Falmouth Road Race in four years. Flanagan finished the seven-mile (11.3 km) course in 32:25, outlasting runner-up Biya Simbassa (32:32) for a second straight year in Falmouth, Mass.

With two Falmouth victories to Flanagan’s name, and his partner, Hannah, growing up in Falmouth, he was the race favourite heading in and was keen to defend his 2021 title. In a pre-race interview, Flanagan chatted about his familiarity with the course and how he was already dreaming of his celebration when he won his third.

Like in previous years, the 27-year-old broke the tape by jumping into it, holding up the “number three” with his hand. 

Flanagan again made his attack at the top of the Scranton Ave. hill at the 5.5-mile marker. Simbassa, who lives and trains in Flagstaff, Ariz., followed Flanagan’s move along with David Bett of Kenya. The Canadian 10K record holder ousted Bett and Simbassa on the final downhill to win, nine seconds shy of his personal best on the course: 32:16 from 2021.

Flanagan now joins an exclusive group of six runners to successfully defended their titles at Falmouth. The group of six features: Alberto Salazar (‘81 and ‘82), Frank Shorter (’75 and ’76), and David Murphy (‘84 and ‘85). Next year, he will have the chance to join Kenya’s Gilbert Okari as the only men to win three straight (2004-06)

The American women’s marathon record holder, Keira D’Amato, won the women’s 11.3 km race in a nail-biting finish (36:14). She managed to hold off a surging 2017 Boston Marathon champion Edna Kiplagat (36:28) to claim the women’s title in her Falmouth debut.

This race was a quick bounce back for the 37-year-old, who placed eighth at last month’s 2022 World Athletics Championships marathon for Team USA in 2:23:34. Earlier this year at the Houston Marathon, D’Amato set the U.S. marathon record of 2:19:12.

D’Amato will take another stab at breaking her American marathon record on Sept, 25. at the Berlin Marathon.

Daniel Romanchuk won the men’s wheelchair title in 22:02, and Susannah Scaroni won the women’s division in 25:30.

 

(08/21/2022) Views: 1,240 ⚡AMP
by Marley Dickinson

Ben Flanagan is taking a new career path

Former NCAA champion and professional distance runner Ben Flanagan had a breakout season in 2021, but now as he prepares for 2022, he’s raising the bar to a whole new level.

“I’ll be moving to the high jump,” Flanagan says. “I fell in love with the sport.”

After his win at the Falmouth Road Race in Falmouth, Mass., last August. Flanagan was approached by a famous U.S. high jump coach, Mike Flyte, who currently coaches for the U.S. Airforce Academy. Flyte was at Falmouth to watch his wife race in 2018 and 2021 and noticed Flanagan’s outstanding ‘vert’ as he celebrated into the finish.

Flyte eventually approached Flanagan after the race to congratulate him. “I thought he was making a joke at first, until he handed me his business card,” Flanagan says.

Already having the rest of his season planned for 2021, Flanagan finished the season in impeccable form, taking wins at the Manchester Road Race and Toronto Waterfront 10K.

In February, Flanagan connected with Flyte and made his way to Airforce Academy’s Track and Field Centre in Colorado Springs. “The high jump was love at first sight,” says Flanagan. “What intrigues me about high jump is the idea of reaching new heights.”

Although Flanagan only holds a personal best of 1.06 m, he’s confident that his distance running experience will stand him in good stead for the new discipline.

“High jump and distance running are way more similar than people think,” he says. “I’m shocked more people don’t make this transition, or even compete in both.”

Flanagan’s ultimate goal would be to double in the high jump and marathon in Paris 2024.

(04/02/2022) Views: 798 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine

Canadian Ben Flanagan signs with On, this is the second professional contract of his career

Just one day before toeing the line at the Chevron Houston Half-Marathon, Ben Flanagan announced he had signed with On Running in the second pro contract of his career. The Canadian 10K champion has been with Reebok since 2018 after finishing his collegiate career at the University of Michigan.

In his time with Reebok, the 27-year-old from Kitchener, Ont. has seen a fair amount of success. In 2021 he dominated the roads, winning his second Falmouth Road Race, covering the 11.2-kilometer course in 32:16 in August.

He followed that performance up with a win at the Canadian 10K championships in Toronto in October, running 28:42 for his first-ever appearance at a road 10K. One month later, he won Connecticut’s Manchester Road Race, completing the unique 7.6-kilometer distance in 21:22.

He kicked off 2022 with his first race as an On athlete at the Chevron Houston Half-Marathon, where he was just 10 seconds off Jeff Schiebler’s former 23-year-old Canadian half-marathon record of 61:28. His compatriot, Rory Linkletter, beat the record, running 61:08 for eighth place.

In an interview with Canadian Running ahead of Sunday’s half-marathon, Flanagan said he was planning on running a few 5,000m and 10,000m races this spring to secure a spot on Team Canada at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Ore., but may be turning his attention to the marathon next year. “Stepping up to the marathon this year might be a stretch, but I want to give myself a chance to qualify for Paris,” he said.

Flanagan has given Canadian fans a lot to watch in the last year, and with his new contract signed, we hope to see him continue to dominate the roads into 2022.

(01/18/2022) Views: 1,187 ⚡AMP
by Brittany Hambleton

Ben Flanagan wins 85th Manchester Road Race, Weini Kelati wins women's race and sets new record

What a dominating performance by Weini Kelati!

The 24-year-old runner native of the African country of Eritrea shattered the course record with a time of 22 minutes 55 seconds to win the women’s division of the Manchester Road Race. Kelati, who lives in Flagstaff, Ariz., finished 18th overall.

“It’s amazing!” Kelati told FOX61 News after crossing the finish line on Thursday morning. “The energy … When I hear the people cheering, it helps me to run fast.”

Kelati, who won the women’s national 5K road championship in New York City on Nov. 6, started off the race strong. She quickly got away from the pack in the women’s division and ran the 4.748 miles practically by herself.

She beat the previous course record of 23 minutes 57 seconds in the women’s division – set by Buze Diriba in 2017 – by more than a minute.

Second place in the woman’s race was Keira D’Amato from Midlothian, Virginia. Edna Kiplagat from Longmont, Colorado rounded up the top three.

“Thank you to the people cheering for us,” Kelati said. “It’s amazing.”

In the men’s race, winner Ben Flanagan, 26 of Canada, clocked in at a time of 21 minutes 23 seconds, beating second-place Leonard Korir by more than 12 seconds.

Flanagan, who lives in Charlottesville, Virginia, took the lead after the Highland Street hill, at about the 2-mile mark, and ran alone the rest of the way.

“I feel amazing,” he told FOX61 News after the race. “I knew I was in pretty good shape, but this time of year, you really don’t know what to expect, it’s so early in training. So, to come out here and take the win at a historic race like this is a huge privilege. I am so happy.”

He was about six seconds off the pace of the course record for the men’s division (21:15) set by Edward Cheserek in 2018.

Flanagan, who is a two-time winner of the Falmouth Road Race (2019, 2021), was running his second Manchester Road Race. He is the first Canadian male to win since Christian Weber in 1990.

Sam Chelanga, the 2013 Manchester winner, won the King of the Hill title at the top of Highland Street hill. He came in third overall.

“You do it right here (in Manchester),” Flanagan said of the crowds. “It was electric. As soon as I took the lead, the last two miles, the crowd just fueled me the whole time … it was so exciting.”

More than 8,700 runners hit the racecourse this year. The race was held virtually last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

(11/25/2021) Views: 1,621 ⚡AMP
by Lucia Suarez Sang

Drew Hunter and Weini Kelati Will lead fields for Thursday’s Manchester Road Race

The elite fields for Thursday’s Manchester Road Race in Manchester, Conn., have been finalized, race organizers reported this morning.  The classic Thanksgiving Day race, founded in 1927, will return to its usual 4.748-mile, hilly loop with the start and finish on Main Street after being held virtually last year.  Among the hundreds of “Turkey Trots” to be held in the United States on Thursday, Manchester is the only event with a truly top-class elite field.  Organizers expect 8,700 runners to answer the starter’s gun at 10:00 a.m. EST.

“Our elite runner coordinator, Jim Harvey, has done a brilliant job of assembling excellent fields of elite runners for our return to Main Street and the celebration of our 85th Manchester Road Race this year,” said Dr. Tris Carta, president of the Manchester Road Race Committee, through a statement.  “It is going to be a very exciting road race.”

The women’s contest will feature an interesting match-up between USA 5-K champion Weini Kelati and 2:22 marathoner Keira D’Amato.  Both American women will be running Manchester for the first time.

Also likely to contend for the win are Kenyans Edna Kiplagat, the two-time world marathon champion, and Monicah Ngige, most recently fourth at the Boston Marathon.  Also entered are Britain’s Amy-Eloise Markovc, the 2021 European indoor 3000m champion, and Americans Taylor Werner, the 2019 NCAA Championships 5000m runner-up, and Katie Izzo, fourth at the 2019 NCAA Championships in the 10,000m.  In all, ten women have track or road 5-K personal bests under 16 minutes.  Kiplagat was the Manchester winner in 2019.

Drew Hunter, the newly-crowned USA 5-K road running champion, leads the men’s field and will be making his Manchester debut.  Hunter’s biggest challengers will likely be 2:07 marathon Leonard Korir, veteran Sam Chelanga, and two-time Falmouth Road Race champion Ben Flanagan, a Canadian.  A total of 14 men have sub-14:00 5000m personal bests.

Thursday’s race has a generous $47,800 prize money purse, and the top-3 men and women will receive $7,000, $4,000 and $3,000, respectively.

Behind the elites, 75 year-old Amby Burfoot will run Manchester for the 59th consecutive year (he ran virtually in 2020 using the race’s traditional course).  Burfoot, the 1968 Boston Marathon champion, won the Manchester Road Race nine times from 1968 through 1977.  Should he finish the race on Thursday he will earn sole ownership of the record for most total Manchester finishes at 59.

Thursday’s races will be broadcast on the Connecticut Fox affiliate, Fox 61.  Their coverage will be streamed live and free globally at fox61.com at 10:00 a.m. EST.

The complete elite fields are below with 5000m personal bests.

WOMEN

–Weini KELATI (USA), 14:58.24

Amy-Eloise MARKOVC (GBR), 15:03.22

Aisling CUFFE (USA), 15:11.13

Taylor WERNER (USA), 15:11.19i

Katie IZZO (USA), 15:13.09i

Monicah NGIGE (KEN), 15:16 (road)

Edna KIPLAGAT (40+/KEN), 15:20 (road)

Sarah INGLIS (GBR), 15:24.17

Fiona O’KEEFFE (USA), 15:31.45

Tristin VAN ORD (USA), 15:53.44

Emeline DELANIS (FRA), 16:02.54

Keira D’AMATO (USA), 16:09.86

Annmarie TUXBURY (USA), 16:17.45

Emily SETLACK (40+/CAN), 16:26.31

Whitney MACON (USA), 35:36 (road 10-K)

MEN

–Sam CHELANGA (USA), 13:04.35i

Leonard KORIR (USA), 13:15.45

Drew HUNTER (USA), 13:17.55

Ben FLANAGAN (CAN), 13:20.67

Donn CABRAL (USA), 13:22.19

Jordan MANN (USA), 13:27.68i

Blaise FERRO (USA), 13:31.54

John DRESSEL (USA), 13:36.29

Alex OSTBERG (USA), 13:42.44

Mo HREZI (LBA), 13:42.80

Matt McCLINTOCK (USA), 13:47.68

Alfredo SANTANA (PUR), 13:48.10

Joey BERRIATUA (USA), 13:49.16

Julius DIEHR (USA), 13:56.79

Tai DINGER (USA), 14:09.41

Brendan PRINDIVILLE (USA), 14:10.96.

