Running News Daily

2018 Abu Dhabi Marathon champion Marius Kipserem from Kenya eyes podium at Rotterdam Marathon

The 2018 Abu Dhabi Marathon champion Marius Kipserem is focusing on a podium finish when he lines up at the 39th edition of the NN Rotterdam Marathon on Sunday.

He will be competing against his training mate and Buenos Aires Marathon champion Emmanuel Saina and Sydney Marathon champion Elijah Kemboi.

The athlete, who has been training in Kapsabet and the plains of Nandi Hills in Nandi County, said that he has done good training and will be looking forward to a good race.

“My training went on well and I’m prepared for stiff competition but I want to be among the first three athletes,” said Kipserem.

The athlete is also eyeing to reduce his personal best of 2:04:04, which he clocked in Abu Dhabi Marathon last year.

“If the weather will be favourable, I think I can lower my time as I look forward to participate in the major marathons in future,” said the athlete.

On his part, Kemboi said that he is well prepared for the race and he will be teaming up with his training mate as they eye the podium finish.

“My training has been good and we are going to run well in the race on Sunday. Having trained with Kipserem, we will run together up to the 35km mark and after that, it will be everybody for himself,” said Kemboi.

Kigen said that he believes the training he has done will bring him good results as he looks forward to be in the podium of NN Rotterdam Marathon this Sunday.

Laura Muir will start her summer by racing at the Vitality Westminster Mile

Racing for the first time since successfully defending her two European indoor titles, Laura Muir will look to pick up from where she left off as she seeks a strong start to her summer season at the Vitality Westminster Mile.

With the London race taking place on May 26, Muir will begin her outdoor campaign around the same time of year as she is used to, despite it being a longer season with the IAAF World Championships in Doha taking place in September and October. The difference now, however, is that the Scot heads into her summer as a full-time athlete for the first time, having juggled veterinary degree studies and exams with her athletics over the past seven years.

“The Vitality Westminster Mile will be my very first race of the outdoor season and then the plan is to get on the track the week or so after that,” explains Muir. “It’s a similar time I guess to normal for me opening up, but this time I won’t have exams a couple of weeks beforehand!

“I’m really excited. It was 2013 that I last competed there (at the Westminster Mile) and I remember it really clearly,” adds the 25-year-old, who clocked 4:46 then to place eighth in a race won by Hannah England in 4:31.

“For a race that was six years ago, I remember it really well. It’s so iconic, running on that course and finishing next to Buckingham Palace.”

Since then Muir has won four European indoor titles, including her 1500m and 3000m golds gained on home soil in Glasgow last month, plus two world indoor medals, 1500m gold at the European Championships in Berlin and two Diamond League titles.

As British 1500m record-holder with her time of 3:55.22 from 2016, Muir’s road mile best currently stands at 4:18.4 and she set that when finishing second behind USA’s Jenny Simpson at the 5th Avenue Mile in 2016.

While Muir says she doesn’t have Laura Weightman’s British record of 4:17.06 as a specific target next month, she could come close, especially as she aims for a maiden national road mile title, with the event incorporating the British one mile road championships.

“I just want to be competitive, go out there and race and really enjoy it,” says Muir, who broke the British indoor mile record with 4:18.75 in Birmingham in February. “Last time I recall there were a few corners and things, so I’m not sure if it’s going to be fast fast but it will still be a very high-quality race and at a really good pace.

Mike Seekings is the Cooper River Bridge Run new interim race director

Mike Seekings, a board member for nine years, is a very active runner in the community. He said he's taking on this role to pay tribute to Julian Smith, the former Cooper River Bridge Run director who died recently to his battle to cancer.

"Over the last 20 years has been Julian Smith's race," Seekings said. "This has been his vision, it's been his passion. He has built something in the community that is second to none, anywhere."

He said his part in this race is carrying on what Julian grew for decades.

"This is his run. This is his race," Seekings said. "It's for the community, and for those reasons, I am honored and really proud and honored, and happy, and a little bit humbled to be here for the last couple months getting this race ready to go."

So, during the next couple of days, there will be lots of final touches and sleepless nights, to make sure this event runs smoothly.

"We're going to make sure that logistically we're ready to go, the course is clear, that we've got everybody registered, everyone understands where they are, and what they're going to do," said Seekings.

Following the race, there's not much downtime before planning for the next year begins. 

"This run is at eight o'clock, Saturday, April 6th," Seekings said. "People will be across that bridge within two to three hours. The festivities will go on for that day. We'll take a deep breath on Sunday, April 7th and then planning for next year will begin Monday, April 8th."

Seekings said the board is moving forward with heavy hearts, but with lots of enthusiasm that this year will be good as any, running in Julian's honor.

Ultramarathon runner Jonathan Van Dyke is the First Ultramarathon Athlete to Sign Hemp Oil Endorsement

Van Dyke will serve as a brand ambassador for Functional Remedies and their many hemp oil products. Jonathan and many distance runners utilize Functional Remedies hemp oil products to enhance their rigorous training regimens and support recovery.

“We are excited to have Jonathan Van Dyke join team Functional Remedies as the first ultramarathon athlete to sign a hemp oil endorsement,” stated Functional Remedies CMO Tony Tomassini. “Such an intense sport requires a well-balanced and effective recovery process. We’re proud Van Dyke added our incredibly efficacious hemp oil into his training routine, and we look forward to watching him go after national records.”

“I use EndoSport hemp oil for two reasons; one is to enhance my ability to train and the other is to recover from my training and competitions,” said Van Dyke. “Running long distance is no joke. It takes a lot of mental and physical endurance. My body has to be in top shape.”

Van Dyke started running ultramarathon races in 2015 and has consistently improved to be among the upper echelon competitors. Jonathan is currently preparing for the upcoming Quad Rock 50, a 50-mile run, at Fort Collins, Colorado on May 11, 2019.

Ethiopian Ayantu Dakebu Hailemaryam Is set to win again for the third time at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon

Two-time winner Ayantu Dakebu Hailemaryam seeks to repeat against a top international field at this year’s Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon, set for Sunday, May 5. This year’s race will feature a total prize purse of $56,000 including $8,000 for each race champion.

Hailemaryam, of Ethiopia, won the women’s division of the 2016 DICK’S Sporting Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon with a time of 2:39:18. 

She repeated in 2017,  improving her time by nearly three minutes to finish in 2:36:20. To earn the coveted laurel wreath once again, she will need to beat fellow Ethiopians Bose Gemeda Assefa, the 2018 Richmond Marathon Champion who has a marathon personal best of 2:32:59, and Bizuwork Getahun Kasaye, the 2018 the Vermont City Marathon champion who has a marathon personal best of 2:38:15.

The impressive women’s field includes decorated race champions and rising American athletes, including Christina Murphy and Brittany Tretbar who will lead this year’s American field.

Tretbar is making her Pittsburgh debut and has a marathon personal best of 2:41:29. Murphy, who won the 2018 Columbus Marathon, returns to Pittsburgh after placing third in 2015.

“This is my first time back in Pittsburgh since finishing third in 2015,” said Murphy. “I am so excited to experience the challenges of the course and the excitement of the crowds again on May 5 and hopefully improve upon my previous performance!”

In the men’s race, Ethiopian Tadesse Yae Dabi, the 2018 Philadelphia Marathon champion, is the top seeded runner with a marathon personal best of 2:11:50. He will face tough competition from Kenyans Eliud Ngetich, the 2019 Mercedes Marathon winner who has a marathon personal best of 2:11:59, and Boniface Kongin, the 2017 Philadelphia Marathon who has a marathon personal best of 2:14:00.

Ethiopian Birhanu Dare Kemal, with a marathon personal best of 2:12:21, will return to the race after placing fourth last year. This year’s race has also attracted emerging American professional athletes who hope to use their finishing time in Pittsburgh to qualify for the 2020 U.S. Marathon Olympic Trials.

To support these athletes, P3R will provide a pace team who will lead the American female elites to an Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifying “B” Standard time. The trio of Pittsburgh competitive runners plan is to reach the finish line in 2:44:59 (“B” Standard time is 2:45:00).  

Yuki Kawauchi has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with piano maker Yamaha Music Japan Company

Having left his goverment job at the end of the Japanese fiscal year in March to make a go of it as a professional runner, it was announced today that 2018 Boston Marathon winner Yuki Kawauchi, 32, has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with piano maker Yamaha Music Japan Co., Ltd.

 “What I like about a Yamaha piano is that it’s all there in front of you in black and white, like life,” said Kawauchi, an avid pianist as a child before his parents made him pursue running.

“I hope that we’ll have a long and harmonious relationship, with just a hint of dissonance for depth.” 

The endorsement deal includes the introduction of a “Make a Breakthrough” Kawauchi signature model acoustic grand piano, proceeds from the sales of which will go toward supporting Kawauchi’s training in the lead-up to the 2021 Eugene World Championships.

A delighted Yamaha president Naoji Suda told reporters, “Kawauchi’s values are well-tuned to ours, one of the keys to any successful relationship.

I can’t think of a better brand ambassador for our flagship line of acoustic grand pianos. He may not be the fastest pianist in the world, but nobody carries a tune, or a piano, quite like him.”

Emily Sisson became the third-fastest American in history with her 30:49 10,000m performance at Stanford on Friday

With her 30:49 10,000m on Friday night at Stanford, 27-year-old Emily Sisson is behind only Molly Huddle and Shalane Flanagan in American history. Sisson will next tackle her marathon debut on Apr. 28 in London.

