FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
American Record Holder Hall Returns to
USA Half Marathon Championships in Houston
HOUSTON (Jan. 10, 2011) - Ryan Hall, who shattered the U.S. half-marathon
record with a scintillating 59:43 here in 2007, headlines the 2011 USA Half
Marathon Championships field. Scheduled to run along with the 2008 Olympian
are both 2010 national runner-ups and three Olympians.The 13.1 mile
national championship hosted by Aramco Services Company will be held on
Saturday, January 29 one day prior to the 39th Chevron Houston Marathon.
This year, the country's best distance runners and Olympic hopefuls will
also have the unique opportunity to compete on the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials
Marathon multi-loop course.
"With the 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials just a year away now, I am excited
to return to a very special place for me to check out the course that all
U.S. marathoners will be racing on in an effort to make the Olympic Team,"
said the 2007 Olympic Trials Marathon Champion. "Running the course of a
marathon is always helpful, but racing the actual course before the
marathon is an even bigger advantage. I'm excited to have this opportunity
to begin my 2011 season in Houston as I build my momentum toward the Boston
Marathon."
Hall, 28, a five-time USA champion, will face a talented men's field
including last year's runner-up Patrick Smyth and third place finisher
Brent Vaughn, who ran their debut half-marathons here in 1:02:01 and
1:02:04, respectively. In addition, three-time Olympian and multi-national
champion Abdi Abdirahman and 2010 USA 15 km champion Mo Trafeh, who ran the
fastest U.S. half-marathon in 2010 with his 1:00:39 (#4 U.S. all-time),
will also give Hall, the 2007 USA Half Marathon champion, plenty of
competition for the 2011 crown.
For the U.S. women, Serena Burla, 28, runner-up last year in a personal
record 1:10:08, is the top returnee, and like Hall, she will face a
formidable, experienced field including three-time Olympian Jen Rhines,
2008 Olympic marathoner and 2009 USA Half Marathon champion Magdalena Lewy
Boulet and seven-time national titlist and 2010 USA Running Circuit
champion Katie McGregor.
"These are almost certainly the most competitive men's and women's fields
that our invited athlete team has assembled since our hosting of the USA
Half Marathon Championships began with the men in 2005 and the women in
2007," said Brant Kotch, president and race director of the Houston
Marathon Committee. "The chance to try out the 2012 Olympic Trials
Marathon's eight-mile loop in an ultra-competitive setting has been a real
boon for luring America's very best distance runners to Houston later this
month."
The USA Championship prize purse totals $59,500 with $12,000 for each
national champion. In addition, the event also offers a cumulative bonus
structure for the first runner to break the existing race and U.S. records
seen below.
BONUS MEN WOMEN
$4000 Race Record 59:43 (2007) 1:09:41 (2010)
$5000 U.S. Record 59:43 (2007) 1:07:34 (2006)
The 2011 USA Half Marathon Championships will mark Houston's seventh and
fifth year to host the men's and women's national road championships,
respectively. In 2007, Ryan Hall set the U.S. men's record with his
superlative 59:43, and last January, Antonio Vega and 2008 Olympic bronze
medalist Shalane Flanagan won U.S. titles in 1:01:54 and 1:09:41
respectively. Vega set a personal record by more than a minute, while
Flanagan's 13.1 mile debut time was a course and Texas state record as well
as one of the fastest run by an American woman.
Houston will host the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon on Saturday,
January 14, 2012, a first for a single city to host both the men's and
women's events at the same Trials. To date, 95 U.S. men and 120 U.S. women
have qualified for the 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials. The top 150 male and
female distance runners are expected to compete in Houston January 2012 to
qualify for the six-member U.S. Olympic marathon team at the London Olympic
Games.
The general public is invited to run with the professional athletes
competing in the 2011 USA Half Marathon Championships. A limited number of
VIP packages will be offered to the public. Details about the VIP packages
can be found on the event website (houstonmarathon.com).
About the Houston Marathon Committee, Inc.
Established in 1972, the Houston Marathon Committee, Inc. (HMC), a Running
USA Founding Member, annually organizes the nation's premier winter
marathon, half-marathon, 5K and kids' fun run. In 2010, more than 30,000
runners participated in four race weekend events organized by 7,500
volunteers, creating Houston's largest single-day sporting event. In
addition to hosting numerous world-renowned road races, including the USA
Men's and Women's Half Marathon Championships since 2005 and 2007
respectively, and the 1992 U.S. Women's Olympic Marathon Trials, HMC will
host the 2012 U.S. Men's and Women's Olympic Team Trials - Marathon on
January 14, 2012.
For more information, visit houstonmarathon.com or call 713.957.3453.
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and
field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF
encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the mostwatched
events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school
participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United
States.
For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org.
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