Running News Daily
Top Ten Stories of the Week
9/11/2021
These are the top ten stories based on views over the last week.
American Galen Rupp And Olympic Marathon Bronze Medalist Bashir Abdi will Lead Field For The Great North Run Half-Marathon
After having its anniversary celebrations scuppered by the pandemic last year, the Great North Run returns on September 12 with a redesigned course as many of the athletics stars of 2021 meet over the 13.1-mile distance.
For the first time since 2013 there will be a men’s winner other than Mo Farah. The multiple global track gold medallist won the Great North Run from 2014-2019 and the 2020 race was called off. But the new champion could still have strong links to Farah.
The women’s race also sees top runners from the track and roads collide. Hellen Obiri, the world 5000m champion from Kenya, faces Molly Seidel, the American marathon runner who won a surprise bronze medal at the Olympics.
British hopes, meanwhile, are led by Eilish McColgan, who is making her debut at the distance after a fine track season, plus Charlotte Purdue ahead of racing at the Virgin Money London Marathon on October 3.
The athletes will be following in famous footsteps as the event first took place in June 1981. The first man home that day was local runner Mike McLeod and the England footballer Kevin Keegan effectively became the first celebrity runner when he took part wearing a top that incorporated the colours of Newcastle and Sunderland.
“I think there is an extra significance to this year,” says race founder Brendan Foster. “It will demonstrate that the country’s getting back to normal and that ordinary people are getting back to doing what they want to do.”
The course starts and finishes in the centre of Newcastle, crossing the Tyne Bridge twice, with live coverage on BBC.
In the men’s race much will depend on how well Abdi and Rupp have recovered from the Olympic marathon five weeks ago.
Abdi clocked 2:10:00 that day in hot conditions but has a best of 2:04:49 from Tokyo last year. The 32-year-old also has run 60:42 on the old Great North Run course that finished in South Shields.
Rupp won Olympic 10,000m silver behind Farah in 2012 and marathon bronze in Rio in 2016 before finishing eighth in the marathon in Tokyo last month. His half-marathon best is 59:47.
(09/09/21) Views: 132Jason Henderson
2021 Tokyo Marathon Cancelled Due to Extension of State of Emergency
With the government set to extend the state of emergency in Tokyo and other parts of the country, as of Sept. 6 it is all but certain that the Oct. 17 Tokyo Marathon will be cancelled.
The published guidelines for the 2021 race state, "In the event that a state of emergency has been issued one month prior to the event as part of the government's efforts against the coronavirus pandemic, or if the local government has issued a request not to hold the race, the Tokyo Marathon will be cancelled."
The current state of emergency in Tokyo runs through Sept. 12, but as it is expected to be extended 2~3 weeks it will still be in force on the 17th. This makes the chances that the Tokyo Marathon will go ahead virtually non-existent.
The event's organizers, the Tokyo Marathon Foundation, plan to hold a board meeting in mid-September to make a final decision.
The 2021 Tokyo Marathon was originally scheduled for Mar. 7, but in October last year in light of pandemic conditions the Foundation's board decided to postpone it to Oct. 17 this year.
In June this year event organizers announced that general division runners living outside Japan would not be permitted to run. The 2022 Tokyo Marathon is scheduled for Mar. 6.
(09/07/21) Views: 79Brett Larner
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.
(09/09/21) Views: 79Running USA
Ethiopians Betesfa Getahun and Gelete Burka will be the fastest athletes on the start list for the Vienna City Marathon next Sunday
Strong Ethiopians will feature world-class personal bests of 2:05:28 and 2:20:45 respectively.
The 38th edition of Austria’s biggest road running event is the first major international marathon featuring a strong international elite field and a mass race since the start of the Corona pandemic. Including races at shorter distances a total of 25,000 athletes have registered for the event. 6,000 of them will run the marathon. The Vienna City Marathon is a World Athletics Marathon Label Road Race.
Betesfa Getahun heads the elite start list which includes ten runners who have personal bests of sub 2:10. The Ethiopian ran 2:05:28 in his debut marathon in Amsterdam two years ago. Returning to the Vienna City Marathon will be Switzerland’s record holder Tadesse Abraham, who was the runner-up here in 2019 with 2:07:24.