Marathon training is already showing a lot of promise for 26.2 newcomer Emily Sisson. With just under a month remaining until her debut.

The race was executed with teamwork from Sisson, 27, and her training partner Huddle, 34, who are both coached by Ray Treacy. The runners switched off leading every few laps for the majority of the race in Stanford, California, which set the tone for a pace aimed to break the 2020 Olympic qualifying standard.

Both runners competed at the 2017 IAAF World Track and Field Championships together and are currently in the middle of training to compete at the London Marathon in April, which made the return to the track all the more exciting.

No finisher at Barkley Marathons 2019

It might be hard to imagine a race in which the entire field DNFs, but it’s not unusual at the Barkley Marathons, and it happened for the second year in a row as the race came to an end earlier this morning. The results were somewhat better than last year, with six Fun Runs recorded (three 20-mile loops in under 40 hours). Last year Canadian Gary Robbins was the only runner to achieve a Fun Run, and there were no finishers. 

Last night with only two minutes to go before the 9:23 p.m. cutoff, Karel Sabbe and Greig Hamilton set off on loop four. Shortly afterwards, Guillaume Calmettes arrived in camp, well within the cutoff for a Fun Run (which was 1:23 a.m. Monday) but too late to be allowed to attempt a fourth loop. He was tapped out (referring to the playing of Taps by a bugler for each runner who DNFs). 

Tomokazu Ihara, Johan Steene and Jamil Coury all finished Fun Runs last night, but were tapped out upon returning to camp.

Greig Hamilton was the first to say “uncle” on loop four. Sabbe hung in for another few hours before packing it in and returning to camp around 3:30 a.m.

Gary Robbins noted the significance of the final two to drop out being Barkley “virgins.” Sabbe, a dentist from Belgium, got a lot of attention for setting the most recent FKT on the Appalachian Trail in August 2018. Hamilton, who is from Christchurch, New Zealand, was the 2016 world champion in rogaining (long-distance orienteering).

But at the Barkley Marathons, your race pedigree means very little. Two of this year’s strongest contenders, John Kelly and Jared Campbell, shocked everyone following with their early DNFs. 2017 finisher Kelly, with a strong lead after two laps, headed for his tent for a nap, emerging later to announce he no longer wanted to continue, and tapped himself out on the bugle. Campbell, with three Barkley finishes on his resume, kept fans guessing for hours as to his whereabouts after rolling his ankle badly on the first loop.

Ethiopians Aberu Mekuria and Jimma Shambel dominated at the Chongqing Marathon

Aberu dominated the women's race, running at the head of the pack from the 10km point on en route to a 2:24:30 victory. The run knocked five seconds from the 35-year-old's previous lifetime best set at the Valencia Marathon last December.

Running alongside Kenyan Lydia Cheromei through the opening five kilometres (17:36), she pulled away shortly thereafter, building a 13-second lead by the 10km point (34:44).

She increased her lead over the Kenyan to 47 seconds by 15 kilometres and to more than a minute-and-a-half by 20.

While Aberu forged on alone, Cheromei dropped back and out of contention by 30km. By that point, Aberu was already more than two minutes clear of the field and eventually won the race by more than three minutes.

Further back, Chinese Li Zhixuan and He Yinli finished second and third, clocking 2:27:56 and 2:29:14, respectively.

Conversely, the men's race came down to the wire, with Shambel out-sprinting Kenyan Edwin Kibet Koech in the waning stages to pull off the narrow win, with both men clocking 2:10:28.

Thirteen men were in contention at 10km (31:27), a pack reduced to ten at 30km covered in 1:33:22, with Kibet running at the front.

Tufa and Marius Kimutai brought the lead pack, now down to five, through 40km in 2:04:10, with Koech a second behind and Kenyan Michael Njenga Kunyuga and Ethiopian Gebretsadik Abraha shadowing the trio another second back.

Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester is set to run Boston Marathon to bring cities together

The mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, is set to pound the pavements of Boston on 15 April, running the marathon to raise funds for charities set up by some of the families who lost loved-ones in the 2017 Manchester Arena attack.

Boston is the oldest annual marathon in the world and takes place each year on the third Monday of April, Patriots’ Day in the United States. It was the target of a terrorist attack in 2013 when three spectators were killed and an estimated 264 were injured.

The Mayor has been invited to run by One World Strong Foundation, an organisation founded by survivors of the Boston bombings who bring together victims of terrorism around the world. They came to Manchester on the one-year anniversary of the Manchester attack.

Andy will dedicate his second-ever marathon to all the families who lost loved ones and will raise money for a number of charities and causes set up or nominated by them.

Andy said: “I know this is a very difficult time for all the families as we approach the second anniversary and, in a small way, I just wanted to let them know we continue to think about them. Greater Manchester will always be there for them.

“Many of the families affected have set up charities in memory of their loved ones and are doing amazing work in their communities to bring people together and give them hope. It is a great honour for me to run this prestigious Marathon for them and I will be doing my best to raise funds for their important work.

“I would also like to thank the One World Strong Foundation for coming to Manchester to support people here and for extending this invitation to me. They are an inspirational organisation working across the world to unite victims of terrorism and build a network of cities standing up against hate of all kinds.

“I’ve done one marathon before and can say without hesitation that this will definitely be my last. If I have a target, it is to beat my last time of 4 hours 28 minutes. But, really, I just want to finish and show how Manchester stands with Boston, Christchurch, Pittsburgh and all the cities around the world who have suffered from appalling acts of hate in recent years. 

Dave Fortier from One World Strong said: “We were initially connected with Manchester through an exchange developed by the US Embassy in London aimed at supporting our two countries shared security priorities—to prevent terrorism, assist community recovery following the traumatic experience of a terror attack, and build resilience to all forms of extremism.

"But now, Boston and Manchester survivors are bringing our two countries even closer as partners engaging around the globe to support survivors and families worldwide who are recovering from terrorism and trauma. Running the Boston Marathon alongside Andy—in support of British, American, and international charities—is a beautiful expression of that partnership.”

Funds raised will be shared equally between charities and causes either set up or nominated by the families of some of those affected by the Manchester Arena bombing.

Two clocked sub 1:02 at the PZU Warsaw Half Marathon

The winner of the 14th PZU Warsaw Half Marathon was Gilbert Masai (Kenya), who clocked 1:01:43. Also on the podium were: Cheruiyot Kirui Peter (Kenya) with time 01:01:57 and Sila Kiptoo (Kenya), who beat the marathon route at 01:02:03. The fastest Pole was Kamil Karbowiak with the time 01:06:51.

The finish line of the 14th PZU Warsaw Halfmarathon was also surpassed by women. Just nine minutes after Gilbert Masai, Gladys Jeptepken (Kenya) finished the race, who defeated the distance at 1:10:19.

Also on the podium were: Oichia Tabitha Wamubi (Kenya) with time 01:11:07 and Muluget Gela Abebech (Ethiopia), who beat the marathon route at 01:12:20. Natalia Mierzlikin was the fastest Polish woman with the time 01:18:35.

The 2019 Paris Marathon, sponsor Schneider Electric has touched the lives of Kenyan Women

Women in rural Embu County are the key beneficiaries of a project being rolled out in the region dubbed as the 'hifadhi project' which is being implemented by Livelihood Funds and supported by Schneider Electric.

This will see women being given energy saving cooking stoves which are eco friendly. The "Hifadhi" stoves are 60 percent more efficient than the traditional three-stone open fires used in rural areas.

"Given the past exemplary performance of Kenyan marathoners at the Paris Marathon, Schneider Electric targets to offsets for the marathon with the benefits gained from the village in Embu," Gilles Vermot Desroches, Chief Sustainability Officer, Schneider Electric said.

"This has gone a long way in empowering women in the rural areas who are now able to engage in small scale commercial activities, thanks to Hifadhi stoves. And this is just but the beginning, Livelihoods and Climate Pal's clean cookstove project will be distributed to 60,000 households- benefitting more than 300 villages and 300,000 Kenyans."

To mark the occasion, Schneider Electric is accelerating its ambition and commitments for climate by helping its customer to avoid 100 M tons of CO2 emissions thanks to cleantech solutions.

"As sponsors of the Marathon de Paris we want to engage our employees, customers and partners who are training to join our commitment to more sustainable cities," said, Chris Leong, CMO of Schneider Electric. We are making the cities more livable with our solutions for buildings, industry and homes and we want to do more to enable marathon runners and their families to get involved."

The project is part of Schneider Electric initiative of offsetting any unavoidable CO2 emissions to achieve 100% carbon neutrality for the Marathon de Paris which is sponsored by Schneider Electric.

John Almeda a Sacramento runner with nonverbal autism will be competing in the Boston Marathon

The story of John Almeda keeps getting better. The Sacramento young man with non-verbal autism is preparing to leave for Boston next week. He won’t be there to do any sightseeing.

He has his sights set on the Boston Marathon. John qualified while finishing the California International Marathon last year on a broken ankle.

A local company was so inspired by his story, they decided to sponsor him. Total Nutrition asked for a meeting and John’s mother Vanessa tells said she was shocked to hear what they had to say.

“The first thing out of their mouths was–we sponsor athletes and we would love to take John on. We think he’s amazing and they’re paying all of our airfare,” Vanessa said.

Even with the sponsorship, John still needs some help to pay for other parts of his journey to Boston. His family and friends are throwing him a send-off party Saturday, March 30th at New Helvetia Brewing on Broadway in Sacramento.

They’d love to have the community stop by from 1 to 4pm. As for the marathon itself, John will be among the first wave of runners on April 15th in Boston.

