FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sara Hall Wins First USATF 10 km Title at NYRR New York Mini 10K
Susannah Scaroni sets new world-best 10K time to win
professional wheelchair race
New York, June 8, 2019 - Sara Hall won her first USATF 10 km title at the
NYRR New York Mini 10K in Central Park on Saturday, while Susannah Scaroni
set a new world-best 10K time to win the professional wheelchair race.
The NYRR New York Mini 10K is the world's original women-only road race and
served as the USATF 10 km Championships for the first time. After running
with a large contingent of women through the first portion of the course,
Hall shot to the lead with about 200 meters to go ahead of defending 10 km
champion Stephanie Bruce to cross the finish line in 32:27.
"It means so much to me after having such a hard year," Hall said of her
title. "After having the best training of my life and then getting hurt and
having the two longest injuries of my career back-to-back, I really fought
to keep my fitness. I knew if I persevered, I would finally see the results
of that, and now I have."
Bruce, last year's national champion in the distance, finished second in
32:32, followed by Sally Kipyego in third in 32:35. It was Bruce's second
top-two finish in the 2019 USATF Running Circuit.
The 2019 USATF 10 km Championships offered a $75,000 prize purse - the
most-ever for a single gender USATF 10 km Championships - including $20,000
for the first-place finisher. The women's 10 km Championships have taken
place every year since 1978 and since 2002 have been a part of the USATF
Running Circuit, which features championships from one mile through the
marathon and consistently attracts the best American distance runners.
The NYRR New York Mini 10K also featured a professional wheelchair division
for the second time, making it the only all-women professional wheelchair
race in the world. Under clear skies, Scaroni clocked a 22:22 to win the
race by more than a minute and a half, defending her title and breaking her
own world-best 10K mark of 22:48 that she set at the event last year.
"I knew Tatyana (McFadden) was very strong, so I just wanted to give it
everything I had and never look back," Scaroni said. "It feels amazing as
always to be a leader to young girls in wheelchairs here and give a tribute
to those who came before us at the Mini 10K with a win here."
Five-time New York City Marathon champion McFadden took second place in the
wheelchair division in 24:01, followed by two-time New York City Marathon
champion Amanda McGrory in third in 26:04.
Earlier in the day, the fourth annual Rising New York Road Runners at the
NYRR New York Mini 10K, a 1.2-mile race for girls ages 8-18, kicked off
race day, marking 20 years of NYRR's free youth programming.
The NYRR New York Mini 10K has served as one of the most impactful women's
races in running history and has seen more than 200,000 women finish the
race to date. The event was founded as the world's original women-only road
race in 1972, and was first called the six-mile Crazylegs Mini Marathon.
The NYRR New York Mini 10K got its current name when race founder Fred
Lebow convinced the sponsor to support a six-mile "mini" marathon—named for
the miniskirt, a big fashion trend of the times. Seventy-two women finished
that first race, which helped show that women deserved to run in road races
as much as their male counterparts. Three weeks later, Title IX was signed
into law, guaranteeing women the right to participate in school sports and
creating new opportunities for female athletes. The International Olympic
Committee added the women's marathon to the Olympic program for the first
time at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, a decision sparked by the growth of
women's road racing, which was led by the success of the Mini.
###
|
