Regional

Cain Named USA Track & Field Athlete of the Week

RJeditor — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:36:56 -0500

INDIANAPOLIS - Mary Cain (Bronxville, N.Y.) has been named USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week after setting the American junior and high school 1500m record at the USATF Oxy High Performance meet with her incredible time of 4:04.62 on May 18.

Cain finished second to Katie Mackey by only two-hundredths of a second as Mackey crossed the line in 4:04.60. The race saw six athletes dip under the previous meet and stadium record of 4:05.92 held by Shannon Rowbury. Cain and Mackey were joined by Nicole Sifuentes and Sarah Brown to dip under the World Championships A standard of 4:05.30.

Cain’s performance shattered Suzy Favor Hamilton’s previous American junior record of 4:09.10 by more than five seconds. Cain also bettered her own high school record of 4:10.77 from last month’s Drake Relays. Can has now broken nine records this year - six indoors, three outdoors.

“It is always exciting for me to break a record, even when it is my own,” Cain said. “It is especially sweet, since it [came] as a surprise to me. I run to compete and learn, so, as I am racing, I don't worry about the clock. It wasn't until I crossed the line that I realized the true meaning of all that had just happened.”

Wigal Gets RRCA Award

RJeditor — Mon, 20 May 2013 10:44:13 -0500

Melissa Wigal of the River City Runners and Walkers in Parkersburg, West Virginia, was honored by the Road Runners Club of America for directing the "Outstanding Beginning Running Program" of 2012 in the United States. Melissa could not be at the annual RRCA Convestion in Albuquerque, New Mexico, so West Virginia's RRCA State Rep Tom Kramer accepted the award for her. Tom made a formal presentation to Melissa at the West Virginia State Championship race May 18, the Chick-fil-A 10K at Parkersburg.

Sixteen-year-old Alana Hadley of Charlotte runs 2:58:23 in debut marathon in Cleveland

RJeditor — Mon, 20 May 2013 09:20:14 -0500

CLEVELAND– The 2013 Rite Aid Cleveland Marathon weekend opened with a sun-splashed Saturday morning at FirstEnergy Stadium and ended Sunday with a pair of blazing fast times in the men’s and women’s marathons.

The 36th annual event includes a 10K, half marathon and full marathon on Sunday and a 5K and Kids’ Run events on Saturday.

Runners Unable to Finish Invited to 2014 Boston Marathon

RJeditor — Mon, 20 May 2013 03:17:38 -0500

B.A.A. issues special invitation to 2013 Boston Marathon starters who did not cross Boylston Street finish line

Running USA wire
BOSTON - The B.A.A., organizer of theBoston Marathon, is issuing an invitation to participate in the 2014 Boston Marathon to official entrants in the 2013 Boston Marathon who were unable to cross the Boylston Street finish line. More than 5000 official starters were affected on Monday, April 15 at the 117th Boston Marathon when the race was stopped at 2:50 p.m. ET.

"The opportunity to run down Boylston Street and to cross the finish line amid thousands of spectators is a significant part of the entire Boston Marathon experience," said Tom Grilk, B.A.A. Executive Director.

Faber joins McMahan, Kastor on Team USA Women's Marathon team

RJeditor — Sun, 19 May 2013 04:20:36 -0500

Jeanette Faber of Nashville, Tennessee, has set a personal record in each of the 13 marathons she has run, dropping her debut time of 3:28:51 in 2004 by more than 56 minutes.

USA Track & Field announced Faber, Denna Kastor of Mammoth Lakes, California, and Dot McMahan of Oakland Township, Michigan have each qualified for Team USA Women's Marathon Team for this summer's IAAF World Championships in Moscow, Russia.

Kastor is the veteran of the team and an Olympic bronze medalist. She qualified with a time of 2:32:39 at this year's Asics L.A. Marathon, where she placed third. Kastor owns the fastest time ever run by an American woman with 2:19:36 at the London Marathon in 2006. This marks Kastor's fifth Outdoor World Championships team, but her first time competing at a distance other than the 10K.

NFL STARS & TWIN BROTHERS JASON & DEVIN McCOURTY MAKE A BET TO SEE WHO CAN RAISE MORE $ FOR TACKLE SICKLE CELL

RJeditor — Fri, 17 May 2013 10:46:52 -0500

Twin brothers and NFL defensive backs, Jason & Devin McCourty have partnered with Embrace Kids Foundation and launched a campaign against sickle cell disease. The campaign, entitled "Tackle Sickle Cell" aims to educate the public, increase blood donors and raise money & awareness for the fight against sickle cell disease.

Bugs Bunny: 'Turn left at Albuquerque'

RJeditor — Thu, 16 May 2013 03:31:14 -0500

By Scott Sullivan
Editor, Michigan Runner

(The annual RRCA National Convention was recently held in Albuquerque, New Mexico. At the same time, the Running Network, of which Running Journal is a member, was also holding its national meeting in Albuquerque. Scott Sullivan, who is also editor of a newspaper in Saugutuck, Michigan, wrote this column after returning home. We thought you would enjoy reading his humorous report. By the way, Bugs was once involved in a "Tortise vs the Hare race." You can located that race on YouTube.com to see who won. )

Michigan Runner publisher Art McCafferty has doctorates out the wazoo. So when he asked if I’d like to visit the home of Bugs Bunny, instead of my usual, “Huh?” I replied to him, “What’s up, Doc?”

Team USA Wins Gold at 24-Hour Championships

RJeditor — Wed, 15 May 2013 13:59:28 -0500

Jon Olsen won the World 24-Hour Championships to lead Team USA to win gold in both the men’s and women’s races on Sunday in Steenbergen, Netherlands.

Olsen (Modesto, Calif.) logged 167.568 miles to take the top spot over John Dennis (Takoma Park, M.D.) by more than four miles. Team USA locked up the team competition with 485.012 miles over runner-up Japan’s 467.623 miles.

‘Time began to slow down’ at Boston

RJeditor — Mon, 13 May 2013 17:29:34 -0500

By Jamie Merriman
Spa Pacers, Hot Springs, Arkansas

Boston was alive with pre-marathon excitement. We settled into our hotel and began to plan our weekend. Saturday morning we arrive at the Expo early. The convention center was full. People from all over the world were there – picking up packets – buying mementos and securing the coveted “Boston Marathon Jacket.”

By that time the butterflies were in full flutter. The weekend flew by – we visited local attractions including the Sam Adams Brewery – and walked down Boylston Street past where the finish line would be. There were other runners, their families, friends filled with enthusiasm and excitement for what Monday would bring – all the while workers were rushing to complete the finish line area.

Trafeh Sets American Record at USA 25 km Championships

RJeditor — Sun, 12 May 2013 13:18:28 -0500

INDIANAPOLIS – A quick early pace and a competitive field helped to propel Mo Trafeh to an American record of 1:14:18 as Dot McMahan took the Women’s title in 1:25:52 at the USA 25 km Championships in Grand Rapids, Mich., hosted by the Fifth Third River Bank Run.

The USA 25 km Championships are the fifth stop on the USA Running Circuit, which will conclude this fall with the .US National Road Racing Championships. The top ten finishers at each race on the circuit qualify to compete in the .US National Road Racing Championships.