His mother tells us, “The thing is, this was his dream–he’s been watching Boston on YouTube videos for years and this is his dream and he’s made it there.”

Hellen Obiri wins at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus

The world 5000m champion, Hellen Obiri became the first woman in history to win senior world titles indoors, outdoors and at cross country. The only man to achieve such a feat is Kenenisa Bekele.

“It is really special,” smiled Obiri after completing the 10.24km course in 36:14. “It was my debut IAAF World Cross Country Championships and my only chance to do it. I now don't need to do any more cross country.”

Obiri arrived in Aarhus in good form, having clocked 29:59 for 10km at the end of December and winning at the IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting in Elgoibar in January and at the Kenyan Cross Country Championships last month.

The 29-year-old had clearly also thought about her tactics ahead of this weekend. She led the race from the early stages and could be seen visibly leaning into the hill as she tackled the climb up the Moesgaard Museum roof on each lap.

“I thought you must look down, as you don't want to look up to see where you are going and at how difficult the hill is,” she revealed of her technique. “I knew it wasn't going to be a test of speed, as it was a tough hill. It was all about mind games.”

At the end of the second of five laps, a group of five had already broken away, led by Obiri in 14:16, with sub-2:22 marathon runner Dera Dida, world U20 steeplechase silver medallist Peruth Chemutai, steeplechase world record-holder Beatrice Chepkoech and two-time world U20 cross-country champion Letesenbet Gidey in close procession.

Joshua Cheptegei takes the title by 25 meters at the senior men’s race at the World Cross-Country Championships

Two years ago, at his home championship in Kampala, Cheptegei looked all over the winner when he had dashed to a 60-metre lead at the start of the final lap. But his apparently decisive move came too soon. Half-way around the final lap he was in trouble. Soon after that he literally did not know where he was.

Today in Aarhus was atonement day, as Cheptegei dashed clear of precocious teammate Jacob Kiplimo and defending champion Geoffrey Kamworor to take the world title by 25 meters in 31:40 over the 10,240m course. Again he did not know where he was, because he has never been a senior world champion before. Now, he had arrived at a long-held goal.

It got better and better for Cheptegei. With Kiplimo second, Thomas Ayeko seventh and Joseph Ayeko tenth, Uganda wrapped up the teams race as well. That was another first, the first time Uganda has taken either a senior or junior gold medal. At senior level, the previous best was bronze medals in Mombasa in 2007 and Kampala last time.

Despite his burn-out, it was Cheptegei’s 30th place finish which clinched the team bronze medal. He contributed, even while out on his feet. Some of that grit no doubt helped over the twisting, turning, climbing and swooping Aarhus course.

As with all races on the day, the steep climb and headlong descent of the roof of the Moesgaard Museum played a major role in dictating the manner in which the senior men’s race was run and in determining how it finished. Cheptegei did not always look the strongest on the roof, but he was when it counted most on the final lap.

The steep, uphill start turned normal world cross-country protocol on its head. The charge off the line in the men’s race looked familiar, but the first lap was by some way the slowest 2km split of the race, which then got quicker and quicker by the lap.

Ugandan vests were always prominent in the lead pack, even when it numbered up to 30 in the early stages. Uganda started with four in the top 10 and finished the same way.

Almost from the outset, however, it was Kiplimo who was the aggressor. He pushed the pace up the roof in the second lap and soon after they entered the third lap he had pulled Cheptegei, Kamworor and Eritrea’s Aron Kifle clear.

While Rhonex Kipruto and Selemon Barega had tried to bridge that gap, by the half-way mark of the race it was clear there were only four who could win. Into the fourth lap, that was down to three as Kifle dropped off, but the Eritrean athlete was still well clear of the chasers and held that place all the way to the line, improving one position on his Kampala race.

Kamworor had raced conservatively, always shadowing every move but rarely leading himself. As the leaders entered the fourth lap, however, he appeared to be trying to assert his authority.

2019 Barkley Marathons is 'love and puppies' for Laz

Some of the world's best runners are in Morgan County for this weekend's Barkley Marathons, a brutal 100-mile race that only 15 people have finished in 33 years.

Elite ultra-marathoners from six continents packed the campsite at Frozen Head State Park on Friday in Wartburg, Tenn.  Now they patiently wait for the unpredictable start of the Barkley Marathons, a sinister 100-mile race filled with obstacles that pester routine-loving runners.

"There is nothing out there but love and puppies," laughed Gary Cantrell as he read the text on this year's shirt. "I think we'll have a higher finish-rate because of the positive wholesome attitude this year. Aren't there little hearts up in this corner [of my shirt]?"

Cantrell, also known as Lazarus Lake or Laz, helped concoct the ridiculous race that only 15 people have finished in 33 years. Some runners are repeat-finishers, making a total of 18 times someone has completed the 100-mile race within the 60-hour time limit.

If you have missed WBIR's many reports on the Barkley Marathons in previous years, here is a brief synopsis of the event:  Runners write an essay and apply for entry in the Barkley Marathons.  40 runners are chosen each year from around the world.

Runners have 60 hours to complete five loops of 20+ miles through Frozen Head State Park.  The course is unmarked and changes every year.

Runners get a map (poorly-drawn) of the course before the race begins.  The start time is unknown, other than sometime between midnight and noon on Saturday.

A conch shell is blown to signal one hour until the start.  Laz lights a cigarette to begin the race.

The yellow gate at the campsite and Brushy Mountain prison are always part of the route.  Keeping with Laz's positive attitude, there has technically been a winner every year of the Barkley: a runner or the mountain.

"The mountain has been winning a lot more often than the runners. I think it has won 1,302 and been beaten 18 times," said Cantrell.

Sub-60-minute runners Peter Kirui and Gilbert Masai are the headliners in the elite men’s field for the PZU Warsaw Half Marathon

Masai has bettered the one-hour barrier three times in his career, with a best of 59:31 from Copenhagen in 2016. The following year he won in Berlin with 59:57, and he ended the 2018 season with a best of 1:00:16 from Venlo. Making his debut on Polish roads at the age of 37, the Kenyan is the prime candidate to challenge the course and Polish all-comers’ record of 1:00:48.

Kirui has an even more impressive career record, with five sub-one-hour clockings and a personal best of 59:22, set when winning in Prague in 2014. The most recent of these performances was a win in Krems in 2016 in 59:53.

Two other Kenyan runners with a history of good performances on the Polish road circuit will also be major contenders. Hillary Maiyo, with a career best of 1:01:05 from 2017, will be running in Warsaw for the fourth consecutive year and hoping to go even better after taking fifth, fourth and third in previous editions. David Metto, a 1:02:24 man, was the winner in last autumn's Warsaw Marathon and will attempt to keep his good streak in the city going.

Another one returning to the Polish capital is El Hassan Oubaddi, the Moroccan who finished fourth in the race last year with 1:02:52 and has since improved his PB to 1:02:40 last November. Also in the field is his compatriot Jaouad Chemlal, with a 1:02:31 from Marrakech last year.

Not to be discounted is Wycliffe Biwott, the winner from Tirana in 2017 with a 1:01:18. He will be hoping to make a return to form after missing the 2018 season.

Starting as the clear favorite in the women's race is Naomi Rotich. The Kenyan comes into it off the back of a personal best of 1:08:19 in Ras Al Khaimah last month. That was her fifth career sub-1:10, with earlier ones including victories in Breda and Dronten in 2017, as well as Madrid in 2018.

Conditions permitting, Rotich looks ready to challenge the course record of 1:09:06, which is also the fastest time ever achieved on Polish soil.

The main challenge to her dominance is expected to come from fellow Kenyans Gladys Kipkoech and Naomi Vaati. Kipkoech ran 1:10:13 to win in Hamburg last year, while Vaati set her best of 1:10:17 just over a month ago in Guadalajara.

Another woman in form is Abebech Gela Mulugeta, who set a PB of 1:11:07 this year to win in Santa Pola.

Marius Kimutai of Kenya will lead a deep field at the Chongqing Marathon aiming to break the course record

The men’s course record belongs to Ethiopia’s 2017 winner Afewerk Mesfin, who clocked 2:09:49 to mark the first ever sub-2:10 result since the race launched in 2011.

Nine sub-2:10 runners will line up for the top honours at the southwestern Chinese city this year and Kimutai is the fastest entrant on paper thanks to his personal best of 2:05:47 set in Amsterdam in 2016.

He came close to that mark two years ago when he clocked a winning time of 2:06:04 in Rotterdam. His only outing over the 26.2-mile distance last year was a fourth-place finish in Seoul in 2:07:45.

It will be Kimutai’s first appearance in Chongqing but his third race in China following a victory in Danzhou in 2014 and a runner-up finish in Dongying in 2016.

Ethiopia’s Gebretsadik Abraha could be the biggest challenge to Kimutai. Although his career best of 2:06:21 was set back in 2012 from his third-place finish in Amsterdam, the 26-year-old Marrakesh and Prague marathon winner has an impressively consistent record over the classic distance, registering a sub-2:10 result each year for the past seven years.

Kenyan veteran Philip Kimutai Sanga is another man to watch on Sunday. The 35-year-old has a lifetime best of 2:06:07 from the 2011 Frankfurt Marathon but has not bettered 2:10 since 2017.

The field also includes Asbel Kipsang, whose PB of 2:07:30 was set in Seoul three years ago, and Edwin Koech, a 2:08:17 performer who set the course record in Dalian last May.

The women’s field is led by Lydia Cheromei of Kenya, who will carry on the hope of breaking the long-standing 2:22:41 course record set by local runner Wang Jiali in 2012.