With a personal best of 2:06:40 Tadesse Abraham is among the fastest European marathon runners. Due to breathing problems he dropped out of the Olympic marathon in Sapporo (Japan) a month ago. While this was of course a major disappointment he then quickly decided to go for the Vienna City Marathon. “I am in form and I want to show it. I am really looking forward to Vienna as I have such great memories of this race,” he said.
The women’s field includes six runners with personal bests of sub 2:28. Gelete Burka is the fastest on the start list with 2:20:45. She achieved this time in Dubai in 2018 and then won the marathons in Ottawa (2018) and in Paris (2019). The women’s race will also feature the Swiss marathon record holder: Fabienne Schlumpf ran 2:26:14 in her debut in Bern earlier this year and then finished in a very strong 12th position at the Olympic marathon.
(09/06/21) Views: 76AIMS
Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon leaving Virginia Beach after this year
After 20 years of live music serenading runners through the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series is leaving the city.
The series, which debuted in Hampton Roads in 2001 and includes a half-marathon, 5-kilometer race and 1-mile sprint, will take place for the final time the weekend of Sept. 4, the event runners announced in a statement on its Facebook page.
“After thoughtful consideration and conversations with local officials, the difficult decision has been made that after 20 wonderful years, the 2021 Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Virginia Beach will be the final edition of the race,” the statement read.
“...We have had a tremendous relationship with the City of Virginia Beach over the years and will continue to stay engaged with the city and all of our local partners to explore potential opportunities that may arise in the future.”
Virginia Beach is host to one of Rock ‘n’ Roll’s 17 events listed on its website, boasting it as “the largest outdoor music festival on the East Coast.”
The departure leaves the Yuengling Shamrock Marathon and Half Marathon in March as Virginia Beach’s sole premier running event.
(09/04/21) Views: 75Ray Nimmo
Craft Sportswear Becomes Official Athletic Footwear Partner of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series
The Rock ‘n’ Roll® Running Series and Craft Sportswear are excited to announce a new partnership making Craft Sportswear the Official Athletic Footwear Partner for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series.
This partnership launches the co-branded Craft x Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series shoe in three limited-edition colorways – black, red and yellow. This exclusive mid-distance running, and training shoe will be available on the official Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series merchandise e-commerce store at www.runrocknrollstore.com and at all 2021 Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series events.
“We are thrilled to have Craft Sportswear join us as the Official Athletic Footwear Partner of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series,” said Matt Wikstrom, Senior Vice President, Global Partnerships for The IRONMAN Group. “The launch of this new co-branded running shoe is a great opportunity for our runners to experience the high-performance and quality of Craft with the spirit and energy of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series.”
Craft is a high-quality and high-performance Swedish brand that provides world champions and everyday heroes an endurance focused footwear and apparel design for any distance and any terrain.
As part of the X-series, the Craft x Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series collaboration features a multi-purpose running shoe that truly follows the natural contours of the foot.
This Craft design features a lightweight and breathable engineered mesh upper and an ARC Foam midsole with launch pad at the forefoot and landing pad at the heel that provides excellent cushioning and response.
In addition, innovative X cables run under the midfoot and behind the heel to secure and stabilize the foot — offering a perfect balance between support and flexibility for a natural stride. “The running community here in the U.S. has exploded over the past two years and we are thrilled to be aligned with the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series one of the premier race organizations here in the US.” said Eric Schenker, CEO of Craft NA.
“Through this partnership we look forward to providing Rock ‘n’ Roll and their participants innovative products and programs that will help elevate their racer’s experience and meet all their endurance needs.” To kick off the partnership, the Humana Rock ‘n’ Roll® Virtual Running Club is launching three Craft inspired virtual challenges designed to get runners to Lace Up, Step Up and Power Up.
Offering three distances, these challenges are the perfect way to try out the new Craft x Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series running shoe and learn more about each limited-edition colorway. By participating in any, or all, of these multi-level challenges participants can earn points towards discounts at the online or in-person Rock ‘n’ Roll merchandise stores and be entered to win a $500 Craft gift card. Visit www.runrocknrollvr.com to sign up and complete the challenges between Tuesday, August 31 and Friday September 10, 2021.
