10-10-2008
Contact:
Jim Estes
Associate Director of LDR and Marketing
USA Track & Field
317-713-4661
INDIANAPOLIS - The 2008 edition of the women's USA Running Circuit will conclude Monday at the USA Women's 10 km Championship in Boston, Mass. The Championship will be hosted for the 14th time by the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women.
Two-time USA 8 km Champion Amy Rudolph (Providence, R.I.) leads a field that includes her training partner Molly Huddle (Providence, R.I.). Rudolph was third at the recent USA Women's 8 km Championship, while Huddle finished third this year at the USA 5 km Championships and fourth at the USA Women's 8 km Championship.
Former champion Elva Dryer will also be on hand seeking to regain the title she won in 2003 along with challengers Renee Metivier-Baille (Flagstaff, Ariz.), the runner-up from the 5 km championships; Carrie Messner-Vickers (Vail, Colo.); and Rebecca Donaghue (State College, Pa.), who respectively finished fourth and fifth at the 5 km championships.
2008 Olympic steeplechaser Lindsey Anderson (Ogden, Utah) will add to the field, as well as Samia Akbar (Herndon, Va.), the third-place finisher in the 10,000 meters at the 2006 AT&T USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
The USA Women's 10 km Championships is the final race on the women's 2008 USA Running Circuit (USARC). The USARC is a USA Track & Field road series, featuring USA Championships from 5 km to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners.
The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USARC race (15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1), with a final $12,500 grand prix purse ($6,000, $4,000, and $2,500) for the top three men and women point scorers overall. The USARC points at the USA Marathon Championships will be doubled. Deena Kastor currently leads the women's circuit with 45 points.
The mission of the USA Running Circuit is to showcase, support, and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USARC and its races have provided over $4 million dollars to U.S. distance runners.
For more information on the 2008 USARC visit www.usatf.org.