Although usually competing with runners just half of her age, the 41-year-old Cheromei is still highly competitive. Last December she ran 2:22:11 to finish second at the Valencia Marathon, 41 seconds shy of her PB recorded back in 2012. She also clocked 2:28:48 to win in Rabat 12 months ago and four months earlier she clocked 2:23:31 to finish as the runner-up in Shanghai.

Aberu Mekuria also competed in the Valencia Marathon last year and improved her PB by nearly one minute to finish fourth in 2:24:35. It will be the third race on Chinese soil for the 35-year-old, who won the 2016 Hengshui Lake Marathon in 2:26:07.

Flomena Chepchirchir is the second fastest on paper in the field with a PB of 2:23:00 set in Frankfurt in 2013. But the 37-year-old Kenyan is struggling to return to her best form in recent years as her best performance last year was a sixth-place finish in Prague in 2:32:10. Chepchirchir will be contesting the race for the first time.

Jakob Ingebrigtsen is aiming to make history in Aarhus Denmark

It has been 25 years since a European athlete last finished in the top 10 in the U20 men’s race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships. The last individual medallist – a gold one at that – from Europe came 10 years before that.

But Jakob Ingebrigtsen could be capable of rewriting both of those statistics when he lines up for the U20 men’s race in Aarhus, Denmark.

The 18-year-old Norwegian caused a stir last year when he won the 1500m and 5000m at the senior European Championships in Berlin, setting a continental U20 record of 13:17.06 in the latter. One month prior he had set a European U20 1500m record of 3:31.18 in Monaco.

After winning his third consecutive European U20 cross-country title in December, he beat world indoor record-holder Samuel Tefera over 1500m in Dusseldorf in February and went on to win 3000m gold and 1500m silver at the European Indoor Championships in Glasgow.

Ingebrigtsen boasts the fastest track PBs of the field and has considerably more international racing experience. But he has never raced farther than 6.3km and could become something of a target if some of the stronger nations utilise team tactics.

All 39 individual medals on offer in the U20 men's race from the past 13 editions have been shared between Kenya (23), Ethiopia (10) and Uganda (6). The same three nations once again look poised to battle it out for individual and team medals.

Unsurprisingly, the Kenyan team appears to be the strongest. Led by national U20 cross-country champion Samuel Chebolei, the team also includes Commonwealth Youth Games 3000m champion Edwin Kiplangat Bett, who finished eighth in the U20 men’s race two years ago in Kampala, and Leonard Bett, the world U18 steeplechase champion.

Nicky Spinks is hoping to be the first woman to finish the Barkley marathons

The Barkley Marathons, which is “rumoured” to take place this weekend, is surrounded by folklore about prison escapes and encounters with wild boar. If you’ve never been to Frozen Head, you might think of it as a mysterious, forbidding place whose only reason for existence is as the site of Laz Lake’sinfamous 100-miler.

But Jamil Coury who is returning to the Barkley for the fifth time this year, you’ll see that it’s just a state park like any other, with trails and campgrounds where families go to relax a little later in the season, just like they do in state, national and provincial parks across North America.

Coury and another Barkley veteran, Guillaume Calmettes of France, spent a few days together last month, running the trails in Frozen Head to get in shape for this year’s race. They make Frozen Head look positively benign.

Last year there were no finishers, thanks largely to terrible weather. Spring weather can be unpredictable anywhere, and last year Frozen Head got walloped with a massive rainstorm, dense fog and cold temperatures on race weekend.

Running five 20-mile loops in 60 hours with no course markings and no organized aid stations is hard enough–add bad weather to the mix, and any hopes of finishing were dashed for most people after a loop or two. Gary Robbins completed a “fun run,” three loops in under 40 hours.

This year could be a different story. The forecast for Frozen Head is for temperatures of between 50 F (10 C) and 68 F (20 C), with thunderstorms possible on Saturday.

We’ve also just learned that Nicky Spinks is among the starters. The British ultrarunner ran a double Ramsay Round last year, has also run a double Bob Graham Round, and crewed for Damian Hall at UTMB last year.

Let’s hope the will be some finishers this year.  

17 time NCAA champion distance runner Edward Cheserek will make his Carlsbad 5000 debut

The most decorated runner in NCAA history and one of the hottest superstars in athletics, Edward Cheserek will make his Carlsbad 5000 debut at the 34th running of ‘World’s Fastest 5K’ on Sunday, April 7, 2019.

“I’m excited to be part of Carlsbad 5000,” said Cheserek, who ran the second-fastest indoor mile in history last year, finishing in 3:49.44. “It’s an iconic event that I’ve always wanted to race.”

At the age of 25, Cheserek has established himself as an international star in the running world that only shines brighter as his career progresses. In high school he attended Saint Benedict’s Preparatory School in New Jersey, where he twice won the Foot Locker National High School Cross Country Championships.

He was a 17-time collegiate national champion at the University of Oregon when he graduated in 2017.

“Carlsbad 5000 is one of the most historic races on the road running circuit. To attract a talent such as Edward Cheserek is testament to the event and its reputation,” said Matthew Turnbull, longtime elite athlete recruiter for the event.

“Ed is one of the most exciting athletes in the world and to have him racing in Carlsbad next week is a great statement, he has the personality and ability to go all the way. This race has nurtured many World and Olympic Champions, Ed certainly fits that mold and we’re excited to see him here and to watch him perform on the global level chasing medals for years to come.”

Since 1986, thousands of runners and walkers have converged on the seaside village of Carlsbad in early Spring to enjoy the scenic course or to set world records at the Carlsbad 5000. The annual road race attracts amateur, competitive, and professional runners from around the world.

The men’s event record and world 5K best is Kipketer’s 13:00, which he ran in 2000 & 2001. The modern, IAAF recognized 5k World Record was set in Monaco this February by Switzerland’s Julien Wanders with a time of 13:29.

My Best Runs director and Runner's World founder and publisher for 18 years, Bob Anderson will be running the Carlsbad 5000 for the 26th time.  Over the years his best time was 17:09 while in the 50-54 age group.  He hopes to be in the top three or even win the 70-74 age group this year.  

John Hancock today announced its Elite Athlete Ambassador Team for the 2019 Boston Marathon

Boston Marathon champions Meb Keflezighi, Tatyana McFadden, Bill Rodgers, Joan Benoit Samuelson, Greg Meyer and Uta Pippig will join Shalane Flanagan, Ryan Hall, Deena Kastor, Becca Pizzi and Team Hoyt as ambassadors for this year’s race.

“As Patriots’ Day nears, we welcome our 2019 Elite Ambassador Team for the Boston Marathon,” said John Hancock Chief Marketing Officer Barbara Goose.

“Through their mentorship and inclusiveness, these accomplished athletes inspire runners of all ages and abilities during race week and throughout the year at John Hancock sponsored events.

The team has become an integral part of our community.”

Ambassadors will cheer on the 30,000 participants racing from Hopkinton to Boston on Patriots’ Day and attend media, community and race week events, including making appearances at the Runner’s Seminar at the Expo, surprise “meet and greets” near the finish line, and at the John Hancock Elite Athlete press conference on April 12 at 10 a.m. at the Fairmont Copley.

Two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray has been named as the official starter of the London Marathon

He follows in the footsteps of the Queen, who started it in 2018, while the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry did the honours in 2017.

Scot Murray - currently rehabilitating following hip surgery - said it was an "honour" to be asked.

"It's such an amazing race that means so much to so many people," the 31-year-old added.

"It raises millions each year for charity and helps inspire people to get active. I have nothing but admiration for everyone who runs - I may even run it myself one day."

Murray - also a double Olympic champion - was in attendance at the 2014 London Marathon when his wife, Kim, took part.

Event director Hugh Brasher said: "Sir Andy Murray is one of Britain's greatest sporting superstars and it is so fitting that he will be the official starter for one of the country's greatest sporting events and the world's greatest marathon.

"Andy is renowned as one of the toughest and most competitive sportsmen on the planet and someone who does not recognise barriers in sport."

Dave Chamberlain is running the Two Oceans ultra marathon 50 times in 50 days that's 2800km

As if running the Two Oceans Ultra Marathon isn’t an astonishing enough feat, one man has taken on an epic challenge to run it 50 times in the 50 days leading up to the race.

Dave Chamberlain is celebrating the Two Oceans’ 50th anniversary by running the race 50 times over - totalling a mind-blowing 2800km.

He's already clocked up 25 of the 50 runs, putting more than 1400km behind him.  Determination keeps him going.

“I think it’s just pigheaded stubbornness,” Chamberlain said.

“I have a belief that this project is within the realm of most people, so I feel I have to prove it. I’d be disappointed in myself if I didn’t.”

He’s doing the 50-50-50 challenge in aid of BirdLife South Africa, raising funds for the African Penguin Relocation Project.

It is not Chamberlain’s first crazy long-distance challenge.  The Pretoria-born athlete has run the length of Argentina, crossed Canada and run through the Namibian desert to Port Elizabeth.

To tackle this latest endurance adventure, he wakes up every morning at 4.30am, and focuses on eating a carb-rich breakfast before getting his run started at 6am in Newlands.

“I don’t worry about tomorrow or day 30, otherwise I’d do my head in,” he said. “Days 4, 5 and 6 are awful, as your body is getting used to it. Everything is inflamed, and your tendons feel like they want to snap.

“Then the body learns how to adapt and ups its efficiency at dealing with all the waste products.”  Once your body gets used to the demands of running an ultra marathon over and over, he said that each day’s run becomes active recovery from the day before.

