Press Release - ING Ottawa Marathon & Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon - 3/3/08

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

          ING Ottawa and Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathons 
                  partner with Athletics Canada to send 
                  Canadian marathoners to 2009 World Cup

OTTAWA – Organizers of the ING Ottawa Marathon and the Scotiabank Toronto 
Waterfront Marathon have teamed up with Athletics Canada to help send 
Canadian marathoners to the 2009 World Cup in Berlin. Canadian athletes 
reaching the criteria will be part of the first team in eight years to 
represent Canada at a world championship. It is the first time such action 
has been undertaken by organizers of road races in Canada. 

"We have seen some tremendous performances at our races in recent years," 
says John Halvorsen, Race Director for the ING Ottawa Marathon. "We feel it 
is our role to provide the right environment for our athletes to develop 
into world-class competitors. It is very important for us to partake in 
initiatives such as this one and go beyond organizing a race and putting 
our money where our mouth is."

"We're delighted to see this partnership between the private sector and the 
federation--to see Canada's top 2 international marathons working with 
Athletics Canada to create some excitement around marathoning, and some 
tangible goals to reward the pursuit of excellence in Canadian distance 
running," adds Alan Brookes, Race Director for the Scotiabank Toronto 
Waterfront Marathon. "It's too late for Beijing, but if we all work 
together on projects like this, we could see a strong marathon team running 
for Canada in London."

Canadian athletes will be selected based on their performance achieved 
between January 2008 and May 24, 2009. Overall, five athletes per team 
(five males, five females) will be chosen and selection will be prioritized 
according to the following criteria:

1. Performance under 2:12:38 (men)/2:29:08 (women) in the 2008 and/or 2009 
Ottawa ING Marathon and/or the 2008 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. 

2. Top-ranked athlete, within the Athletics Canada qualifying period, with 
performance of 2:12:38 (men)/2:29:08(women) in any other IAAF sanctioned 
marathon. 

3. Top Canadian finisher at the 2008 or 2009 Ottawa ING marathon and/or 
2008 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon in under 2:15:00 (men)/2:34:00 
(women). 

4. Other athlete with a performance under 2:12:38 (men)/2:29:08 (women) 
within the Athletics Canada qualifying period at any other IAAF sanctioned 
marathon. 

5. Winner of the 2008 or 2009 Ottawa ING marathon and/or 2008 Scotiabank 
Toronto Waterfront Marathon, with 2:18:00/2:43:00 achieved within the 
Athletics Canada qualifying period. 

6. Other athlete (no more than 1 man or woman) identified as a 'Rising 
Star' under the Athletics Canada regular criteria. 

7. 2nd place finisher of the 2008 or 2009 Ottawa ING Marathon and/or 2008 
Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon in under 2:18:00 (men)/2:43:00 
(women) 

8. 3rd place finisher of the 2008 or 2009 Ottawa ING Marathon and/or 2008 
Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon in under 2:18:00 (men)/2:43:00 
(women) 

9. Performance of  2:18:00 (men)/2:43:00 (women) within the AC qualifying 
period 
 
"Our goal is to reestablish marathon running in Canada and partnering with 
the organizers of both Ottawa and Toronto Waterfront marathons was a 
logical step in that direction," says Martin Goulet, Athletics Canada's 
Chief High Performance Officer. "They have invested significant efforts in 
recent years to support the development of elite distance runners in this 
country and this is only another example of their stellar contribution to 
the sport."

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