(11/24/2021) Views: 1,574 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

Everything you need to know for the 85th Manchester Road Race

The 85th Manchester Road Race (MRR) is almost here and runners from all over the country are lacing up their running shoes.

The race was forced to be held virtually in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But with vaccinations, and efforts made by the state and race officials, the race will happen in person for the 2021 race.

Here's what you need to know:

How to Watch

The race will be held on Thanksgiving Day. 

FOX61 and CW20 will broadcast the race entirely. Fans who cannot make it out to Manchester on the day can watch it live on TV or stream it on FOX61.com, FOX61 News App, ROKU and Amazon Fire TV apps and on the FOX61 Youtube page from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. 

The race will be rebroadcast in its entirety on CW20 starting at 4 p.m. 

The race will start at 10 a.m. sharp. It will begin and end on Main Street at Oak Street. From there, runners will head onto Charter Oak Street where they will hit the first mile.

At the second mile, runners will head onto Highland Street before turning onto Porter Street where they will hit the third and fourth mile. 

The length of the course is 4.748 miles. 

COVID-19 Safety Measures

With COVID-19 still impacting the community, race officials have implemented safety measures.

Officials strongly urged everyone participating to be fully vaccinated before race day, which includes athletes, volunteers, and fans. 

Additionally, officials mandated that all of the elite runners, many of whom are coming from out of state, provide proof of vaccination. 

Masks must be worn at all of the MRR indoor events and on shuttle buses transporting runners and spectators to the race. 

The MRR canceled its indoor Spaghetti Supper and Charlie Robbins Luncheon this year due to the mask requirement. 

While masks are not required outdoors, race officials are asking runners, volunteers, and spectators to still wear masks and follow social distance protocols as much as possible at the race and all the associated events.

Elite Runners

Sam Chelanga, winner of the 2013 MRR, and Edna Kiplagat, who won the women's title at the 2019 race, will return this year.

Other world-class male athletes who have entered this year’s 4.748-mile Turkey Trot include Ben Flanagan, who won the Falmouth Road Race in August and finished eighth at the 2019 MRR; Drew Hunter, the 2019 USA indoor two-mile champion who won the national 5K road championship in New York City on Nov. 6; and Olympian Donn Cabral, who was second at the 2015 MRR and has had seven top-10 finishes in Manchester.

Cabral, a graduate of Glastonbury High School who was the NCAA champion in the steeplechase when he competed for Princeton, was the fastest runner (23:00) in last November’s Virtual Manchester Road Race.

Weini Kelati, who won the women’s national 5K road championship in New York City on Nov 6th with a time of 15:18, and Monicah Ngige, the fourth-place finisher at this year’s Boston Marathon who had a fourth-place finish here in 2018 (25:02), are also expected to make strong showings in the women’s race.

(11/22/2021) Views: 1,698 ⚡AMP
by Jennifer Glatz

The 2021 ASICS Falmouth Road Race Raised $4.75M for Charity

Organizers of the 49th annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race, one of America’s premier running events, helped over 160 nonprofits to raise $4.75 million at its August race for Massachusetts-based nonprofit organizations — including $486,113 for eight Falmouth-based nonprofits — through its Numbers for Nonprofits program (NFNP).

“We’re incredibly proud of our charity program,” said Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race board of directors. “Despite this year’s limited in-person field capacity, the program still delivered in a big way thanks to both those charity runners who participated in-person and in the At-Home Edition, the virtual component of the race. It’s awesome when you think of all the good work the road race is able to facilitate.”

Compassionate Care ALS (CCALS), the top Falmouth-based fundraising team, employed a unique approach for their fundraising in 2021. Survivor Fans vs. Bachelor Fans were encouraged to choose a side to compete on to raise funds for the organization that supports those who are diagnosed with ALS, their families, health care providers, and communities as they navigate the complexities associated with the disease. Former runner-up Chris Lambton from Season 6 of The Bachelorette – whose mother Marjorie received help from CCALS – headed up The Bachelor squad, while three-time Survivor contestant Jonathan Penner led the Survivor side in honor of his wife Stacy who recently passed away from ALS in January 2021. The CCALS fundraising results were the best to date: 111 runners raised $355,581 to benefit the organization’s mission.

Funds raised in 2021 brings the NFNP total to $50 million raised since the program’s inception in 2000. 

For more information or to apply for a spot in the 2022 NFNP program, visit www.falmouthroadrace.com. Follow us on Facebook or at @falmouthroadrace on Instagram. The 2022 application closes on October 31, 2021.

About the Numbers for Nonprofits program: the Numbers for Nonprofits has grown exponentially over the years to include more than 300 different MA-based charity teams since 2000 and over 3,000 runners per year who commit to fundraise and then run the 7-mile course. Each year, the race provides guaranteed entries, with an extended registration deadline, to select Massachusetts-based charities. The charities then recruit runners who solicit donations for them. 

About Falmouth Road Race, Inc.: The Falmouth Road Race was established in 1973 and has become one of the premier running events of the summer season. Each year the race draws an international field of Olympians, elites, and recreational runners to enjoy the iconic 7-mile seaside course. The non-profit Falmouth Road Race organization is committed to promoting health and fitness through community programs and philanthropic giving.

(10/26/2021) Views: 1,173 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

American Women Offer Most Intriguing Storyline of 2021 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run

Jenny Simpson is the course record holder (4:16.1) and eight-time winner of the Fifth Avenue Mile — the farthest she’s ever raced on the roads. Jenny is also a three-time Olympian (2008, 2012 and 2016 bronze medalist) and three-time World Championship medalist (gold in 2011, silver in 2013 and 2017). Sara  Hall, on the other hand, has run the second fastest marathon ever (2:20:32) for an American woman, and has won 11 USATF National Championships on the roads since 2006, including 10 mile titles in 2018 and 2019. Hall was 2nd American (52:54) when the USATF 10 Mile Championships were last hosted by the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile (CUCB) in 2014.

But Simpson and Hall aren’t the only two American women entered in the 2021 USATF 10 Mile Championships Presented by Toyota. They just define the two extremes of road racing experience represented in what is sure to be an interesting and exciting race for the title of America’s best over 10 miles in 2021.

When Hall and Simpson line up for the women’s-only start at 7:18 a.m. this coming Sunday morning, September 12, they will be joined by Americans Diane Nukuri, Annie Frisbie, Natosha Rogers, Susanna Sullivan, and Bethany Sachtleben, among others. But no runner comes into the race with the same momentum Hall has as winner of three road races this summer, while setting a personal best for 10K on the roads (31:33) at the Mastercard New York Mini. Nukuri may have raced more frequently, with six top-10 road race performances over the last six months, but it was her 5th place result at CUCB 2018 (53:56) that best argues for her inclusion in the conversation about pre-race favorites.

Hall is 38 years old, Simpson is 35 and Nukuri is 36, but this won’t just be a race among veterans if Annie Frisbie has her way. In fact, the 24 year-old Frisbie prevailed over Nukuri at two races this summer, and boasts a 54:00 personal best for 10 miles from the 2019 USATF 10 Mile Championships, when she placed 5th. Another sub-54 minute performer (53:45), Natosha Rogers (30), placed second at the 2017 USATF 10 Mile Championships and returns to the roads after a spring and summer of racing on the track in quest of an Olympic team slot in the 10,000m.

Top DC-area runners Susanna Sullivan (31) and Bethany Sachtleben (29) have proven themselves to be worthy competitors over the years, with Sachtleben placing 3rd among Americans at CUCB 2018 and 2nd among Americans in 2019. Sullivan was 4th American at CUCB in 2014, 5th in 2015 and 3rd in 2017.

American runners will be competing for a total of $26,000 in U.S.-only prize money, from $5,000 for 1st place to $500 for 10th place, paid equally to men and women.

Of course, there’s an international component to the 2021 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile as well. And Kenyans Iveen  Chepkemoi (24) and Caroline Rotich (38) will lead the women’s chase for an international prize pool of $20,000, with $5,000 for 1st place down to $150 for 10th place, again paid equally to men and women. American runners placing in the top-10 overall are able to “double-dip” and claim the appropriate payment from both international and U.S.-only prize pools.

Chepkemoi boasts the fastest 10-mile personal best among all the women (51:43), while Rotich won CUCB in 2013 (52:46).

So, who will prevail? The rookie Simpson? One of the 38 year-old veterans, Hall or Rotich? Or one of the 24 year-old up-and-comers, Frisbie or Chepkemoi? There’s an all-out 10-mile race between here and the answer.

A stellar field of American and international men will take to the same 10-mile course at 7:30 a.m. this Sunday, in pursuit of the same titles, prize money and bonuses as the women. Bonuses on offer include $10,000 for a World Record (44:23 men/51:23 women), another $10,000 for an American Record (45:54 men/51:23 women) — either of which will be split evenly among any men and women record breakers — as well as time bonuses of $1,000 and $750 for the first two runners to break 46:00 for men or 52:00 for women. Finally, there is a special prize pool of $1500/$1000/$500 for both men and women who have taken part in the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) RunPro Camp or Roads Scholar programs.

Chris Derrick (30) comes into the USATF 10 Mile Championships with the fastest personal best among the American men (46:53), which he ran at CUCB 2018, placing 5th. He, like many of the other men and women in the race, however, has his sights set on one of the many fall marathons this year, and may be racing on tired legs.

Abbabiya Simbassa (30) will also be racing on tired legs, having run the 2021 USATF 20K Championships on Labor Day in New Haven, CT, where he placed 2nd, just one-second shy of the title. Add that to the 2nd places he ran at the 2021 USATF 15K Championships in March, and the recent Asics Falmouth Road Race, and you can imagine how Simbassa’s legs feel going into CUCB 2021. Simbassa was also 2nd American at CUCB 2018 and 2nd at the 2019 USATF 10 Mile Championships (46:57).

A cluster of other American men with 10-mile personal bests that should be competitive include Kiya Dandena (46:58), Augustus Maiyo (47:05), Elkaneh Kibet (47:15), Willie Milam (47:18), Noah Droddy (47:28), and Louis Serafini (47:35). Dandena (32) set his personal best at CUCB 2017, when he was 3rd American; he was also 5th American in 2019 and 7th in 2018. Maiyo (38) set his personal best at the 2019 USATF 10 Mile Championships, while placing 5th. Kibet (38) placed 3rd at the 2017 EQT Pittsburgh 10 Miler. Milam (29) ran his best time at CUCB 2019. Serafini (29) was the 6th American at CUCB 2019, and set his personal best at the 2019 USATF 10 Mile Championships, while Droddy (30) ran his best at the 2016 USATF 10 Mile Championships, placing 2nd.

Despite the presence of so many competitive American men, Kenyan runners typically dominate the overall race up front. Stephen Sambu (33) comes into the race with a personal best of 45:29 from his first CUCB victory in 2014. Sambu clearly has the most experience on DC roads of anyone in the field, with wins in 2014 and 2015, a 4th place finish in 2013, and a 5th in 2019.

Two other Kenyans, Dominic Korir (28) and Edwin Kimutai (28), are also very worthy of mention. Dominic Korir was 6th overall in CUCB 2017 in a time of 46:45. Kimutai ran 2:08:15 for 4th place at the Harmony Geneva marathon for UNICEF last May. Sadly, Kimutai’s wife passed away on August 23rd — he’ll be running in her memory, and for a young daughter suddenly left without a mother.