“The body actually heals itself while you’re running,” he said.  Approaching the halfway mark this week, Chamberlain said he was feeling physically strong, but running the same loop every day was taking its toll psychologically.

“I feel like my body has adapted to the distance, it’s holding up much better than anticipated,” he said.

“It’s going to be a test of the mind. The boredom is going to be my biggest threat.”

This year, GO! St. Louis Marathon has changed the course due to flooding conditions

GO! St. Louis announced today that due to flooding conditions on Leonor K. Sullivan Boulevard under the Arch, which was to serve as the scenic backdrop for GO! St. Louis' April 7 Marathon, the finish line site is moving to Market and 14thStreet, just west of Soldier’s Memorial.

In addition to the revised finish line area, race organizers were required to make some additional course modifications along the route. The modified route affects Marathon, Half Marathon, Marathon Relay, and 10K participants.

“With the street currently closed due to flooding, the uncertain potential for more rain, and the safety of our participants, it was necessary to make some adjustments to the course, finish line and post-race activities location, said Mona Vespa, GO! St. Louis President. Overall, even with these adjustments we were able to maintain the integrity of the course, which showcases our great city and beautiful Forest Park.

In the coming days we will continue to work with local officials to ensure a safe and successful event for our participants next weekend, and look forward to welcoming runners to our race.”

The GO! St. Louis Marathon & Family Fitness attracts more than 10,000 participants and thousands of additional spectators to the St. Louis region each April, and has become one of the premier fitness events in the Midwest.

Brendan Beauregard is running his first Boston Marathon to honor brother fighting colon cancer

Brendan Beauregard has never been a long distance runner, but that isn’t holding him back from running the Boston Marathon in honor of his older brother.

“He’s trying to fight for his life, trying to live on so it’s what I want to do and I just think about that whenever I hit a tough mile or a tough hill,”said Beauregard.

In September 2017, Patrick Beauregard, a corporal in the Marines and a newlywed, received the devastating diagnosis.

“I had severe stomach pains and that was it just out of nowhere. It wasn’t improving so the next day I went into the ER. They were almost a split-second away from sending me home. They finally decided to run a CT scan of my abdomen and that’s when they saw the tumor,” Patrick says.

Doctors told the 29-year-old he had stage four colon cancer. It had spread to his lungs.

“Complete shock. Utter disbelief,” said Patrick Beauregard. “You’re going through life, you’re young, you’re healthy. You think, no way. There’s no way.”

“He was really the picture of health, yet he was diagnosed with stage four disease and the reasons underlying that are unknown,” said Dr. Kimmie Ng, the director of the Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Center.

What doctors do know is that there has been an alarming increase in the number of young adults diagnosed with colorectal cancer.

“The most frustrating thing is not knowing what caused this,” said Patrick. “I’m glad they’re doing all this research now and hopefully they find out the reason or reasons why there is such an uptick.”

Patrick has been through 33 rounds of chemotherapy. Next month he will start a clinical trial. Despite all the hardships and uncertainty, he’s still working, staying positive, and on a mission to increase awareness among young adults and medical professionals.

“The doctors and physicians, they also thought there’s no way I had cancer so I’m glad that now that there’s more awareness and I hope we break that stigma.” said Patrick.

But, more than anything, Brendan hopes to make his brother proud.

“He’s always been my hero and my best friend in life,” said Brendan.

World Cross Country defending champion Geoffrey Kamworor is ready to defend his title this weekend

World Cross Country defending champion Geoffrey Kamworor has sent a warning to his opponents ahead of the world championships in Denmark that he is not ready to relinquish his title.

Kamworor will lead team Kenya for the championships to be held on the 30th of March seeking to make it a third in a row.

As defending champion, let’s take Kamworor first. Not only will he be going for his third straight senior title at cross-country in Aarhus, but also for a sixth straight world title in six years, his two previous cross-country victories in Guiyang (2015) and Kampala (2017), augmented by World Half Marathon championships in 2014, 2016 and 2018.

Kamworor has already joined the group of men to have won at least two world cross-country titles. A further triumph this weekend would put him in the select company of those to have won three or more – Kenenisa Bekele (six), John Ngugi and Paul Tergat (five) and Carlos Lopes (three).

He finished only fifth in the Kenyan championship, won by Amos Kirui, but neither the Kenyan, nor Ethiopian, trial has proven a reliable guide to relative finishing order at recent world championships.

Expect Kamworor to present on the start line at Aarhus in excellent shape. He deserves the status of the "man to beat."

There will be $310,000 of prize money on the line, certainly the most of any cross-country races.

Molly Huddle and Emily Sisson are using the Stanford 10,000m as a tune-up before the London Marathon

This Friday is the Stanford Invitational, and the start lists are stacked. American half-marathon studs Molly Huddle and Emily Sisson are using a 10,000m to prepare for the upcoming London Marathon, and many NCAA athletes will open their outdoor seasons at the race.

In addition to top American runners, droves of Canadians are heading down to the warm California weather to get their spring seasons underway.

Sisson announced after a blazing 1:07:30 Houston half-marathon that she would be making her marathon debut this spring in London.

Some predict that Sisson’s marathon debut could be one of the fastest in American history, and if her half is any indication, she has a bright future at 42.2K.

Huddle, who ran her marathon debut at New York in 2018 in 2:26:44, will also be in London and hoping to run faster. 

The Crown Prince of Denmark is so excited about the upcoming world cross-country championships that he decided to run it

This Saturday is the World Cross-Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark. Many of the world’s best athletes will be competing, including world half-marathon champion and world 10,000m gold medallist Geoffrey Kamworor in the senior men’s race.

Also running is distance stud Jakob Ingebrigtsen in the U20 men’s race, 5,000m world champion Hellen Obiri in the senior women’s race and world juinor 5,000m champion Beatrice Chebet in the U20 women’s event.

The IAAF president and former Olympic medallist Seb Coe and Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark, are taking part in the 8K event.

The Crown Prince is an avid runner.

The Canadian record-holder Cam Levins has withdrawn from the London Marathon due to an injury

Canadian marathon record-holder Cam Levins announced on Tuesday evening that he is out for the 2019 London Marathon, due to an injury. 

Levins told Athletics Illustrated that he’s dealing with what he believes to be patellar tendinitis, which has prevented him from training properly since the New York Half-Marathon on March 17. 

Levins was heading into London hoping to break his own Canadian record of 2:09:25 set in October 2018 at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. There he became the first Canadian to ever go under 2:10 for the marathon.

The London men’s and women’s fields are historically deep. The men’s race will feature world record-holder Eliud Kipchoge, half-marathon world record-holder Abraham Kiptum, Olympic gold medallist (in the 5,000m and 10,000m) Sir Mo Farah, and 2018 London Marathon second-place finisher Shura Kitata. 

Helen Davies will defend her Brighton Marathon title next month

Helen Davies is bang on course to smash her personal best for the marathon, when she defends her Brighton Marathon title next month.

Davies confirmed her red-hot form by easing to another victory at the hugely-popular Colchester Half-Marathon on Sunday, to complete her build-up to the 26.2-miler on the East Sussex coast on Sunday, April 14.

The Ipswich JAFFA stalwart has now won the ladies’ title at the Colchester event for the last four years, while in Brighton she will be attempting to complete a hat-trick of marathon wins.

Before taking a break from competitive running to start a family, just under seven years ago, Davies had already enjoyed a terrific running career.

She had represented Great Britain in the women’s marathon at the European Championships in Barcelona in July, 2010 (2hrs 43mins 00secs), and just three months later she ran for England at the Commonwealth Games in the heat of Delhi (2:49:24).

Two years later and Davies posted her personal best time of 2:34:11 at the London Marathon of 2012.

Shadrack Kipchirchir will lead the US senior men’s team at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark on March 30

Without a lot of fanfare, Shadrack Kipchirchir has emerged as one of American’s premier distance runners today. The current U.S. Cross Country champion, Kipchirchir won the US 10-mile and 5K championships in 2018.

Kipchirchir has been quietly, methodically laying a solid distance foundation since he graduated from Oklahoma State in 2014. He made the World Championship team at 10,000 meters in 2015 and 2017 (where he set a PB and #3 all-time US mark of 27:07), the Olympic team in 2016, and World Cross Country in 2017. But often, he’s finished as the bridesmaid.

If nothing else, however, he’s patient. And he always has a plan.

Back in 2016, Shadrack Kipchirchir and his wife, Elvin Kibet, already had a house, a car, plants in the window, Kipchirchir’s Olympic jersey on the wall. He had a job and a running career. He had investments. For a 27-year-old who’d arrived in this country as a college freshman carrying a suitcase only six years prior, he was impressively established. Not flashy but solid, bankable. Circumstances like that don’t just happen.

His success has not been built in a flash of glory, but patiently, brick by brick.

The middle child of nine in Eldoret, Kenya, Kipchirchir’s earliest dreams were pragmatic—no soccer star or rumbling truck driver for young Shadrack. “As a kid, I wanted to be a civil engineer,” says Kipchirchir, who majored in construction engineering at Oklahoma State. “I loved to make things out of mud and wires—roads and bridges and buildings.”

Unlike their American cohorts, few Kenyans run in high school, he explains. “St. Patrick’s in Iten is an exception. Most Kenyan high schools don’t support running at all. It’s a boarding school—you live there—and you do sports for fun, not competitively. I played a lot of soccer.”