(09/03/21) Views: 53Running USA
Gelete Burka and Fabienne Schlumpf will head the women’s field of the Vienna City Marathon
With a personal best of 2:20:45 Ethiopia’s Gelete Burka will be the fastest woman ever on a start list for Austria’s most prestigious and biggest road running event.
The Vienna City Marathon will see its 38th edition next week and organizers currently have registered a total of around 25,000 athletes. While this includes races at shorter distances there will be 6,000 marathon runners. Some of the events will take place on the Saturday.
The Vienna City Marathon is a World Athletics Marathon Label Road Race and will be the first major international marathon featuring a strong elite field and a mass race since the start of the Corona pandemic. After providing a hygiene concept organizers received the final go ahead from the city a couple of days ago.
Gelete Burka has been a very successful track and cross country runner. The Ethiopian took the World Cross Country Championships’ gold medal in 2006 (short course) and won the 1,500 m final at the World Indoor Championships two years later. In 2015 she was second in the 10,000 m final of the World Championships. By that time she already had a few attempts at the marathon distance. However despite a personal best of 2:26:03 from 2014 in Houston she did not manage to transform her great potential to the classic distance. It was then in Dubai 2018 when she returned to the marathon after a four-year break and achieved a breakthrough performance: Gelete Burka improved to 2:20:45 in the Emirate.
There was more success in the marathon for Gelete Burka after her sixth place in Dubai: In May that year she won the Ottawa race in 2:22:17, then she took the Paris Marathon in 2019 with 2:22:47. A third place in the Chicago Marathon (2:20:55) followed later in the year. The Vienna City Marathon will now be the first marathon for the 35 year-old since 2019.
In contrast Fabienne Schlumpf is still a newcomer to the marathon. The former steeplechaser, who took the silver medal at the European Championships in 2018, first ran a series of national records in the half marathon. Last autumn she achieved a very respectable 13th place in the World Half Marathon Championships with an improvement to 68:38. She then took the Dresden Half Marathon this March with 68:27. Easily breaking the Olympic qualifying standard she clocked 2:26:14 in her marathon debut in Bern in April when she took second place. Fabienne Schlumpf then ran her second marathon at the Olympics in the extremely tough conditions in Sapporo. She achieved a superb 12th place in 2:31:36 which suggests that there is much more to come from the 30 year-old in the marathon. “I had already planned to run Vienna after the Olympics for a long time,” said Fabienne Schlumpf.
Gelete Burka and Fabienne Schlumpf will face a group of strong Kenyan contenders at the Vienna City Marathon. Risper Chebet is the second fastest on the start list with a personal best of 2:23:45. She achieved this time when she was fifth in Milan earlier this year, improving her PB by almost four minutes. Returning to the Vienna City Marathon will be Rebecca Kangogo and Celestine Chepchirchir. Kangogo ran her personal record of 2:24:25 here when she was runner-up in 2017 while Chepchirchir was third in 2018. She has a personal best of 2:24:48 from Seoul in 2019.
(09/03/21) Views: 49AIMS
Hiwot Gebrekidan and Kenenisa Bekele will lead powerful Ethiopian Challenge in Berlin
The BMW BERLIN-MARATHON will get underway on Sunday, September 26 with high quality elite fields headed by the Ethiopian superstar Kenenisa Bekele on his fourth appearance in Germany’s biggest and most spectacular marathon, while his compatriot Hiwot Gebrekidan will run in Berlin’s women’s field for the first time. Gebrekidan is currently the fastest female marathon runner in the world this year. The BMW BERLIN-MARATHON is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors and a Platinum Label Road Race, awarded by World Athletics, the international governing body of athletics.
Kenenisa Bekele is 39 now and will be running the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON for the fourth time. He won the race in 2016 but dropped out the next year and returned in 2019 to triumph once again. In both victories the Ethiopian missed the then world record by a matter of seconds.
In terms of his achievements on the track and cross country, Kenenisa Bekele is the greatest long distance runner of all time. The multiple world record holder won the 5,000m at the 2008 Olympic Games as well as at the 2009 World Championships, took the 10,000m title at the Olympics in 2004 and 2008 as well as at the World Championships in 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2009. In addition, he has won eleven gold medals at the World Cross Country Championships.
