Press Release - Los Angeles Marathon - 5/22/09

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

                 OLYMPIAN ROD DIXON AND ETHIOPIAN ELITES
                     VISIT SPRINGFIELD KiDSMARATHON
                 PARTICIPANTS AT LOCAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

LOS ANGELES, California, May 22, 2009 – "What I witnessed right before my 
eyes was unforgettable. I was captivated by their passion and potential for
running."

What world-class Ethiopian marathoner Mulugeta Wami saw was dozens of 
children getting ready to complete a personal triumph in the Springfield 
KiDSMARATHON program as part of the Los Angeles Marathon to be held on 
Monday, May 25.

Wami and fellow Ethiopian marathoner Martha Markos visited Alexandria 
Elementary School in Los Angeles and met with more than 50 children who are
on the threshold of completing the Springfield KiDSMARATHON. In the 
eight-week course for children aged 7-12, participants learn to run an 
average of three miles per week, maintain a journal and keep track of their
nutrition and involve one or more of their parents.

Having completed 25 miles of running during the program, they will complete
the final 1.2 miles of their personal marathon by running a section of the
LA 5K Run/Walk that will be held on Memorial Day as part of the Los 
Angeles Marathon program. The KiDSMARATHON is sponsored by Springfield, 
one of the most well-recognized grocery brands in the West, providing 
consumers with high-quality, competitively-priced products since 1947, 
and the official water sponsor of the Los Angeles Marathon for the third 
consecutive year.

At Alexandria Elementary, Olympic 1,500-meter bronze medalist Rod Dixon of 
New Zealand showed the students how to stretch properly and Wami then 
showed some of his warm-up secrets that he will use on Monday when he runs 
the 26.2-mile course. All of the athletes signed autographs for the 
students in their personal journals.

Dixon was delighted with the visit, one of 13 he has made as part of the 
Springfield KiDSMARATHON program leading to Monday's final leg. "The kids 
of the future need to be encouraged by the stars of the present," he said, 
adding "The ideal thing is that after six weeks the kids got it. It becomes
habit forming and part of their routine. It's not like they're just running
a short race and forgetting about it. It's now part of their lifestyle. The
key is keeping them involved and during this process they are learning life
changing habits. Today was just an example of how the schools are doing."

More than 1,000 youngsters will participate in the Springfield KiDSMARATHON
finale on Monday. "The Los Angeles Unified School District has been very 
supportive of this program and have already committed to getting more 
schools involved next year. The partnership between the Los Angeles 
Marathon, the Springfield KIDSMarathon and the LAUSD is very strong."

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