In fact, Kipchirchir’s first experience with running came after high school in 2009 when he joined a training camp with others hoping to earn an athletic scholarship from a US college. It was a path his older brother had already taken.

“In Kenya, you have to pay for school,” he says, “but if you get a scholarship to the US, you get free tuition. It’s a pretty good deal. Most Kenyans run to get a college education, but it was not easy—you had to run fast and do good in school. You had to balance training and studying.”

His efforts paid off. Nine months later, Kipchirchir was offered a scholarship at Western Kentucky. He was All-American in cross country as a freshman.

Former world and Olympic marathon silver medalist Priscah Jeptoo says she intends to run the Milan Marathon

The 34-year-old Kenyan has been out for two years on maternity leave, but surprised her rivals by winning her first international race since her return at the Stramilano Half Marathon on Sunday, edging Ethiopia's Meseret Meleka to claim the win in 1:08:26.

Now Jeptoo, who is also a former New York and London Marathon winner, says she will be ready for the 42km distance in the autumn.

"I have dedicated the past two years to my family and I did not compete due to maternity leave," she said.

"I am happy with my comeback. Last week I fell during training and I was not in top shape. I will run a half marathon in Gothenburg in May and possibly a marathon in the autumn," she added.

Jeptoo had not raced since October 2016 when she finished fourth at the Amsterdam Marathon in a time of 2:25:57. However, she has ruled out running at the Athletics World Championships in Doha later this year.

"I have been there before and done my part. I am done with the national team. I also need a few races up my sleeves to be certain that I am back to my level best," she added.

The Berlin, Chicago and New York Marathons are some of the big city races that interest Jeptoo, and she is also open to compete in China at either the Beijing or Shanghai Marathon.

Priscah Jeptoo and Vincent Rerimoi claimed a Kenyan double at the 44th edition of the Stramilano Half Marathon in Milan

Held in warm weather conditions with a temperature of 22C, Jeptoo returned from a two-year maternity break to win the women’s race in 1:08:26.

Rerimoi, meanwhile, was a surprising winner of the men’s race in 1:00:10, beating steeplechase specialist Jairus Birech, who finished runner-up in 1:00:32 on his debut at the distance.

Jeptoo and Ethiopia’s Meseret Meleka took an early lead in the women’s race, covering the first five kilometres in 16:10 and 10 kilometres in 32:16. Kenya’s Lucy Murigi Wambui, twice world mountain champion and Stramilano winner in 2014, was in third place at that point with 33:07.

Jeptoo, the 2011 world and 2012 Olympic silver medallist, pulled away from Meleka after the half-way point and went through 15 kilometres in 48:27. The 2013 London and New York City marathon champion stepped up her pace in the final six kilometres and romped home in 1:08:26 in Piazza Castello in the centre of Milan. Meleka finished second in 1:10:39, ahead of Wambui (1:11:47).

Jeptoo, now 34, hadn’t raced since October 2016 when she finished fourth at the Amsterdam Marathon in 2:25:57.

“I have dedicated the past two years to my family and I did not compete due to maternity leave,” she said. “I am happy with my come-back. Last week I fell during training and I was not in my top shape. I will run a half marathon in Gothenburg in May and possibly a marathon in the autumn.”

Kenya’s Paul Tiongik took the early lead in the men’s race, clocking 13:55 for the first five kilometres. He was followed 15 seconds later by a chasing group comprising Rerimoi, Birech, James Kibet and James Mburugu.

Birech, a two-time Diamond League champion in the steeplechase, had a five-second lead over Rerimoi at 10 kilometres, reached in 28:14. His lead grew to 17 seconds at 15 kilometres, which he passed in 42:32.

Rerimoi came from behind in the closing stages and overtook Birech at 18 kilometres. He crossed the finish line in 1:00:10, smashing his previous of 1:01:19 set last year in Japan, where he lives and trains.

Birech, competing in his first half marathon and just his third road race at any distance, finished second in 1:00:32 ahead of Tiongik (1:02:07) and Joel Mwangi (1:02:15). Italy’s Lorenzo Dini was fifth in a PB of 1:03:35

Earl Fee is a canadian phenom, and at 90 he is still setting world records on the track

There must be something in the water in Elstow, Sask., where Earl Fee was born (he was raised in Toronto, where he still lives). The 90-year-old demolished not one but two world masters’ track records on the weekend at the USATF Iowa Open/Masters Championships and All Comers Meet in Grinnell, Iowa. (Another track phenom, Olga Kotelko, was raised not far from Elstow. Kotelko died in 2014 at age 95 with 34 world records to her name.)

Fee’s time of 1:30.76 in the 400m was 16 seconds faster than the previous record set by Ugo Sansonetti of Italy in 2010, and his 800m performance of 3:42.5 took 34 seconds off Antonio Nacca’s previous record set in 2014. 

Fee was a decent runner in his school and university days, but left the sport for a number of years, taking it up again in 50s. He soon started breaking age-group records on the track.

Fee still holds the M85 world record in the indoor 400m, and the M70, M75, M80 and M85 records in the indoor 800m, as well as the M75 record in the indoor mile, the M80 record in the 4x400m relay (anchoring a team that included the late Ed Whitlock), and several outdoor age group records.

Elisa Barno and Askale Merachi win the Los Angeles Marathon

Twenty miles into the 34th Los Angeles Marathon Sunday morning Kenya’s Elisha Barno had already conceded the race to his countryman John Korir.

Korir had reduced a lead pack of 15 to three with a 4:39 19th mile. When Korir followed that with a 4:35 20th mile he was flying solo, his sizable lead growing with each step.

“I was already thinking ‘let him win,’” Barno recalled.

Then Barno turned left onto Ocean Avenue for the race’s postcar final mile along the Pacific coast.

“And I see John,” Barno said.

Barno passed Korir in the final 150 meters to win the closest and most dramatic race in the event’s history that saw the top three runners finish within 14 seconds of each other.

Barno claimed the $23,000 first prize and his second Los Angeles victory in three years with a 2 hour, 11 minute, 45 second victory. Korir staggered across the finish line in 2:11:52 with Mexico’s Juan Luis Barrios third in 2:11:59.

“I knew I was going to win from the beginning,” Merachi said. “This morning.”

Indeed Merachi seemed to be in a hurry almost from the moment the race left Dodger Stadium at dawn. Merachi dropped out of the New York City Marathon last fall with hamstring and shoulder injuries was clearly restless through the early stages Sunday, pushing the pace.

By the fourth mile, Merachi’s aggressiveness had thinned the lead group from nine to three, only Kenya’s Cynthia Jerop and Lucy Karimi keeping pace. Karimi was the big pre-race question mark. She won the 2016 Prague Marathon in 2:24:46 but beset by injuries had not finished a marathon since.

Deena Kastor is still getting American records and now owns the american W45 record in 8k

Thirteen years after she ran her American marathon record of 2:19:36, Deena Kastor is still setting American records. On Sunday afternoon at Chicago’s Shamrock Shuffle, the 46-year-old ran an American masters 8K record of 27:12, besting the previous mark held by Carmen Troncoso at 27:45. 

Kastor also holds the outright national record at this distance (24:36), and she set it at the same race, back in 2005. This time though, it looks like she didn’t set out with the goal of breaking the master’s record–it just happened.

Kastor struggled recently at the Tokyo Marathon, finishing in 2:51:58 in cold, wet conditions that some said rivalled those at last year’s Boston Marathon. It was her fifth of six Abbott World Major Marathons, the final one being Berlin, which she may race in September.

Deena says this on her website.  “As an athlete I’ve found aside from hard work, the greatest tools for success are optimism and gratitude.These practices have led to happiness and the routine pause to realize I’m living the life I love and dreamed of.”

She continued, " I have been running since I was 11 years old and have learned over the years that there is no greater influence on success than the power of optimism. When we are positive, we master our physical potential. The power of our own thinking can open doors and elevate our performances. With optimism I have been able to pursue every goal, win medals, earn American and world records, but more importantly, I’ve been able to be resilient in the face of injury and falling short. Optimists are dreamers, believers and solution seekers. I believe that these lessons are universal and not running exclusive."

She goes into details in her new book Let Your Mind Run.

Soh Rui Yong broke a 24-year-old record at Seoul Marathon

It has been a great day for national marathoner Soh Rui Yong. All of his hard work and training has been paid off when he clocked at 2hr 23 min 43 sec at the Seoul Marathon on Sunday Morning (March 17th). It is a big deal for him as he broke the 24 year old record at the event.

The effort he put in during that race is what he would consider a big achievement as it has always been his goal to go under 2:24. As a matter of fact, he was planning to do that at the Tokyo Marathon earlier this month. However, he had to withdrew from the race due to a mix-up where he was placed in a mass start up pen instead of the elite and sub-elite group.

Soh Rui Yong is also known for his previous achievements where his previous best in the Chicago Marathon back in 2016 was 2:24:55. He also has obtained 2 gold medals in the SEA games.

He expressed his joy with the results he put out as he commented, “It took years of work and I finally found the race and opportunity to do it, so I am happy with that.”

He also mentioned how this marathon is the only serious attempt at record. When it comes to previous marathons, he was “unsure of his fitness going in” but this time he managed to go in fit and healthy.

Soh Rui Yong has done 5 weeks worth of training in Flagstaff, Arizona which is located in the United States. Even with an Achilles heel injury which caused clocking in lower mileage, Soh Rui Yong managed to keep his confidence that he would go under 2hr 24 min as his key workouts there were faster than before.

Soh Rui Yong is not just hardworking in his sports career but even in his working career. He is current working in business development and is also a sports ambassador with lifestyle portal called The Smart Local.