The top American man and woman will each earn a spot on Team USA for the 2022 World Athletics Half Marathon Championships, to be held in Yangzhou, China, on March 20, 2022. Should the winning American man or woman decline their Team USA slot, the second place finisher will be offered the slot; there will be no “rolling down” beyond second place.

(09/09/2021) Views: 1,549 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

Ben Flanagan and Edna Kiplagat Win the 49th Annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race

Organizers of the 49th Annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race, one of America’s premier running events of the summer, officially brought road racing back to the streets of Falmouth today with Canadian, Ben Flanagan, winning the Men’s Division for a second time in 32:16 and Kenyan, Edna Kiplagat winning the Women’s Division in 36:52. 

Flanagan set up his strategy in advance. “I was out with my family at the Black Dog Café and I took a run on the course,” said Flanagan. “I noticed a crosswalk just before the final turn and decided I would make my move there. I knew, if I could hold off the pack until we got to the final downhill there was no way they could catch me.” 

The men’s race began with Frank Lara going to the front coming out of Woods Hole to post a 4:28 first mile. An accomplished pack of 18 men lined up behind Lara, as he held the lead through most of the race. By mile six, the men started to sort themselves out. Biya Simbassa, a University of Oklahoma graduate -- who recovered from a fall at the halfway mark -- stayed in the hunt, as did Emmanuel Bor, fresh off his fifth at the U.S. Olympic Trials 5000m. 

Flanagan made a determined push at the base of the final hill before driving over the top to seal his victory over Simbassa, Bor and Lara - all finishing within 6 seconds of each other.  

The women’s race broke early with a pack of 30 dropping to seven by the second mile. Iveen Chepkemoi, a young 24-year-old talent from Kenya, who trains in Colorado Springs, put a gap on Edna Kiplagat, Emily Durgin, Fiona O’Keeffe and past Falmouth champion Diane Nukuri. By the halfway point, the race was between Kiplagat, a Boston, London and New York City Marathon champion, and Chepkemoi, with the second pack fading by 20 seconds. At mile four, Kiplagat pulled away as Chepkemoi got caught by the chase pack.  

“This was a fast race, and I needed it at this point in my training because I’m running the Boston Marathon in October,” said Kiplagat. “Once I saw the finish, I focused on keeping away from second place.” 

Durgin edged O’Keefe by one second to secure her third runner-up finish of the summer. “This is a beautiful course. We were all working together feeding off each other,” O’Keefe said. She was second at the U.S. 10K and 6K Championships. O’Keefe, a six-time All American at Stanford now coached by Olympian Amy Cragg,  finished third.  

In the Wheelchair Division, Hermin Garic, a veteran of eight Falmouth Road Races, took his first win with a 25:40. “I worked my butt off for this win,” said Hermin, who will be wheeling Utica Boilermaker the day before he heads to the 125th Boston Marathon. Emeilia Perry took the women’s wheelchair race in 37:39. “I’m really excited. This is my first Falmouth Road Race and I wasn’t expecting that last hill, ” Perry said after the race. 

Additionally, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Marathon bronze medalist, Molly Seidel, served as the official race starter and joined the ASICS Falmouth Race field of nearly 8,000 registered participants as its very last runner. For every runner that she passed along the 7-mile course, the Falmouth Road Race pledged to donate $1 to Tommy’s Place, a vacation home in Falmouth for kids fighting cancer. Tim O’Connell, founder of Tommy’s Place, announced an additional dollar-for-dollar match. While Seidel officially ran past 4,761 runners along the way, the Falmouth Road Race is pleased to announce that it will double its pledge, bringing its donation to $9,522.00 in appreciation of Seidel’s participation in this year’s event and to celebrate her victory in Tokyo. Combined with O’Connell’s match, that brings the grand total to $19,044. 

About Falmouth Road Race, Inc. The Falmouth Road Race was established in 1973 and has become one of the premier running events of the summer season. Each year the race draws an international field of Olympians, elite and recreational runners out to enjoy the iconic 7-mile seaside course. The non-profit Falmouth Road Race organization is committed to promoting health and fitness through community programs and philanthropic giving.

(08/16/2021) Views: 1,265 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

Molly Seidel will Run the Falmouth Road Race for Charity Tommy's Place

Organizers of the 49th annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race, one of America’s premier running events of the summer season, today announced that on the heels of her competition in Tokyo, U.S. Olympic marathon runner, Molly Seidel, will travel to Cape Cod to participate in this year’s race.

As part of her participation, Seidel will be the official race starter and then join the field as the very last runner. For every runner that she passes along the 7-mile course, Falmouth Road Race, Inc. will donate $1 to Tommy’s Place, a vacation home in Falmouth for kids fighting cancer.

The 2021 Olympic marathoner will run the ASICS Falmouth Road Race alongside her sister, Isabel, as a post-Olympic celebration.  

“We are very excited to have Molly Seidel join us in person for the 49th running of the ASICS Falmouth Road Race,” said Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race, Inc. Board of Directors. “Over the years, we have been very fortunate to welcome so many accomplished runners to our race. We are honored that Molly has chosen to join us as part of her post-Olympic plans, while agreeing to start the race last to raise money for Tommy’s Place, named after our race founder, Tommy Leonard, to honor his legacy. It really doesn’t get much better than that. We wish her the best of luck in Tokyo and look forward to cheering her on during the women’s marathon on August 6 and to personally welcoming her to Falmouth for what we believe will be another incredible road race.”

Seidel’s running career accomplishments include: 

2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials Marathon, 2nd  

2019  Cape Cod Marathon “Half,” 1st

2018 USATF Cross Country Championships, 2nd

2018 USATF Road Running Championships 15K, 3rd 

2017 USATF Road Running Championships 5K, 2nd 

2016 NCAA Indoor Championships, 3000m, 1st 

2016 NCAA Indoor Championships 5000m, 1st 

2015 NCAA Outdoor Championships 10,000m, 1st 

The in-person running of the 49th annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race will take place on Sunday, August 15, 2021. In addition to this year’s in-person event, the 49th ASICS Falmouth Road Race will feature a virtual SBLI Kids At-Home Challenge and the race’s At-Home Edition, where participants will lace up their running shoes and go 7 miles in their own neighborhoods between August 7 – 14.

For nearly 50 years, Falmouth Road Race, Inc. has promoted health, wellness and pride in the community. In these unprecedented and uncertain times, the organization is striving to be consistent in its mission, continuing to provide its dedicated athletes, enthusiasts, and the community with an event to be proud of and one that supports people in need.

For more information on the ASICS Falmouth Road Race, please visit www.falmouthroadrace.com

(08/04/2021) Views: 1,206 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

Olympians, champions and top americans will lead fields for 2021 Asics Falmouth Road Race

Falmouth Road Race, Inc., organizers of the 49th Annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race, one of America’s premier running events of the summer season, today announced the men’s, women’s, and wheelchair open fields for this year’s race. Defending champions Leonard Korir and Sharon Lokedi lead an accomplished field of Olympians, World Champions and top Americans participating in the August 15, 2021 race.

WOMEN’S OPEN DIVISION

Lokedi, a Kenyan elite and 10-time All American at the University of Kansas, will race 2019 runner-up Sara Hall, who has won 11 U.S. national titles from the mile to the marathon. Hall recently finished sixth at the U.S. Olympic Trials 10,000m and won the AJC Peachtree Road Race, which hosted the National 10K Championships. The duo is joined by Edna Kiplagat, a Boston, London and New York City champion as well as a two-time World Athletics Marathon Championships gold medalist. 

Twelve-time All American and NCAA DI 10,000m champion Emma Bates and 2021 Olympic marathoner Molly Seidel will also participate. Bates is gearing up for a fall marathon and Seidel will run, alongside her sister Isabel, as a post-Olympic celebration.  

Accomplished women racing the leaders include Jordan Hasay, an 18-time All American and multiple podium finisher at the Boston and Chicago Marathons; former Falmouth champion and three-time Olympian Diane Nukuri; NCAA 10,000m champion Natosha Rogers; young talent Iveen Chepkemoi; Emily Durgin who finished runner-up at the AJC Peachtree Road Race with a 31:49 personal best, and Taylor Werner the recent USATF National 6K champion.

Many of the women in the field raced in the 5,000m and/or 10,000m at the recent U.S. Olympic Track Trials including Rogers, Durgin, Werner, Erika Kemp, Makena Morley, Jaci Smith, Fiona O’Keefe,  and Paige Stoner.

MEN’S OPEN DIVISION

The 2019 podium of Leonard Korir, Stephen Sambu, and Edward Cheserek return. Korir, an Olympian, became the first American man to win the Falmouth Road Race since 1988. He has 10 USATF national titles and holds the fastest-ever marathon debut by an American (2:077:56). 

Sambu looks to add an impressive fifth Falmouth Road Race title to his name. A road running star, Sambu set the 8K world record at the B.A.A. 10K, a race he has won twice. He is also a four-time champion of the Shamrock Shuffle. Edward Cheserek, the most decorated NCAA distance runner of all time with 17 NCAA Division I titles, ran for the University of Oregon. At Boston University in 2018, Cheserek ran the indoor mile in 3:49.44, which at that time was the second fastest indoor mile in history.  

Chasing the trio are 2018 Falmouth Road Race champion and 2018 NCAA 10,000m winner Ben Flanagan, of Canada, and Ben True, who holds five national titles, set a 5K national record at the 2017 B.A.A. 5K and recently finished fourth in the 10,000m at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Fresh from a two second 1-2 finish at the 2021 AJC Peachtree Road Race, Sam Chelanga, a six-time USATF National Champion, and Fred Huxham are in the field, as are B.A.A. 10K champion David Bett, 2018 Falmouth runner-up Scott Fauble and top 5,000m runner Emmanuel Bor. 

Many of the men running the ASICS Falmouth Road Race competed at the 2021 U.S. Olympic Track Trials including Korir, Chelanga, Bor, True, Biya Simbassa, Jacob Thomson and Frank Lara.

(07/27/2021) Views: 1,466 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

2021 ASICS Falmouth Road Race Announces 8,000 In-Person Runners for August 15

Falmouth Road Race, Inc., organizers of the 49th Annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race, one of America’s premier running events of the summer season, today announced that it will host a field of 8,000 in-person runners for its upcoming event on Sunday, August 15.

Those who registered during the initial registration window and selected, “If given the chance, I would like to run in Falmouth” will be guaranteed a place within the limited in-person field. Runners who have not yet registered but are looking to secure a guaranteed in-person spot in this year’s event can do so by registering to run on behalf of a charity. A comprehensive list of 164 charitable organizations is available by visiting www.falmouthroadrace.com/charity-program. For more information on general registration, please visit www.falmouthroadrace.com.

“On the heels of Governor Charlie Baker’s announcement lifting all coronavirus restrictions in Massachusetts effective May 29, and after close consultation with the Town of Falmouth, public safety officials, our medical team, and our partners, we are excited to announce a field of 8,000 in-person runners for the 49th ASICS Falmouth Road Race,” said Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race, Inc. Board of Directors. “We are excited to welcome athletes back to Falmouth for this summer tradition and we look forward to welcoming a full field for our 50th running next August.”

Aside from the newly announced in-person portion, the 49th ASICS Falmouth Road Race will still feature a virtual SBLI Kids At-Home Challenge and the race’s At-Home Edition, where participants will lace up their running shoes and go 7 miles in their own neighborhoods between August 7 – 14.