At the same time, Kenenisa Bekele’s marathon career has been by no means a smooth one. He has failed to finish three of his six races at the classic distance, including an attempt on the world record in Dubai in 2017 and Berlin later in the same year.
Yet on two occasions Kenenisa Bekele was able to convert his enormous potential to the marathon though there was still an element of disappointment attached, since he missed breaking the world record by a handful of seconds each time. In 2016 in Berlin he went within six seconds of the then global best, improving his own best to 2:03:03. Two years ago Bekele won again, this time running 2:01:41, two seconds outside the world record which his Kenyan rival Eliud Kipchoge had improved to 2:01:39 in the meantime. This achievement in 2019 means the Ethiopian is the second fastest marathon runner in history. It may well be that the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON on September 26 is his last chance to break the world record at the distance. “I’m looking forward to the race in the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON and all my training has been with this in mind. It’s gone well. I am doing everything to make sure my preparation is perfect,” said Kenenisa Bekele.
Ethiopia’s superstar will face two strong compatriots among his rivals. Guye Adola made an outstanding marathon debut in 2017 beside the River Spree with second place in 2:03:46. His time was record for a marathon debutant and Adola even put the eventual winner, Eliud Kipchoge, under pressure, leading the great Kenyan until shortly before 40 kilometres. Another Ethiopian who surprised many on his marathon debut is Olika Adugna. He will be running in Berlin on September 26 with a best of 2:06:15 from winning debut in Dubai in 2020.
The women’s field includes the fastest marathoner in the world this year, Ethiopia’s Hiwot Gebrekidan, who won the Milan Marathon in a personal best of 2:19:35 in April. Purity Rionoripo of Kenya (pb 2:20:39) and the Ethiopian Shure Demise (pb 2:20:59) should also be relied upon to offer strong challenges.
More information is available online at: Berlin-Marathon.com.
(09/07/21) Views: 49
World marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge launches foundation
Eliud Kipchoge has officially launched his own foundation referred to as ‘the Eliud Kipchoge Foundation’.
Fresh from winning his second consecutive Olympic gold medal in his specialty during the just concluded Tokyo Olympic Games, Kipchoge said the foundation will have a strong focus on education and environment and will be seeking to strengthen communities both locally and internationally.
“My mission is to give all children in the world access to knowledge and education. I want those children to grow up into healthy adults in a green and breathing world where forests keep our people safe.
“I want to contribute and grow the movement in education and environmental protection through my Foundation, to reach the people in the world with my voice,” said Kipchoge.
He also added that he wants to raise awareness and to raise finances to build libraries, schools and grow more trees on the forest sites that will help the upcoming generation in terms of clean air.
“I was lucky in my life to have access to books and knowledge from a young age. It taught me to value life and that is why I have decided to establish the foundation that will help the upcoming generation who also must know the value of having a good environment,” he added.
The Eliud Kipchoge Foundation focuses on two pillars: education and environment and both subjects have been close to Kipchoge’s heart throughout his life and are areas where he foresees making an impact for a better world.
“Education helps you grow, and it can help you grow your community alongside you and access to information is crucial for a good education and a good library is the foundation for this.
“My dream is for all schools and kindergartens in the world to have good libraries right from a very young age, children need to get in contact with books, with learning. This builds a good foundation for children and books can inspire, also to those who do not have access to the internet,” he said.
He also added that he has been inspired by books for his entire life and there are a lot of talented people in Africa and around the world, who may get inspired and help to solve problems people are facing in their communities.
The objective of the Foundation is to sponsor school fees and to give more children access to education, build libraries and inspire people through the importance of education and the power of books.
In terms of environment, Kipchoge said that it is the second pillar for the foundation. The foundation wants to provide a healthy world for the next generations therefore it must all provide the right actions to do so.
“I want the world to breathe well and without forests, you cannot have ideal conditions for training. As a farmer, I know about the importance of a good climate, planting of trees and using the land in a sustainable way, so people can grow healthy food and plants, also for the next generations.