Often overlooked is the role Nutrition plays to increase healing and decrease downtime when injuried

Injuries can quite literally stop a runner in his or her tracks. Recent research suggests that half of sports injuries lead to an average of three weeks without training or competing.

Cross-training, physical therapy and biomechanical assessments are well-established aspects of the treatment process, but often overlooked is the role of nutrition in the recovery from injury. Dr. Keith Baar, a researcher at the University of California, Davis, believes that nutritional support is a critical element of recovery.

“A greater understanding of the role of nutrition in healing has evolved in the past three to five years,” says Dr. Baar. In one case study, by following an injury-specific nutritional program, the athlete displayed half of the muscle atrophy in the immobilized leg that was expected. Since a return to running after injury is often dictated by the rate of muscle function, maintaining muscle size and strength may significantly hasten recovery. 

In fact, a 2015 article in the journal Sports Medicine said, “Nutritional support may be crucial to lessen the length of time and reduce the negative aspects of reduced activity and immobilization, as well as to support the return to training.”

Working backwards, in order for the collagen-building nutrients to be floating in the blood stream ready for absorption, meals need to be consumed approximately one hour before exercise.

Baar names four important amino acids—lysine, hydroxylysine, hydroxyproline, and proline—as those that have shown the greatest promise in building collagen. Lysine, an essential amino acid found in meat, cheese and eggs, may play a particularly important role in the health of bones, connective tissue and skin. While both scientific and clinical studies have indicated that these amino acids may actually strengthen ligaments and tendons, no long-term research has been carried out to determine the preventative effects of nutritional interventions.

Facilitated by a better blood flow, nutrition may play an even greater role in the growth and recovery of muscle tissue. Amino acids, the building blocks of muscle protein, are readily delivered to muscles and consequently, an adequate daily protein intake may be essential in maintaining muscle mass during injury.

Studies also have show that in periods of inactivity, healthy muscle tissue atrophies at approximately 0.5 percent per day. For a runner that has suffered serious injury, two to three weeks of immobilization can lead to a loss of 10 percent of muscle mass. As muscle strength declines at approximately three times the rate that muscle tissue is lost, it doesn’t take a mathematician to realize that extended periods of inactivity can result in big losses in strength.

Without a focused exercise effort—possibly months of rehabilitation—these losses are frequently never recovered, perhaps forever influencing injury risk and performance.

Baar stresses that these recommendations aren’t just for those that have been injured—they also apply to those recovering from hard exercise sessions, a time when muscle breakdown also occurs.

“To repair the muscle damage that occurs after hard exercise, a good, well-timed nutritional support program emphasizing leucine-rich proteins is very important.” Sadly, for those that love a post-workout beer or Chardonnay, excessive alcohol (more than 4 drinks) can impair muscle recovery.

Owing to the observation that muscle recovery is ramped up during two different time periods, 18 and 48 hours after exercise, those runners attempting to optimize muscle recovery should aim to ensure that recovery foods include leucine rich foods (egg whites, chicken, tuna, turkey, dairy products).

Energy balance is critical. Higher protein intakes (2–2.5 g/kg/day) seem to be warranted during immobilization. This can be broken up into 4-6 small meals/day.

At the very least, care should be taken not to reduce the absolute amount of protein intake when energy intake is reduced.

Veteran runner Priscah Jeptoo will return to competition on Sunday when she competes at the Stramilano Half-marathon in Italy

The former world and Olympic silver medalist is the big name with a personal best time of 65:45 over the 21km distance and 2:20:14 in the full marathon. She has not competed on the big stage since 2016.

"I have not retired and have been training as hard as possible. I had injury challenges, but they are behind me for the time being and it will be a new start for me in Milan on Sunday," said Jeptoo in Nairobi.

Former world mountain running champion Lucy Wambui, the winner in 2015 with her still PB of 70:52, is back to try to regain her title, while another Kenyan, Ivyne Jeruto Lagat (71:51) will also figure highly. Beatrice Boccalini, who set a fast time of 73:36 in December, heads home team.

In the men's race steeplechaser Jairus Birech, who was fourth at the 2015 World Championships, will be making his half-marathon debut.

Birech, who has had it hard to contend with emerging competition in the water and hurdle race, will seek to carve his niche in the road race and will be joined by compatriot Fredrick Moranga, who won the race two years in 61:20.

"I still have hopes of making the Kenya team to the World Championships in the steeplechase. But I have to focus on the race ahead and I have no clue how I will perform. It is a new challenge, which I hope my body will take in its stride. But I expect a podium position," said Birech on Saturday.

Weldon Kirui will aim to become the first three-time winner at L.A. Marathon

It was a couple of months ago that Weldon Kirui struggled at a half-marathon in Houston, finishing well behind the lead pack. Disappointed, the Kenyan long-distance runner looked ahead to his next race.

“I know what I need to do for L.A.,” he told his agent.

If anyone understands the course and conditions in Los Angeles it would be Kirui, who will start this weekend’s L.A. Marathon looking to become the event’s first three-time winner.

After victories last year and in 2016, he has made himself right at home in Southern California.

“It’s a very fun course to race,” the 30-year-old said through an interpreter. “I know where the good parts are, where the harder parts are.”

Nearly 24,000 runners are expected to participate in this year’s edition of the marathon, which dates back more than three decades to the afterglow of the 1984 Summer Olympics.

At several points in its history, organizers have talked about rivaling the big boys in New York, Boston and Tokyo. But the elite marathon calendar is packed, and elbowing for higher status requires six-figure prize money, more than L.A. has been willing to offer.

This year, the winner’s purse will be $23,000 for first place in each division.

“I think L.A. has gone up and down,” said Robert Johnson, co-founder of LetsRun.com, an influential web site that covers elite running. “It’s definitely, at this stage, a minor-league race.”

The annual race draws massive crowds of runners who are attracted by a “stadium to the sea” course that begins at Dodger Stadium and weaves past various landmarks on the way to Santa Monica.

Though men’s winners have not consistently broken the benchmark of 2 hours, 10 minutes, the marathon has nonetheless drawn elite competition from around the world.

Juan Luis Barrios of Mexico and a number of Kirui’s countrymen, including Lawi Kiptui and John Korir, are expected to race on the men’s side this weekend.

Former Bridge Run director Julian Smith dies on Friday after fighting a rare brain cancer

The man who led and organized the annual Cooper River Bridge Run for more than two decades has lost his battle with cancer.

Julian Smith died Friday after fighting a rare brain cancer, Bridge Run officials confirmed.

“The Bridge run staff and board is deeply saddened by Julian’s passing," Cooper River Bridge Run Deputy Director Irv Batten said. “He has been such a tremendous leader, a beacon for the Charleston Community. He’s going to be deeply missed.”

This year’s Bridge Run will be held in Smith’s honor and that Smith will have the “best seat in the house” watching from above, Batten said.

This race this year is to honor him. So we’re going to do a good job. He’s going to be watching.”

“For more than 20 years, Julian was a leader, mentor and friend.”

 “Julian is a force of nature and his leadership will be missed by the entire Bridge Run family and community as he moves on to the next phase of his life and the inevitable challenges it will bring. It was unanimously agreed upon by the CRBR Board that Julian would be given the title of Race Director Emeritus. We wish Julian all the best and offer our eternal thanks for a career of unparalleled success pursued with uncommon wit, wisdom and grace.”

Paul Brestyanszky, 76, will attempt L.A. Marathon on crutches to avoid breaking his 33-year streak

Paul Brestyanszky is a Los Angeles Marathon legacy runner, which means he is one of 178 who have completed the race every year since it started in 1986.

So when the 76-year-old Huntington Beach resident fractured his knee in February, he worried he would have to break his 33-year streak.

Over the decades, his fellow legacy runners — whose ages range from 40s to 80s — have become like family to him. Every year, a group meets a few weeks after the marathon for what it calls a DAB (damage assessment brunch) to see how many people made it.

After his injury, Brestyanszky sent out a mass email with the tongue-in-cheek title “Breaking News,” asking the legacy runners for advice. One told him he had to do the marathon several times in leg braces. Another did it several years ago on crutches, even though it took him 11 hours.

Brestyanszky took away from the conversations that it was still possible.

So on Sunday, Brestyanszky, who didn’t run a marathon until he was 41, will try to complete his 34th L.A. Marathon on crutches, with a small group of fellow injured legacy runners by his side.

Brestyanszky’s doctor and his wife, Mila Cangelosi-Brestyanszky — who cheers him on annually with the sign she made in Year 19 — knew they couldn’t stop him. But they made him promise he will quit if his knee starts to throb.

“It is terrifying to me to think he’ll be on crutches for 26.2 miles,” Cangelosi-Brestyanszky said. “And everyone else also thinks he’s crazy.”

He once had a bad fall in the middle of a race. But the only time he’s considered not finishing was in 2011, when there were torrential rains and thousands of people were evaluated for hypothermia. When his wife greeted him at the end of the race with a beer, as she always does, his lips were blue and he joked about needing two shots of tequila, no ice.

As usual, he plans to pace himself, make sure he has a sip of water at each station and make a quick stop for Starbucks coffee around Mile 20 to help him avoid the “wall,” the point in a marathon where it goes from difficult to unbearable.

82-year-old Jim Mackert will be the oldest runner in the Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon race, he has ran all 42 of them

Jim Mackert is no spring chicken. He's an 82-year-old marathon runner. The legacy runner has run 65. And, he's the oldest person running 26.2 miles in this year's Rite-Aid Cleveland Marathon.