For nearly 50 years, Falmouth Road Race, Inc. has promoted health, wellness and pride in the community. In these unprecedented and uncertain times, the organization is striving to be consistent in its mission, continuing to provide its dedicated athletes, enthusiasts, and the community with an event to be proud of and one that supports people in need.

 

(05/26/2021) Views: 1,178 ⚡AMP

New Salazar documentary questions reasons for his 2019 suspension

Nike’s Big Bet, the new documentary about former Nike Oregon Project head coach Alberto Salazar by Canadian filmmaker Paul Kemp, seeks to shed light on the practices that resulted in Salazar’s shocking ban from coaching in the middle of the 2019 IAAF World Championships. Many athletes, scientists and journalists appear in the film, including Canadian Running columnist Alex Hutchinson and writer Malcolm Gladwell, distance running’s most famous superfan.

Most of them defend Salazar as someone who used extreme technology like underwater treadmills, altitude houses and cryotherapy to get the best possible results from his athletes, and who may inadvertently have crossed the line occasionally, but who should not be regarded as a cheater. (Neither Salazar nor any Nike spokesperson participated in the film. Salazar’s case is currently under appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.)

Salazar became synonymous with Nike’s reputation for an uncompromising commitment to winning. He won three consecutive New York City Marathons in the early 1980s, as well as the 1982 Boston Marathon, and set several American records on the track during his running career.

He famously pushed his body to extremes, even avoiding drinking water during marathons to avoid gaining any extra weight, and was administered last rites after collapsing at the finish line of the 1987 Falmouth Road Race.

Salazar was hired to head the Nike Oregon Project in 2001, the goal of the NOP being to reinstate American athletes as the best in the world after the influx of Kenyans and Ethiopians who dominated international distance running in the 1990s. It took a few years, but eventually Salazar became the most powerful coach in running, with an athlete list that included some of the world’s most successful runners: Mo Farah, Galen Rupp, Matt Centrowitz, Dathan Ritzenhein, Kara Goucher, Jordan Hasay, Cam Levins, Shannon Rowbury, Mary Cain, Donovan Brazier, Sifan Hassan and Konstanze Klosterhalfen.

Goucher left the NOP in 2011, disillusioned by what she saw as unethical practices involving unnecessary prescriptions and experimentation on athletes, and went to USADA in 2012. An investigation by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency followed on the heels of a damning BBC Panorama special in 2015, and picked up steam in 2017.

When Salazar’s suspension was announced during the World Championships in 2019, he had been found guilty of multiple illegal doping practices, including injecting athletes with more than the legal limit of L-carnitine (a naturally-occurring amino acid believed to enhance performance) and trafficking in testosterone – but none of his athletes were implicated. (Salazar admitted to experimenting with testosterone cream to find out how much would trigger a positive test, but claimed he was trying to avoid sabotage by competitors.)

That Salazar pushed his athletes as hard in training as he had once pushed himself is not disputed; neither is the fact that no Salazar athlete has ever failed a drug test. Gladwell, in particular, insists that Salazar’s methods are not those of someone who is trying to take shortcuts to victory – that people who use performance-enhancing drugs are looking for ways to avoid extremes in training.

That assertion doesn’t necessarily hold water when you consider that drugs like EPO (which, it should be noted, Salazar was never suspected of using with his athletes) allow for faster recovery, which lets athletes train harder – or that the most famous cheater of all, Lance Armstrong, trained as hard as anyone. (Armstrong, too, avoided testing positive for many years, and also continued to enjoy Nike’s support after his fall from grace.)

Goucher, Ritzenhein, Levins and original NOP member Ben Andrews are the only former Salazar athletes who appear on camera, and Goucher’s is the only female voice in the entire film. It was her testimony, along with that of former Nike athlete and NOP coach Steve Magness, that led to the lengthy USADA investigation and ban.

Among other things, she claims she was pressured to take a thyroid medication she didn’t need, to help her lose weight. (The film reports that these medications were prescribed by team doctor Jeffrey Brown, but barely mentions that Brown, too, was implicated in the investigation and received the same four-year suspension as Salazar.) Ritzenhein initially declines to comment on the L-carnitine infusions, considering Salazar’s appeal is ongoing, but then states he thinks the sanctions are appropriate. Farah, as we know, vehemently denied ever having used it, then reversed himself.

It’s unfortunate that neither Cain, who had once been the U.S.’s most promising young athlete, nor Magness appear on camera. A few weeks after the suspension, Cain, who had left the NOP under mysterious circumstances in 2015, opened up about her experience with Salazar, whom she said had publicly shamed her for being too heavy, and dismissed her concerns when she told him she was depressed and harming herself. Cain’s experience is acknowledged in the film, and there’s some criticism of Salazar’s approach, but Gladwell chalks it up to a poor fit, rather than holding him accountable.

Cain’s story was part of an ongoing reckoning with the kind of borderline-abusive practices that were once common in elite sport, but that are now recognized as harmful, and from which athletes should be protected.

Gladwell asserts that coaches like Salazar have always pushed the boundaries of what’s considered acceptable or legal in the quest to be the best, and that the alternative is, essentially, to abandon elite sport. It’s an unfortunate conclusion, and one that will no doubt be challenged by many advocates of clean sport.

(05/02/2021) Views: 1,541 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine

Falmouth Road Race and At-Home Edition registration opens May 1

While the ASICS Falmouth Road Race awaits COVID-19 guidance from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Town of Falmouth on hosting an in-person event in 2021, registration will open Saturday, May 1 for the At-Home Edition – with the possibility of running the in-person race, if held, on August 15.

During the At-Home Edition registration process, an option will be offered to run the in-person event. Choosing that option will place At-Home registrants in a random-selection drawing to run the in-person ASICS Falmouth Road Race on August 15.

This will be the only opportunity to be considered for the in-person race. Those not selected, based on the total field size allowed, will still be registered for the At-Home Edition, to be run any time from August 7 to August 14.

Registration will remain open until 10,000 sign up for the At-Home Edition, regardless of the number who chose the in-person option.

“Our virtual At-Home Edition was a big success last year and was really a summer-long event with giveaways, contests, and an ever-changing virtual gift bag,” said Jennifer Edwards, executive director of Falmouth Road Race, Inc. “If we’re allowed to have an in-person race of some kind, those not chosen in the random-selection process to run the live event on August 15 will still get all the perks of the At-Home version.”

On the registration form, Falmouth residents and taxpayers – who typically are guaranteed entry to the in-person event – will be able to declare that status. Depending on the field size allowed, the race may or may not be able to guarantee resident/taxpayer entry to the in-person race in 2021.

Last year, the first 5,000 entrants to the 2020 At-Home Edition were given guaranteed status for 2021. Because there is no certainty of an in-person race, those 5,000 have been given the option to defer their guaranteed status to the 50th running instead of this year. The organization will honor the choice they made, pending town approval of an in-person event in 2021. If there is no in-person race, their entry will automatically be deferred to 2022.

Registration for the SBLI Kids At-Home Challenge will also open May 1. Due to COVID-19 uncertainties, the Kids At-Home Challenge will again be held in lieu of the in-person Family Fun Run.

(04/14/2021) Views: 1,204 ⚡AMP

Asics The New Title Sponsor of Falmouth Road Race

ASICS has committed to a multi-year title sponsorship of the Falmouth Road Race, one of America's most iconic summer running events. The 7-mile road race, held each August on a coastal route from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights on Cape Cod, had New Balance as its title sponsor from 2011 through 2019. The event was not held as an in-person road race in 2020 due to the pandemic.

"This partnership represents so much more than a sponsorship," explained ASICS Fitness Apps' general manager Alex Vander Hoeven through a statement. "It is a true example of how a world class event such as the Falmouth Road Race can collaborate with ASICS's global suite of products and digital services. We look forward to being on the course come race day and are honored to be part of the greater Falmouth Road Race community."

The Falmouth Road Race was founded in 1973 by the late Tommy Leonard, a bartender at the old Eliot Lounge in Boston. About 100 runners started that year in front of the Captain Kidd restaurant in Woods Hole and finished at old the Brothers 4 club in Falmouth Heights adjacent to Falmouth Heights Beach. Organizers use the same course today.

Some of the greatest distance runners in history have won the Falmouth Road Race including Khalid Khannouchi, Catherine Ndereba, Lynn Jennings, Benson Masya, Joan Samuelson, Bill Rodgers, Frank Shorter, and Grete Waitz. The 2019 champions were Leonard Korir of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Sharon Lokedi of Kenya. The 2019 race had 11,534 finishers.

"Our partnership is new, but we have long played host to ASICS athletes who have added much to our events," added Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race, Inc., board of directors. "We look forward to having ASICS as a title partner that shares our commitment to health, wellness, and giving back to our community."

The 2021 ASICS Falmouth Road Race is scheduled for Sunday, August 15, pending approval from the Town of Falmouth.

(01/15/2021) Views: 2,010 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

The board of directors of Falmouth Road Race Promotes Jennifer Edwards to Executive Director

The board of directors of Falmouth Road Race, Inc. has named Jennifer Edwards as executive director of the organization, effective January 1. She was most recently its general manager.

“The board is happy to have Jennifer as Falmouth Road Race, Inc.’s first-ever executive director, as am I personally,” said Scott Ghelfi, board president. “As we expand with an At-Home virtual event and the newly acquired Falmouth in the Fall race, and have increasingly more involvement in the community throughout the year, we knew we needed a strategic thinker to lead the organization. Jennifer has worked with us in many capacities over the past 10 years and we feel she is the right fit for this new role.”

In her new position, Edwards will work with the board to fulfill the nonprofit organization’s mission to produce a world-class event, support local charities, and promote health and wellness. She will ensure that financial objectives are met, provide leadership to staff, facilitate community partnerships, and oversee the philanthropic endeavors of Falmouth Road Race, Inc.

Since 2012, the organization has contributed more than $3.69 million to projects that promote the health and wellness of Falmouth and the surrounding area. Its Numbers for Nonprofits charity runner program has raised nearly $45 million since 2000.

“I'm proud to work with such a talented team of professionals and grateful to the board of directors for its ongoing support,” said Edwards. “As we navigate our way through the pandemic in 2021 and plan for the milestone 50th running of our race in 2022, we'll continue to support our local community and our charity program, as well as to honor the roots of the race itself. I consider myself incredibly lucky to be a steward for this iconic event.”

An active member of the running industry, Edwards is hydration station coordinator for the B.A.A. Boston Marathon and a former director of special projects for DMSE Sports, Inc. She serves on the Falmouth Chamber of Commerce board of directors, is race director for Falmouth's Holidays by the Sea Jingle Jog, and is a volunteer with several local entities. Jennifer holds a master's degree in Speech-Language Pathology from UMass Amherst and worked in healthcare and education for 15 years prior to joining the Falmouth Road Race team.

(01/14/2021) Views: 1,236 ⚡AMP

Falmouth Road Race Charity Runners Raise $2.3M in 2020 At-Home Edition

Despite a pandemic that forced the 48th running of the Falmouth Road Race to become a virtual event, runners participating in its Numbers for Nonprofits Program presented by Cape Cod Healthcare raised $2,323,801 for Massachusetts-based nonprofit organizations – including over $184,000 for nine Falmouth nonprofits alone.

“We’re incredibly proud that so many of our loyal charity runners stuck by both the race and their nonprofits in this challenging year,” said Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race board of directors.