“I believe together we can make dry land green again, which has a huge impact on biodiversity, water availability and healthy food. You can always start helping, even by adopting trees. I began already with adopting a forest near our training camp to help save it. I want to reach out to help save and grow forests around the world,” added Kipchoge.
(09/08/21) Views: 49Bernard Rotich
Olympians and Past Champions will Headline New Balance 5th Avenue Mile on Sunday
To close out their seasons, 15 Tokyo Olympians, three Olympic medalists, and two past event champions will race down Manhattan’s most famous thoroughfare in the professional athlete heats at the New Balance 5th Avenue Mile on Sunday, September 12.
The 40th running of the New Balance 5th Avenue Mile – the world’s most iconic road mile race since 1981 – stretches 20 blocks along the east side of Central Park. In addition to age-group heats, there will be an NYPD/FDNY heat taking place to mark the 20th anniversary weekend of 9/11, a Back to School Mile for youth ages 12-18, a George Sheehan Memorial Mile for seniors and NYRR Road Mile Championship heats.
“The New Balance 5th Avenue Mile is an iconic race which invites people of all ages and abilities to run down one of the most famous streets in New York City,” said Ted Metellus, Vice President of Events, NYRR and Race Director, TCS New York City Marathon. “This year will be incredibly exciting with a number of Olympians joining us after their top performances in Tokyo, and we are looking forward to showcasing the city’s resiliency and honoring the work of those participating in the FDNY/NYPD heat to mark 20 years since 9/11.”
The NYRR Road Mile Championships and professional athlete races will be live streamed on USATF.TV free beginning at 11:35 a.m. ET, with a webcast replay for on-demand-viewing available on USATF.TV+.
Leading the way in the professional men’s race will be three-time U.S. Olympian Matthew Centrowitz who won Rio 2016 Olympic gold in the 1,500 meters and the 5th Avenue Mile in 2012, and two-time U.S. Olympian Paul Chelimo, who won bronze in Tokyo and silver in Rio in the 5,000 meters.
“I’m excited to return to New York for my sixth race down 5th Avenue, a race I first won nine years ago,” Centrowitz said. “Heading back East and ending my season there is like a great end-of-summer tradition, and I’m looking to show the rest of the guys I’ve still got a step or two left in 2021.”
“I’ve already run a 5K and half marathon in New York, so now I just need to check the mile and the marathon off my list,” Chelimo said. “Running a straight line down 5th Avenue is very different than running laps on a track, and I’ve got more road racing experience than the other guys in this field. I’m confident in my finish, so if I can keep it close through halfway, I think I can beat the milers at their own game. Go hard or suffer for the rest of your life."
Challenging them will be two-time U.S. Olympian and 2016 Olympic bronze medalist in the 800 meters Clayton Murphy, Olympian and 2018 event champion Jake Wightman, and Olympian and European Indoor Championships gold medalist Adel Mechaal.
A trio of other Americans to watch will be Tokyo Olympians Joe Klecker, Mason Ferlic, and Hilary Bor, with Ferlic racing the event for the third time and Klecker and Bor making their debuts in the event after competing in Tokyo earlier this year.
The professional women’s race will see a first-time winner, with top contenders including USATF Road Mile Championships runner-up Shannon Osika, British indoor record-holder and Olympian Jemma Reekie, and European Indoor Championships gold medalist Amy-Eloise Markovc.
About New York Road Runners (NYRR)
NYRR’s mission is to help and inspire people through running. Since 1958, New York Road Runners has grown from a local running club to the world’s premier community running organization. NYRR’s commitment to New York City’s five boroughs features races, virtual races, community events, free youth running initiatives and school programs, the NYRR RUNCENTER featuring the New Balance Run Hub, and training resources that provide hundreds of thousands of people each year with the motivation, know-how, and opportunity to Run for Life. NYRR’s premier event, and the largest marathon in the world, is the TCS New York City Marathon. Held annually on the first Sunday in November, the race features a wide population of runners, from the world’s top professional athletes to a vast range of competitive, recreational, and charity runners. To learn more, visit www.nyrr.org.
(09/08/21) Views: 48Running USA