Crossing that finish line in May means that Mackert is the only person to have competed in all 42 of Cleveland's marathons. 

"Determination. Desire. I enjoy it, I enjoy the people that I see there," the father of six said.

Mackert is a master. Not just with running. He's mentally tough as nails, which has propelled him to push through injuries to qualify for the Boston Marathon three times.

"When I went in 2007, I was 70 years old and in training I pulled a muscle doing my hill workouts," he explained. "But I said I was going no matter how my leg felt."

And, he did.

These days, Mackert racks up about 40 miles a week. He was, however, getting attention long ago, even appearing on Channel 3 back in 2000 with Jimmy Donovan when he was 63 and gearing up for his 23rd Cleveland Marathon.

Mackert has no plans to slow down. He says he's fueled by his family, while inspiring others on his path.

"I feel good doing it. And as long as I feel good doing it, I try to keep doing it," Mackert said.

Michael Wardian has finished his 10-day 631-mile journey smashing the Fastest Known Time on the Israel National Trail by several days

Ultra superstar Michael Wardian set a new Fastest Known Time (FKT) for the Israel National Trail, covering the 631-mile journey (south to north) in 10 days, 16 hours and 36 minutes (unofficially) March 22 in Israel. 

Event organizer Ian Corless wrote, “it’s difficult to put into words a 10-day journey of 631-miles. Especially when someone has run the whole distance. I have to say, mine was one of relief.

“Mike had done it. He had achieved his target of running the INT in 10-days and to be part of the journey is beyond rewarding. I witnessed intense highs and lows. So, to finally watch Mike touch ‘home’ and finally be able to stop, I had relief and immense satisfaction of a job well done. 

“I truly believe Mike, and maybe us all will need more than a few hours to comprehend the new record, for now though, Michael Wardian is the new record holder of the FKT for the Israel National Trail.“

Others have covered this many miles in 10 days but no one has covered this many miles in this amount of time on such a challenging course.  

Michael’s goal was to complete this journey in 10 days and he did it smashing the FKT by several days.  This may be a record that will never be broken.  

Ian shared this personal note:

"This record has been more than a running adventure. It has been an incredible journey that not only allowed us to cross from one end of a country to another, but it has opened our eyes to the beauty of Israel.

"It’s a diverse landscape all compressed into a very small area. The deserts of the south were truly mind-blowing, the best deserts I have witnessed. The green and stoney trails of the north provided a stunning contrast to the red of the south. And throughout this journey, the people of Israel have welcomed us, supported us and helped Mike in a way that none of us could have predicted.

"But the help has not only come from trekkers or runners, the story of Mike’s journey has spread throughout Israel and made multiple news channels and in doing so has created awareness. People have come out to offer best wishes and even offer a place to sleep or provide food.

This journey has stirred an awareness and challenged people to ask themselves, ‘What can I do to challenge myself?’

2016 Rio Olympics marathoner 39-year-old Suehiro Ishikawa will retire from competition at the end of March

Japan's 39-year-old Suehiro Ishikawa, 2016 Rio Olympics marathoner announced that he will retire from competition at the end of the month.

At the time of the Rio Olympics Ishikawa was 36 years and 11 months old, surpassing 1996 Atlanta Olympics marathoner Hiromi Taniguchi's record of 36 years and 3 months to become Japan's oldest-ever Olympic marathoner. He finished 36th.

"Since I started running high school it's been 24 years," said Ishikawa at the press conference. "I've been with Honda for 17 years, and I made it all the way to the top, the Olympics. I'm glad that I've kept going this long.

Ishikawa ran the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon on March 10 but dropped out after only 10 km. It will be his last race of his career.

"It was the first time in my career that I'd ever DNFd, and I thought, 'OK, this is where it ends,'" said Ishikawa. Shortly after the race he made the decision to retire.

Beginning in April he will become an assistant coach with the Honda team. 

Sophie Morgan is running this year’s Virgin Money London Marathon for her cousin Tony who died from cardiomyopathy

Sophie Morgan, 25, will be running for the Cardiomyopathy UK charity in April after her cousin’s heart suddenly stopped working 21 years ago.

“We lost my cousin 21 years ago to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a genetic heart muscle disease," she said.  "He was in his 30s with young children so it was a huge shock for us all.

“When we later found out that his heart had just stopped, it was the first time we became aware that this hereditary disease ran in the family.

“A number of my family have since been diagnosed with cardiomyopathy. I feel incredibly lucky that I’m able to run, while so many of my family members cannot because of this disease.

“I’m running the London Marathon for Cardiomyopathy UK because it’s played a huge part in helping my family through many diagnoses, so it’s a charity that’s close to my heart.”

Cardiomyopathy refers to diseases of the heart muscle. These diseases have many causes, signs and symptoms, and treatments.

In cardiomyopathy, the heart muscle becomes enlarged, thick, or rigid. In rare cases, the muscle tissue in the heart is replaced with scar tissue.

As cardiomyopathy worsens, the heart becomes weaker. It's less able to pump blood through the body and maintain a normal electrical rhythm. This can lead to heart failure or irregular heartbeats called arrhythmias. In turn, heart failure can cause fluid to build up in the lungs, ankles, feet, legs, or abdomen.

The weakening of the heart also can cause other complications, such as heart valve problems.

Cardiomyopathy can be acquired or inherited. "Acquired" means you aren't born with the disease, but you develop it due to another disease, condition, or factor. "Inherited" means your parents passed the gene for the disease on to you. Many times, the cause of cardiomyopathy isn't known.

Cardiomyopathy can affect people of all ages. However, people in certain age groups are more likely to have certain types of cardiomyopathy. This article focuses on cardiomyopathy in adults.

The Crescent City Fitness Foundation announced a goal of raising $1 million for local nonprofits at this year’s Crescent City Classic 10k

With the 41st run of the Allstate Sugar Bowl Crescent City Classic just a little over six weeks away, officials with the Crescent City Fitness Foundation announced a goal of raising $1 million for local nonprofits.

“The New Orleans community never ceases to amaze us with their generosity when it comes to charitable giving and supporting those in need throughout the area,” said Crescent City Classic Charity Director Hilary Landry. “All we can hope is to continue to outdo ourselves year after year.”

The nonprofit partners recruit and organize teams of 100, 75, 50, or 25 runners and walkers who commit to raising a minimum of $200 for their charity by race day.

Official charity runners receive various perks and incentives as part of the “RUN FOR IT” program including private party tent access, starting position in the charity corral and personal online fundraising page.

The Allstate Sugar Bowl Crescent City Classic 10k road race, expected to attract almost 25,000 runners and walkers, for its 41st running, will be held Saturday, April 20. The 6.2 mile course begins outside the Mercedes Benz Superdome and runs through the historic French Quarter to City Park where the popular Michelob Ultra Post Race Fest is held. This year’s after party will feature the Phunky Monkeys playing in concert as festival-goers enjoy 227 kegs of draft beer and 43,000 servings of red beans and jambalaya.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has now said a decision in the case of Semenya will now be announced at the end of April

The Court of Arbitration for Sport has decided to put off a decision in the case of South African 800m runner Caster Semenya until the end of April, with no date specified.

The CAS had originally said its decision would be made public on March 26, six months before the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, which start on September 28.

The IAAF’s new rules on male hormone levels in female athletes were to take effect on November 1, 2019, but are suspended pending the CAS’s decision. No reason was given for the delay.

The case involves the IAAF’s new rules regarding levels of male hormones in female athletes born with differences of sexual development (DSD) competing at distances shorter than the mile.

If the CAS rules in favor of the IAAF, athletes like Semenya would either have to take medication to bring her natural hormone levels down, move up in distance, or compete against men.

Skechers Performance returns as title sponsor for the 2019 Skechers Performance Los Angeles Marathon

Skechers Performance returns as title sponsor for the 2019 Skechers Performance Los Angeles Marathon on Sunday, March 24. Throughout race weekend, Skechers will offer exclusive race-branded merchandise.

Los Angeles Marathon winner Weldon Kirui (2016 and 2918) returns to compete for a record-breaking third victory at the race.

“Now in our fourth year as title sponsor, we are proud to host more than 24,000 runners from across the United States and more than 60 countries, who will join us in bringing this monumental event to life,” said Michael Greenberg, president of Skechers. “From first-time marathoners to seasoned runners and elite athletes to all the fans and supporters, we look forward to the camaraderie and enthusiasm that this race creates for Southern California. And we’ll be watching Skechers elite athlete Weldon Kirui when he runs Sunday to attempt a record third victory on this iconic course.”

Visitors to the Skechers Performance booth at the Health & Fitness EXPO in the Los Angeles Convention Center will have the opportunity to meet Weldon, as well as four-time Olympian Meb Keflezighi on Saturday, March 23 at 11AM. Meb will also be signing his new inspirational book, 26 Marathons: What I’ve Learned About Faith, Identity, Running, and Life From Each Marathon I’ve Run (Rodale Books), which will be available for purchase.

A collection of exclusive race-themed and inspired footwear and apparel will be offered at the EXPO. Influenced by the colors of LA’s top sports teams, the collection includes limited edition pairs of Skechers GO RUN Forza 3™ and Skechers GO RUN Ride 7™. Additionally, a new color of the Skechers GO RUN Razor 3 Hyper™ will debut and be available for purchase at the EXPO—this new training and racing style features an innovative Hyper Burst™ midsole and was recently named Editors’ Choice by Runner’s World. The collection is currently available on Skechers.com and at select Skechers retail stores in the Los Angeles area.