“As the economic and human toll of COVID-19 continues into 2021, we’re already looking toward how our 49th running can further support both Falmouth and our valued partners.”

The funds raised in 2020 bring the Numbers for Nonprofits total to almost $45 million since 2000.

About Falmouth Road Race, Inc. The Falmouth Road Race was established in 1973 and has become one of the premier running events of the summer season. Each year the race draws an international field of Olympians, elite and recreational runners out to enjoy the iconic 7-mile seaside course.

The nonprofit Falmouth Road Race organization is committed to promoting health and fitness through community programs and philanthropic giving.

(12/01/2020) Views: 1,246 ⚡AMP

Almost 10,000 participants are expected in the New Balance Falmouth Road Race At-Home Edition Kicks Off on Saturday

Almost 10,000 participants are expected in the New Balance Falmouth Road Race At-Home Edition, which begins Saturday – the birthday of late race founder Tommy Leonard – and continues through August 29.

As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, 9,482 people had registered, from 45 states plus the District of Columbia and nine countries – England, Ireland, Canada, Brazil, Germany, Mexico, Australia and Spain as well as the U.S.

“Although the road from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights will be quiet this year, being able to share our race with those who otherwise might not get to experience the Falmouth spirit is definitely a plus,” said Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race, Inc. board of directors.

Among those entered are 719 families of three or four, and 45 wheelchair athletes. The oldest registrant is 97-year-old Helen Richards, of Coral Gables, Florida, who is running for The Boston House, a nonprofit. As of Wednesday, the 1,629 participants in the race’s Numbers for Nonprofits Program had already raised $1.2 million for Massachusetts-based charities.

“We’re especially proud to be able to continue helping nonprofits in these difficult times, when other fund-raising avenues have narrowed even as the needs have grown,” said Ghelfi.

Wearing Bib #1, which is usually awarded to either the defending champion or the fastest pro runner in the field, this year will be worn by Phil Svahn of Austin, Texas, for being the top fund-raiser in the race’s Numbers for Nonprofits Program. Svahn has raised $7,850 for the Glen Doherty Memorial Foundation.

Also taking part in the At-Home Edition will be Ben Flanagan, the 2018 New Balance Falmouth Road Race champion; Abdi Abdirahman, a five-time Olympian and longtime Falmouth competitor; Diane Nukuri, the 2015 Falmouth champion and a fan favorite here; and Molly Seidel, who recently made the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team. The four will also square off in a Zoom scavenger hunt.

And on August 23 at 10 a.m. EDT, wheelchair athletes will participate in an event to be streamed on Facebook Live. Details on both the scavenger hunt and wheelchair event will be announced soon.

The 48th running of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race will be celebrated as a virtual event beginning on Saturday and concluding on August 29, with runners covering 7 miles in their own neighborhoods any time in that period. Registration will be available at falmouthroadrace.com throughout the event.

(08/14/2020) Views: 1,454 ⚡AMP

Falmouth Road Race 2020 will be Run At Home virtually for this summer

The 2020 New Balance Falmouth Road Race, originally set for August 16, will be going virtual to become the New Balance Falmouth Road Race “At-Home Edition.”

The 48th running of the iconic race will be celebrated worldwide as a virtual event beginning August 15 – on  the birthday of late founder Tommy Leonard – and concluding on August 29, with runners covering 7 miles in their own neighborhoods any time during that period.

With the Falmouth Board of Selectmen implementing a “no large event” policy through the end of August, race organizers have designed an experience for everyone to have fun while staying fit and focused on a goal this summer.

Registration will open on May 18, and the first 5,000 to enter will be guaranteed a spot in the 2021 New Balance Falmouth Road Race. Further details on the 2020 New Balance Falmouth Road Race “At-Home Edition,” including registration information, personalized athlete interactions, gift bags, contests, and virtual content, will be announced soon.

For more than 45 years, Falmouth Road Race, Inc. has promoted health, wellness, and pride in the community. In these unprecedented and uncertain times, the organization is striving to be consistent in its mission, continuing to provide its dedicated participants, enthusiasts, and the community with an event to be proud of and one that supports people in need.

“With safety always the top priority, we see an ‘At-Home’ event as the ideal option for 2020,” said Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race, Inc., board of directors. “Although it’s sad to think of a summer in Falmouth without the usual race spectacle along our shores, conducting an ‘At-Home’ event will not only give runners from everywhere the chance to experience the Falmouth spirit but also give Falmouth Road Race, Inc. a way to show support for the town, our medical community, and our Numbers for Nonprofits participants, who are raising funds that will be needed now more than ever.”

Among the ways in which the race will show its commitment to nonprofit partners and the community through the “At-Home Edition:”

The organization will be purchasing a total of $25,000 worth of gift cards from businesses throughout Falmouth to randomly award to participants. The intention is to assist the community now and help bring visitors back to town when it is again safe to travel.

Falmouth Road Race, Inc. will donate $5,000 to Cape Kid Meals, the “grab-and-go” meals program for students.

Proceeds from the “At-Home Edition” will again allow annual scholarships to be awarded to high school seniors who are Falmouth residents.

Numbers for Nonprofits charity program partners will continue to receive support to maximize their fundraising efforts, including free registration for those running for a charity who raise a required minimum dollar amount for that organization. Incentive prizes and experiences, including a swag package, a donation match, and two chances to win a free entry into the 2021 New Balance Falmouth Road Race, will be offered to select participants by the race and its online fundraising partner, GoFundMe Charity.

“Running at home, together but apart, is the best way for all of us to show that we care about Falmouth – the town, its people, the race and its tradition – in 2020,” said Ghelfi. “Tommy Leonard wouldn’t want it any other way.”

(05/01/2020) Views: 1,475 ⚡AMP

Defending champion and course record holder Edward Cheserek will be back in 2019 to defend his title at the 83rd Manchester Road Race

Defending champion and course record holder Edward Cheserek has entered the 83rd Manchester Road Race, race officials announced Thursday.

Cheserek hails from of Flagstaff, AZ, by way of Kenya.

Cheserek, 25, won the annual Thanksgiving Day run last year in 14-degree weather with zero wind chills and set a new record for the 4.748-mile course with a time of 21:16. He sliced three seconds off the old mark of 21:19 that had stood since 1995.

"Edward Cheserek ran a super race under very difficult conditions last year," said Dr. Tris Carta, president of the Manchester Road Race Committee. "We are very pleased that he will be back this Thanksgiving to defend his championship."

Cheserek captured 17 NCAA running championships when he competed for the University of Oregon. He won the Carlsbad 5,000 Road Race in California this past April with a time of 13:29. Cheserek recorded a personal best time of 13:04.44 for 5,000 meters this summer during an outdoor meet in Belgium, and also placed third at the seven-mile Falmouth Road Race in 32:30.

The 83rd Manchester Road Race will be run at 10 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 28, 2019).

The 4.748-mile race is run on a loop course through Manchester's central streets and starts and finishes on Main Street, in front of St. James Church.

(11/13/2019) Views: 1,866 ⚡AMP
by Chris Dehnel

Leonard Korir and Sara Hall defend their national titles at the Faxon Law New Haven 20K

A few weeks ago, Leonard Korir became the first American man in three decades to win the Falmouth Road Race.

He’s still on a roll – on Monday, Korir pulled away after the third mile at the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race to win his third 20K USATF championship on a cooler than usual Labor Day in 59:06.

Korir, 32, of Colorado Springs won the race in 2016 and 2018 and was edged by Galen Rupp, an Olympic bronze and silver medalist, in 2017.

“I’m feeling very, very good,” Korir said. “I had a good race in Falmouth. That gave me motivation that my fitness is good, so I said, ‘Let me go again to this race and maybe push myself to know if I’m consistent.’”

Sara Hall of Flagstaff, Ariz., defended her women’s title, winning the 12.4-mile race in 1:06:47.

“It was so fun to be out here again,” said Hall, 36. “This race is really tough. Last year, I couldn’t even run marathon pace. It’s really encouraging to be able to run a good amount faster. I have my sister and her kids out there cheering, they live right on the course. That gave me a big boost.”

It wasn’t as humid as it usually is for the day of the annual race, with temperatures in the low 70s.

“Compared to last year, today was better,” Korir said. “It was just windy.”

Moath Alkhawaldeh of Amman, Jordan won the accompanying half-marathon (1:08:48) and Myriam Coulibaly of New York City was the women’s winner (1:31:33). Glastonbury’s Matthew Farrell won the 5K in 15:07 and Emily Stark of New Haven was the women’s winner (18:03).

Everett Hackett of Hartford was the top state finisher in the 20K (14th, 1:01:45) and Annmarie Tuxbury of New Hartford was the top female finisher (12th, 1:11:15).

Luke Puskedra, who retired from running competitively in the spring to open a real estate business in Eugene, Oregon but decided to come and run New Haven, and Parker Stinson, the national 25K record holder, led a large pack in the 20K early on but Korir took the lead after the pack went through the third mile in 14:11 and he just kept extending the lead.

“I saw them take off and it was like, ‘All right, I’ll see you guys,’” Puskedra said, laughing, who finished 23rd in 1:03:06.

Korir went through the halfway point in 29:21 and the trailing pack was over 30 seconds behind him but although he had a big lead, he was still not on pace for the race record (57:37 set by Khalid Khannouchi in 1998).

“It’s tough,” Korir said of the record. “You have to have good weather and no wind coming on your face.”

(09/02/2019) Views: 2,469 ⚡AMP
by Lori Riley

Katy and Tyler Jermann got married last summer, they train together and now are set to Run the Faxon Law New Haven 20K

They are on the same running team in Minnesota. They run the same races. They are a little competitive with each other.

“We get a little competitive with our times,” Tyler said.

Tyler gives Katy a 35-second-per-mile handicap.

“If it’s anything under a half-marathon, she wins, usually,” he said. “Anything longer, I win.

“We’ve been doing it for a year or two. Katy had a big injury two years ago but she’s on the comeback. We had to adjust the conversion. It started off as a minute [per mile] but now it’s not fair anymore.”

So Katy, 27, may have the edge at Monday’s Faxon Law New Haven Road Race, which is the 20K USATF national championship (8:30 a.m. start, New Haven Green).

“I’m usually stronger at the marathon distance,” said Tyler, 27, who won the 50K national championship in 2017. “20K is a bit out of my wheelhouse.”

Both are training for the New York City Marathon in November and both have qualified for the Olympic Marathon Trials Feb. 29 in Atlanta.

Katy qualified in her marathon debut in Houston in January, running a negative split (78 minutes the first half and 75 the second) to go under the “A” standard (2:37) for the trials, finishing in 2:33:41. It turned out to be a great day for the Jermanns as Tyler also ran under the men’s “A” standard (2:15) with a personal best of 2:13:29. Both finished ninth in their respective races.

“It was great,” Katy said. “I loved it. I was very conservative. I wanted to make sure I could walk away from the marathon knowing that I loved it and wanted to do more and felt confident about the distance.”

It was Tyler’s 13th marathon and his fifth attempt at trying to get the “A” standard.

The two met while running at Iowa State, where Katy was a Big 12 champion in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters, but they didn’t really become friendly until after graduation. They reconnected at a training camp in Flagstaff, Ariz., started dating in January of 2017 and were married last summer.

They live outside of Minneapolis and train with Team USA Minnesota.

“We have the same running schedules and the same workouts,” Katy said. “We can do our warmup together with the team. Then he goes and does his run and I do mine.

“It’s neat to be able to share our stories. If I was tired and he was also, it’s nice to have that camaraderie – like it’s normal to feel tired today. It’s nice to go through that together.”

Tyler’s half-marathon personal best is 1:03:31; Katy’s is 1:10:27. She hopes to be in the top three at New Haven. Last year’s winner Sara Hall is the favorite in the women’s field, while two-time men’s winner Leonard Korir is the favorite to win the men’s title. Korir became the first American since 1988 to win the Falmouth Road Race earlier this month.

(08/31/2019) Views: 2,329 ⚡AMP
by Lori Riley

Josh Thompson and Cory McGee kicked their way to victories in the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile this weekend

Josh Thompson and Cory McGee kicked their way to victories in the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile, held on the eve of the 47th annual New Balance Falmouth Road Race. Both Thompson and McGee used moves in the final lap to charge to the front and secure the $3,500 first-place prize.

The Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile is the fourth stop of the 2019 Bring Back the Mile Grand Prix Tour.

McGee, a Team New Balance athlete living and training in Boulder, CO, sat patiently in fourth among the pack of seven women as they passed halfway in 2:18. Moving to the front was Katie Mackey, a three-time winner here who did her best to shake up the field before hitting the bell in 3:25.

McGee was the only competitor to immediately respond to Mackey’s move, and the pair led down the backstretch on the final lap. With the roars of spectators growing at an impending duel, McGee drew even with 200 meters to go and never looked back. She’d break the tape going away in 4:29.51 to earn her first Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile crown.

“I’m so happy to be back in the Boston area,” said McGee. “This race is really one of the most exciting miles in the country. It has more history than a lot of the others and just has a really fun energy surrounding it with the [New Balance Falmouth] Road Race. I’ve been in the mix a few times but finally winning it is really fun!”

Heather Kampf passed Mackey in the final straight to take second, 4:31.24 to 4:31.69. Eleanor Fulton (4:32.39) and Dana Giordano (4:33.07) rounded out the top five.

McGee was happy to improve on her third place finish from a year ago, and has said she’s been motivated to race fiercely after a disappointing experience at the USATF Outdoor Championships last month, where she was disqualified in her 1500-meter prelim. By running under 4:31, McGee picked up an additional $1,000 in a winner’s time bonus.

“I feel fit and it’s fun to win!” she said. “I want to race a few more times [this season]. I know I worked really hard this year so I’m just doing what I worked for.”

Thompson, the men’s champion, also made his bid for the win in the final lap, choosing to do so with 300 meters remaining. Up until that point, Maine native Riley Masters had done all of the pacing, taking the field through three-quarters in 3:00.

With each lap, Thompson’s faith in his kick grew stronger. Masters and Craig Nowak were setting the tempo, and all Thompson had to do was decide when to move from third to first.

“I was feeling pretty confident,” said Thompson, giving credit to Masters and Nowak. “When the last lap came I knew I was going to wait until 300 meters just to be safe.”

As Thompson moved into first, David Ribich slipped into second and the pair put three meters on the field. Bearing down and opening his stride around the bend, Thompson held off the former Division II standout, 3:58.39 to 3:59.78.

“It means a lot. It gets my confidence up,” said Thompson of the victory, his first win of the 2019 Bring Back the Mile Grand Prix Tour. “I’ve struggled in the past [with injuries], and to come here and win this race, I mean, Falmouth put on a great race. This is pretty cool – I’ve never been in this type of an environment. So to just come out here, winning, it’s just another step for me in training and my confidence level.”

Tripp Hurt was third in 4:00.57, followed by Daniel Herrera in 4:00.86.

(08/19/2019) Views: 2,184 ⚡AMP

Leonard Korir becomes first American man to win the Falmouth Road Race since 1988

History was made this morning when Leonard Korir became the first American since 1988 to win the men’s division of the Falmouth Road Race. It was an exciting end to the 47th annual race that saw plenty of fog and muggy temperatures.

Four-time winner Stephen Sambu came in second and Edward Cheserek placed third.

In previous races at the event, Korir finished second in 2016 and 2017 and third last year and 2015.

Leonard Korir pulled ahead of four-time champion Stephen Sambu with less than two miles to go.

Korir, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, finished second behind Sambu, of Kenya, in 2017. This year, Korir dominated the end of race and completed the 7-mile course in 32 minutes, 11 seconds.

Sambu finished second in 32:29, while Kenya's Edward Cheserek, a former 17-time NCAA champion with Oregon, was third in 32:30.

In the women’s elite division, Sharon Lokedi, a recent Kansas graduate from Kenya, crossed the finish line first and America’s Sarah Hall came in second.  Sharon, the 2018 NCAA champion at 10,000 meters clocked 36:29, holding off American Sarah Hall (36:34). Kenya's Margaret Wangari, the 2012 Falmouth champion, was third (36:43).

(08/18/2019) Views: 2,422 ⚡AMP

Scott Fauble is dealing with the flu and won’t be running Falmouth

After dealing with the flu, Scott Fauble was pulled from Sunday's Falmouth Road Race, a 7-mile event that takes place in Falmouth, Massachusetts, annually. He took second place last year, crossing the finish line as the first American male, with Canada's Ben Flanagan taking the 2018 title.

"Bad news, you guys," Fauble tweeted on Thursday. "I won’t be running Falmouth this weekend. I got sick earlier this week and it just wasn’t going to be the right call to race this weekend. I’m disappointed to miss this iconic event. I expect to be healthy and to crush at the USATF 20K champs in a few weeks."

This year's USATF 20K Championships take place Monday, Sept. 2, in New Haven, Connecticut.

Fauble has laced up for just one race since taking seventh place at the 2019 Boston Marathon in April, where he was the first American to finish. Boston was the third marathon of his career, and he set his PR of 2:09:09 there.

(08/17/2019) Views: 2,198 ⚡AMP

Despite Injury, Ben Flanagan is set to return to the Falmouth Road Race

History was made in Falmouth when Flanagan ran a nearly perfect strategic race and shocked the field to capture the Falmouth Road Race. Unfortunately there will be no repeat of that smile crossing the finish line in the Falmouth Heights. The affable University of Michigan grad, who is now running professionally for Team Reebok, will not get the chance to defend his title.

A stress injury to Flanagan’s leg has knocked him to the sideline for this year’s race. He recently was informed by his medical team that he would be unable to run for six weeks. After that will come rehabilitation, which potentially could knock out most, if not all, of the remaining competitive racing for him this year.

“It’s an unfortunate thing. I was really looking forward to coming back and racing Falmouth again,” he said. “I’m excited to still be able to be here and be involved, but it would have been nice to be on the line again.”

The best-case scenario is that Flanagan could be back racing by late in the fall. That would be all of the major events for 2019, but he is setting his sights squarely on 2020.

As the 2018 Falmouth champ works his way back toward being healthy and fast, his aim is to peak in time for the 2020 Canadian Olympic trials. If he qualifies for a spot in the Olympics, which will be held in Tokyo, that would be at the top of his priority list for next year.

“That would just be amazing. That’s a thing I’ve wanted to be a part of since I was nine years old, since I first started doing sports,” he said. “It’s been such a long journey... it’s really just so special. It would be a dream come true.”

As for this year, Flanagan will be involved in the presentation of Road Race weekend. He spoke to a group of youngsters on behalf of the FRR yesterday,, August 15, then today Friday, August 16, Flanagan is set to speak at the annual press conference in the morning before handing out bibs and numbers at the Road Race Expo later in the day. Tomorrow On Saturday he will be part of the Champions meet-and-greet at the Expo and also plans to be at the Mile Races at Falmouth High School later in the day. He will attend the Road Race on Sunday, but was unsure of where he’d be.

Flanagan said he was excited to help in any capacity. He has become very fond of Falmouth, and not just because his win helped launch his professional career.

He also met his girlfriend here. Because he hails from the University of Michigan, Flanagan stayed with the Ghelfi family last year. Hannah Ghelfi is a rising senior at the U of M, where she is one of the top golfers for the Wolverines. With their school in common, the pair hit it off and began to see one another during the fall semester. Ben graduated in December and moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, to train professionally. He was in Falmouth around Christmastime, and said that he plans on being in Falmouth, or at Michigan, whenever he can.

“It’s just funny that Hannah and I spent a number of years together at Michigan and never met until the race,” he said.

He said that he has become more and more familiar with the town through his visits, and has come to really enjoy being on Cape Cod. With his prime racing years still ahead of him, there’s every reason to believe that Flanagan and Falmouth could go together hand-in-hand. It’s a budding relationship that got off to a fantastic start. The future looks bright.

(08/16/2019) Views: 2,050 ⚡AMP
by Rich Maclone

Brain aneurysm survivor Karen Daly is running in the 47th annual New Balance Falmouth Road Race

South Easton resident and brain aneurysm survivor Karen Daly will run in the 47th annual New Balance Falmouth Road Race on Aug. 18 to commemorate her journey as a brain aneurysm survivor, after having suffered a rupture in 2014.

As a member of the eight-person charity team, Daly will support the Brain Aneurysm Foundation’s efforts to raise awareness, education, support, advocacy and research funding for the disease.

Daly had a brain hemorrhage caused by a ruptured brain aneurysm on Jan. 25, 2014. She

was able to maintain consciousness long enough to call her husband for help. He rushed her to the emergency room where they did a CT scan, then immediately sent her to Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston, where she underwent surgery to repair three aneurysms.

“Surviving the rupture and the med flight to Boston was the first of many miracles for

which my family and I are grateful. Forty percent of people who suffer a rupture die before

making it to the hospital,” said Daly. “With the support of family, friends and a lot of hard work and perseverance, I am able to run the Falmouth Road Race to support an organization that has supported me, my family and so many others affected by brain aneurysms.”

This is the third year in a row that BAF has been awarded a charity spot in the race. The BAF charity team comprises participants who have had personal experiences with brain aneurysm disease.

“We’re very grateful to all of the incredibly strong participants representing team BAF at the Falmouth Road Race this year,” said Christine Buckley, executive director of BAF. “Funds raised by the team will support critical research that could better the outcomes for other families dealing with this devastating disease.”

More than 11,000 runners will participate in the New Balance Falmouth Road Race, a 7-mile course which starts in Woods Hole, wraps along the Falmouth shoreline and finishes in Falmouth Heights.

(08/15/2019) Views: 1,952 ⚡AMP
by

Kenyan Stephen Sambu will be looking for his fifth Falmouth Road Race title this Sunday

After coming up a little short in his bid to become the first person to ever win five Falmouth Road Race titles after claiming four in a row from 2014 to 2017, Kenyan Stephen Sambu aims to make history once again on Sunday, August 18, in the 47th running of the Falmouth Road Race.

Sambu fell shy of the feat when Canadian Ben Flanagan shocked the field last year to become the first North American to win the race in 30 years. Sambu faded to a fourth place finish in the 2018 race.

With Flanagan out of action with an injury, Sambu is considered the favorite, along with his friend Leonard Korir, of the United States, to take the crown. Sambu and Korir battled in one of the most memorable finishes in race history in 2017, with Sambu edging his buddy down the final hill in the Falmouth Heights to take the crown.

Americans Sara Hall and Des Linden will return for the 47th running of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race to highlight the women's field.

Sambu won the New Balance Falmouth Road Race every year from 2014-2017, becoming the first four-time winner of the men’s open division in race history. The runner-up in two of those victories was Korir, a 2016 Olympian at 10,000 meters, who will represent the US this fall at the IAAF World Championships. In 2017, Korir nearly denied Sambu his place in the history books in a fight to the finish that saw both athletes awarded the same time.

Sambu and Korir will be challenged by a tough international field that includes Thomas Ayeko of Uganda, who finished seventh in the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships; David Bett of Kenya, who won the B.A.A. 10K in June; and Silas Kipruto of Kenya, winner of the 2019 Cooper River Bridge Run.

Massachusetts native Colin Bennie, who was the top American at the AJC Peachtree Road Race on July 4, and Scott Fauble, a top contender to make Team USA at the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials in February and the Falmouth runner-up last year, should be in the hunt.

(08/14/2019) Views: 2,301 ⚡AMP
by Rich Maclone

Katie Mackey, the only three-time winner in the race’s history, and Tripp Hurt, the reigning USA 1 Mile Road Champion, lead the fields for the 24th Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile

Katie Mackey, the only three-time winner in the race’s history, and Tripp Hurt, the reigning USA 1 Mile Road Champion, lead the fields for the 24th Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile on August 17, organizers announced today. The mile is part of the Falmouth Track Festival, held the evening before the New Balance Falmouth Road Race.

The Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile will begin at 5 p.m. on Saturday, August 17, on the James T. Kalperis Track at Falmouth High School. Total prize purse for the men’s and women’s fields is $15,000, not including possible time bonuses, with the winners each taking home $3,500.

Beginning with the SBLI Family Fun Run and followed by the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile and the Tommy Cochary High School Mile, the track festival will be streamed live on the New Balance Falmouth Road Race Facebook page beginning at 4 p.m.

Mackey, 31, is the 2017 USA 1-Mile Road Champion, 2018 USATF Club Cross Country Champion, American record-holder in the 4x1500m relay, and was eighth at 3000 meters in the 2018 IAAF World Indoor Championships. Hurt, 26, was third at this year’s USATF Indoor Championships in the 2 Mile and is a two-time USATF Outdoor Championships steeplechase finalist.

Also among the headliners in the women’s race is Heather Kampf, a member of the same medal-winning relay team as Mackey and a four-time USA 1 Mile Road Champion. After three events, Kampf and Hurt lead the standings in the 2019 Bring Back the Mile Grand Prix Tour, on which the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile is the fourth stop.

Challenging Mackey and Kampf will be Cory McGee, who was fourth in the 2015 Pan American Games at 1500 meters and won the Sir Walter Miler on August 2 in 4:27.87; Stephanie Garcia, a two-time member of Team USA at the IAAF World Championships in the 3000-meter steeplechase (2011, 2015); Allie Buchalski, 2018 NCAA 5000-meter runner-up; Jessica Harris, third at 1500 meters in the 2019 NCAA Championships; Lianne Farber, a three-time All-American at the University of North Carolina who runs for Team New Balance Boston; Eleanor Fulton, a two-time member of Team USA for the mixed relay at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships (2017, 2019); Vanessa Fraser, fourth in the 2018 NCAA 5000 meters; Dana Giordano, third at 1500 meters in 2016 NCAA Championships, who competes on the B.A.A. High Performance Team and has a family home in Woods Hole; and Heather MacLean, a Massachusetts state champion out of Peabody High School and an All-American while at UMass-Amherst who just finished seventh at USATF Outdoor Nationals in a personal best 4:05.27.

For the men, Tripp will face Josh Thompson, third at 1500 meters at the 2019 USATF Outdoor Championships; Garrett Heath, two-time USA 1 Mile Road Champion (2013, 2015); Pat Casey, the 2018 NACAC silver medalist at 1500 meters; Patrick Joseph, a member of Virginia Tech’s 2018 NCAA Indoor Champion Distance Medley team and fourth in the mile; Daniel Herrera, Mexico’s national record-holder in the mile; Riley Masters, 2018 USA 1 Mile Road Champion; David Ribich, two-time NCAA Division II 1500-meter champion (2017, 2018); Mason Ferlic, 2016 NCAA Champion in the 3000-meter steeplechase; Craig Nowak, a two-time All-American while at Oklahoma State; and Garrett O’Toole, the 2018 Ivy League indoor mile champion who now competes for Arizona State.  

O’Toole, whose 4:01.89 mile while running for The Middlesex School was the fastest high school mile in the U.S. in 2014, won the Tommy Cochary High School Mile here in 2013, and still holds the meet record. At the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile, O’Toole will be attempting to break the 4-minute barrier for the first time.

The Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile, which began in 1995, has played host to more than two dozen Olympians, including Morgan Uceny, Amy Rudolph, Carmen Douma-Hussar, Carrie Tollefson, Suzy Hamilton, Donn Cabral, Marc Davis, Robert Gary, Jason Pyrah, 2012 Olympic silver medalist Leo Manzano and two-time Olympic medalist Nick Willis of New Zealand. The event records are held by Hamilton (4:25.27, 2002) and Jordan McNamara (3:54.89, 2011).

(08/13/2019) Views: 2,263 ⚡AMP

Even Triple Bypass Surgery does not stop Boston Marathon Director Dave McGillivray from doing his annual birthday run

I have said My Game, My Rules about a million times over the years and today I put it to good use.  Even though my 65th birthday (a big one) is not until next week, my work schedule is so crazy that I decided to do my annual birthday run today.  

However, I changed the rules this time.  Given my triple bypass surgery only 10 months ago and given that I know I have not completely recovered or healed by any means and that I still really do need to be cautious, I decided that I would do a “duathlon” and run a marathon distance (26.2-miles) and then bike the remainder (39-miles) and so that is what I did.

I actually felt pretty good the entire day but I’ve only biked three times this year so that was a little ugly.  

Good friends Ron Kramer and Josh Nemzer were very kind and stopped by to do some of it with me.  On the one hand, I feel a little disappointed I couldn’t run the entire 65-miles as I have run my birthday run since I was 12-years-old but on the other hand putting it all in perspective,

I just have to feel fortunate I was able to do this.  I’ve always said I was a marathoner so my new goal will be to run a marathon on my birthday run for as long as I possibly can and finish up the rest by bike.  I think that is a more sane goal going forward...don’t you agree? 

Of course, never say never!!  And by the way, I just can’t believe I am 65-years-old now...how did that happen?

(Dave McGillivray is the director of the Boston Marathon and several other races including the upcoming Falmouth Road Race happening Sunday.)

(08/12/2019) Views: 2,676 ⚡AMP
by Dave McGillivray

Tyler Diniz is running the Falmouth Road Race on behalf of Jett Foundation, a nonprofit fighting Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Funds raised by each racer on Jett Foundation’s Go! for Duchenne team support their many programs including Camp Promise, a free week of summer camp at three locations across the country for kids and young adults with select neuromuscular disorders like DMD, SMA, Becker, and more; Jett Giving Fund, a matching gift program to help families impacted by DMD purchase vital accessibility equipment like accessible vans, stairlifts and more.

Ready. Set. Jett. Family Workshops, a national educational workshop series for families to learn about DMD care, resources and treatments from local clinicians, experts and industry partners; and National Community Ambassador program, an opportunity for parents, friends and family members of individuals impacted by Duchenne to share resources and educate within the community. Ambassadors also facilitate local support groups and events for parents and families.

“As someone who has always been passionate about athletics and sports, I am running this August for those who can’t,” said Diniz.

“I am inspired by the many programs Jett Foundation offers, but most especially by their programs that give families access to safe, accessible sporting and physical activities like Camp Promise, Jett Giving Fund, educational workshops and more.”

To support awareness and fundraising efforts, Diniz and his family are hosting a beer tasting and cornhole tournament, with proceeds being donated to Jett Foundation.

(08/09/2019) Views: 2,044 ⚡AMP

Stephen Sambu of Kenya and Leonard Korir of the U.S., Sara Hall and Des Linden will return for the 47th running of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race

Stephen Sambu of Kenya and Leonard Korir of the U.S., who together staged an epic battle to the finish line in 2017, and Americans Sara Hall and Des Linden will return for the 47th running of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race, organizers announced today.

The fields for the Wheelchair Division presented by Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Cape Cod and the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile will be announced next week.

Sambu won the New Balance Falmouth Road Race every year from 2014-2017, becoming the first four-time winner of the men’s open division in race history. The runner-up in two of those victories was Korir, a 2016 Olympian at 10,000 meters who will represent the U.S. this fall at the IAAF World Championships. In 2017, Korir nearly denied Sambu his place in the history books in a fight to the finish that saw both athletes awarded the same time.

Sambu and Korir will be challenged by a tough international field that includes Thomas Ayeko of Uganda, who finished seventh in the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships; David Bett of Kenya, who won the B.A.A. 10K in June; and Silas Kipruto of Kenya, winner of the 2019 Cooper River Bridge Run. Massachusetts native Colin Bennie, who was the top American at the AJC Peachtree Road Race on July 4, and Scott Fauble, a top contender to make Team USA at the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials in February and runner-up here last year to Canadian Ben Flanagan, should be in the hunt.

Flanagan’s season has been cut short by injury, but he will return to Falmouth to speak on a Past Champions panel at the Health & Fitness Expo, hand out gift bags at bib pickup and run with a group of local youth.

In the women’s open division, Hall – who finished second here in 2015 – comes in as the reigning USA 10K champion, and in her long career has won U.S. titles at distances ranging from the mile to the marathon. Fellow American Des Linden, a two-time OIympian and the 2018 Boston Marathon champion, will make her Falmouth competitive debut after running with the pack here last year in celebration of her Boston victory.

“It’s beautiful,” said Linden of the course after her 2018 run. “It helps you forget it’s really hard. Some really impressive things have been done on this course. It’s cool to cover it, and it would be really fun to race it.”

They will face a deep women’s field, highlighted by a trio of Kenyans: 2012 New Balance Falmouth Road Race Champion Margaret Wangari, 2018 NCAA 10,000-meter champion Sharon Lokedi and Iveen Chepkemoi, who recently finished second in the Boilermaker 15K in Utica, N.Y.  Also challenging will be two athletes from Great Britain: Lily Partridge, the 2018 national marathon champion, andTish Jones, who will compete in the marathon at the 2019 World Championships. 

Allie Kieffer, who finished fifth in the 2015 TCS New York City Marathon; Melissa Dock, the top American woman here last year who competed for Team USA at the 2019 Bolder Boulder;Molly Seidel, the 2015 NCAA 10,000-meter champion; and Nell Rojas, winner of the 2019 Grandma’s Marathon and daughter of Ric Rojas, who competed for Harvard and at one time held the 15K world record, round out a solid American lineup.

Three-time winner Caroline Chepkoech of Kenya will not return to defend her title.

First prize in the men’s and women’s open division is $10,000, part of a total $126,000 prize purse for Race Week events, which include the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile the evening before the 7-miler. In addition, the men’s and women’s winners will seek to prevail in “The Countdown.”

A beat-the-clock handicap race, “The Countdown” features a finish-line clock that starts when the first woman breaks the tape, counting down the number of minutes and seconds the winning man has to beat, according to a pre-determined formula. If the clock runs out before he crosses the line, the victorious woman wins a $5,000 bonus; if it doesn’t, the winning man takes home the money. The time to beat this year is 3 minutes and 35 seconds.

(08/08/2019) Views: 2,469 ⚡AMP

DJ Bishop and his friend Ryan Feeney are ready to compete at the Falmouth Road Race

DJ Bishop, who is paralyzed, will sit in a wheel chair while his friend, Ryan Feeney, pushes.

They started out as baseball competitors in high school but then three years ago Bishop was injured and paralyzed from the chest down from a diving accident.

They are now teaming up as a duo to compete in the Falmouth Road Race on August 18.  

"It was kind of a last ditch effort as an opportunity to compete together," said Feeney, who approached Bishop about the race. "It was a way for us to be teammates again."

They are racing as Team Bish Strong and raising money for Journey Forward, a paralysis rehabilitation center in Canton that Bishop has attended since 2016.

The Falmouth Road Race is also an opportunity for them to raise awareness about neck and spinal injuries, which Bishop has sustained.

"I'm very excited to be part of a team again and compete," he said. "I've always been a competitive athlete and competitor."

The pair has been training since June. Bishop directs Feeney where to go and they work together during turns. In addition, Bishop motivates him throughout the runs.

Feeney is 25 and graduated from Bridgewater State in 2017. Bishop, also 25, hasn't graduated yet.

Before the start of his final year, Bishop broke his neck and injured his spinal chord while diving into shallow water in a lake. He needed emergency surgery and a spinal fusion.

Feeney reached out to him after the injury and they have kept in touch since.

At first, doctors thought that Bishop wouldn't be able to breathe or eat regular food on his own again, but he was later able to.

After nearly four months in the hospital, Bishop began physical therapy at Journey Forward, where he has been able to regain strength and balance. Going there has also given him hope.

Before, he was only able to shrug his shoulders, but now Bishop can curl his arms and has a lot more function.

"I'm still not where I want to be and I have a lot to go, but I keep pushing every single day," he said.

Although doctors have also told him that he would never walk again, Bishop doesn't rule out the possibility.

"In my mind, I don't listen to that and I block it out," he said. "I do what I got to do to maintain and get stronger every day. And never say never."

(08/01/2019) Views: 2,280 ⚡AMP
by Mina Corpuz

The Travis Roy Foundation is the newest gold-level sponsor of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race

The Travis Roy Foundation (TRF), founded in 1997 to enhance the lives of spinal cord injury survivors and families by providing grants and funding research, is the newest gold-level sponsor of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race, race officials announced.

“We love the fact that Falmouth, one of New England’s most-iconic road races, has taken up the cause of making it clear that participation is for everyone,” said Roy, who in 1995 was paralyzed after hitting the boards just 11 seconds into his first hockey game for Boston University.

“Runners, wheelchair racers and adaptive athletes of all types are welcome here, and its history as one of the first non-marathons to establish a wheelchair division proves that it has long been intent on helping others move forward.”

The New Balance Falmouth Road Race this year is celebrating the 45thrunning of its wheelchair division, now sponsored by Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Cape Cod.

While the Boston-based TRF has just launched its sponsorship, it is not new to the race: It returns with a 2019 team of runners in the event’s Numbers for Nonprofits Program, in which it raises funds to further its mission.

Indeed, most of its fundraising comes from participatory sporting events, which also include a three-city Charity Hockey Challenge and its 18th-annual WIFFLE Ball Tournament in 2019. As part of its sponsorship, TRF will partner with the race to provide runners with a special cooling towel at the finish line.

Since it began, TRF has awarded more than 1,900 Quality of Life grants to individuals across the United States who have experienced a spinal cord injury, helping them lead more independent lives, as well medical research focused on improving the arm and hand function that can ease everyday tasks such as brushing their own teeth or feeding themselves.

“We couldn’t be more pleased to welcome the Travis Roy Foundation into the Falmouth family,” said Geoff Nickerson, president of the board of directors. “Travis Roy is as New England as the New Balance Falmouth Road Race and TRF perfectly embodies our mission of health, wellness and helping everyone in the community to lead better lives.”

(08/01/2019) Views: 1,967 ⚡AMP

It’s time to fade into the sunset Tommy Leonard said nine months ago to a reporter. Tommy has passed away.

(The following article was published in the Falmouth Enterprise Newspaper nine months ago written by  Paige Leahy.  This gives us good insights to a very special man.  We are sad to report that Tommy has passed away.) 

On Monday, April 16, 2018 the Quarterdeck Restaurant on Main Street, Falmouth, opened earlier than usual to celebrate Marathon Monday and the 122nd running of the Boston Marathon.

Inside the Main Street restaurant sat Tommy Leonard, a founder of the Falmouth Road Race and a celebrity among Boston Marathon runners.

Mr. Leonard sat at the last seat of the bar, the one farthest away from the door. This seat is known to be his. He rested his hands on the glossy wood, looking forward to one of the televisions displaying marathon coverage.

He wore a blue, windbreaker-style jacket with three white stripes down each arm. This was a Boston Marathon jacket from one of the many marathons he ran, upward of 20 of them. On top of his head was a black, nylon baseball cap that read “BOSTON.”

As patrons approached Mr. Leonard, all offering a hello and a pat on the back, he returned each greeting with a larger than life smile and thanked them for coming to celebrate one of Boston’s most notable athletic traditions. At 84 years of age, his mind and spirit remain sharp.

Behind the bar and all around the space were pieces of marathon memorabilia, many of which belong to or are in honor of Mr. Leonard. Since coming to work at the Quarterdeck as a bartender in 1998, he has called this restaurant home.

Prior to bartending on the Cape, Mr. Leonard worked at the now-closed Eliot Lounge in Boston on the corner of Massachusetts and Commonwealth avenues. The Eliot Lounge was once considered the unofficial finish line for the Boston Marathon, mostly due to the fact that Mr. Leonard held a weeklong celebration there for the marathon every year. Runners from across the globe would come together for a free pint with their bib at a bash to honor running for a cause. Over the years, both the Eliot and Mr. Leonard became marathon staples.

“Running has been good to me,” Mr. Leonard said, beginning to speak on what the iconic Boston event means to him while picking at a piece of banana bread. “I love the marathon with a passion that would probably shatter the foundation of the Bourne Bridge. It is my favorite weekend of the year—in the city you can see the magnolias and dogwoods really pop.”

Mr. Leonard ran his first Boston Marathon in 1953 while serving in the Marines. He fell in love with the sport while attending Westfield High School and ran with that love for years and many marathons more.

Despite his many feats and honors in the running community, including a bridge dedicated in his name just before the Boston Marathon finish line, and his all-around goodheartedness, a characteristic attributed to him by many, Mr. Leonard continues to shy away from the spotlight. He said that he receives too much credit—most all would disagree.

“I’ve had more than my share of days of glory,” Mr. Leonard said while staring off at an invisible, distant point. “It’s time to fade into the sunset.”

(01/16/2019) Views: 2,610 ⚡AMP
by Paige Leahy

NAZ Elite's Scott Fauble is scheduled to run the TCS New York Marathon

Scott Fauble ran the Falmouth Road Race on Sunday as part of his preparation for the upcoming fall marathon season, and he came away from the Massachusetts 7-miler with a second-place finish in 32:23. His finish reflects the kind of year NAZ Elite is putting in the books, as the team rides a wave of momentum that picked up the pace with Aliphine Tuliamuk claiming the USATF 25K and half-marathon titles in the month of May. After Tuliamuk earned her ninth and 10th national championships, Stephanie Bruce, at the age of 34, won her first-ever national title in July's USATF 10K Championships. While Bruce grabbed the gold, Tuliamuk finished with silver in the 10K. Now, Fauble, Tuliamuk, Bruce and teammate Scott Smith, who claimed sixth place in the Boston Marathon, will look to keep the team's foot on the pedal after being selected to run in the upcoming TCS New York City Marathon. It's the most runners NAZ Elite has entered in the marathon in the club's history. "This group, they are seemingly all in the prime of their careers," said NAZ Elite head coach Ben Rosario. "They are all racing really well at the highest level they’ve raced at, and that’s what you want going into New York because you have to be 100 percent on your game if you want to compete up front.” (08/24/2018) Views: 2,380 ⚡AMP

Canada’s Ben Flanagan pulls off the win in a crazy sprint to the finish at the New Balance Falmouth Road Race

It was a crazy sprint to the finish as 23-year-old Ben Flanagan (photo) wins the New Balance Falmouth Road Race this morning.  Scott Fauble (US) was second clocking 32:23, Leonard Korir was next in 32:28.  Stephen Sambu who keeps coming back to defend his men’s title in the 7.1 mile race finished fourth with 32:32.  The lead pack passed 10k at 28:50.  But Ben’s speed gave him the win.  On June 7th the University of Michigan senior won the 10000m at the NCAA Championships clocking 28:34 taking 39 seconds off his PR.  His last 400 meters there being 56.9 seconds.  Last year’s winner Stephen Sambu, from Kenyan who last year became the first man to win Falmouth four times, always sends Snapchat pictures of himself with the ocean backdrop to friends. He also spends some downtime on the beach. But above all, he said the camaraderie with the community, especially host families, keeps him giddy to return each year. “I feel like I’m home,” Sambu said during Friday morning’s media event. “They take you in like they’re your own kids. “I’ll be coming back even if I lose.” When asked about going for five straight wins and another $10,000 first prize, Sambu said he’s feeling some pressure, knowing that it won’t be easy. “Everybody is expecting me to win,” said Sambu.  “I’m ready, I’m feeling good. I don’t give up. I just fight until the end. I can lose, but I don’t lose easily.”  He was close but not close enough this year.  We are sure he will be back.  He just loves it too much!  (08/19/2018) Views: 2,175 ⚡AMP

Former Northern Arizona runner Futsum Zienasellassie ready for Falmouth Road Race

When Futsum Zienasellassie spoke with his head coach about taking time to travel and see his family in in Eritrea, East Africa, the runner’s place of birth, it didn’t take long to get an answer. “He asked me if I was OK with him going there, and of course I was,” said NAZ Elite head coach Ben Rosario. “I think it’s important to see your family, but when you go to Eritrea, you can’t just shoot over there for a weekend, you have to stay for a while to make it worth it. And it’s a great place to train; it’s at high elevation, there are dirt roads and cool places to run. We thought that since he’s over there for two months, we might as well take advantage of the fitness, so he’s basically going from Eritrea to Falmouth.” Zienasellassie will be joined by teammates Scott Fauble and Kellyn Taylor as the trio competes in the Falmouth Road Race, a 7-miler on Cape Cod in Massachusetts set to take place Sunday. Despite being limited in how much he could communicate with Zienasellassie during the stay in Eritrea, Rosario thinks the trip will have a positive effect for the runner. Rosario said visiting home and reuniting with family was something Zienasellassie needed, and that he expects the young runner to return to the United States rejuvenated. “Typically when athletes are in a great mood, it leads to something good, so I expect that he does well on Sunday – as long as he can handle the travel OK,” the head coach said. Meanwhile, Fauble will use the race, which has been won by Stephen Sambu the last four years, as a chance to work on his training for a fall marathon.  (08/17/2018) Views: 1,825 ⚡AMP

Kenya's Mary Wacera is ready to challenge defending champion Caroline Chepkoech at Falmouth Road Race

World half marathon medalist Mary Wacera of Kenya is ready to challenge defending champion and compatriot Caroline chepkoech at the Falmouth Road Race in Massachusetts, USA on Aug. 19. "I believe I have the necessary experience to win in Falmouth. But I have respect for the champion and others in the race. It will be hard to everyone," Wacera said on Friday. The winner of the race will take home 10,000 U.S. dollars with runners-up taking 7,000 dollars. Also keen to curve a niche for herself will be Chepkoech, who last year became the first woman to defend her Falmouth title since Dutchwoman Lornah Kiplagat won three straight from 2000-2002. (08/11/2018) Views: 1,895 ⚡AMP