FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Beijing Gold and Silver Medalists To Dual in
Philadelphia in Olympic Marathon Rematch
Live webcast on Competitor.com to feature Ryan Hall's Philadelphia Debut
Philadelphia, PA. – September 17, 2009 – As the site of five World and
three American records, the ING Philadelphia Distance Run is positioned for
another historic performance in 2009. U.S. Olympian and American Half
Marathon Record Holder, Ryan Hall, will lead the world-class field at the
historic half-marathon on Sunday, September 20. The race will feature a
live webcast on Competitor.com, beginning at 7:45 a.m. est.
"The ING Philadelphia Distance Run course record has stood a lot longer
than we ever thought it would, since 1997," said TV commentator Toni
Reavis. "This year with the field Ryan Hall will have to contend with, and
the ING New York City Marathon awaiting him on November 1st, he is in
perfect position to supplant Khalid Khannouchi's long-standing 60:27 time."
The professional women's field will glitter just as brightly, featuring the
2008 Olympic Marathon Gold and Silver Medalists Constantina Dita of
Romania, and Kenya's Catherine "The Great" Ndereba. Dita, who has a half
marathon PR of 1:08:07, won the marathon in Beijing using a courageous
mid-race surge to pull away from the field. Taking silver behind her was
Kenya's Ndereba, a six-time champion in Philadelphia who will be looking
for her seventh title on Sunday.
"It's been more than two years since my last half-marathon, but the
half-marathon has always been one of my favorite race distances," said
Dita, who won the AIMS/ASICS World Athlete of the Year Award for 2008.
"I'm looking forward to my first visit to Philadelphia. Other athletes have
often told me what a beautiful course it is, and also that it is a very
fast course. Competitor Group has put together a very strong women's
field, and I'm looking forward again to racing with my friend, Catherine
Ndereba, and the other women."
The Beijing medalists will face strong competition from another Olympic
champion, Ethiopian Derartu Tulu. Tulu became Africa's first Olympic
women's champion ever when she captured the gold medal in the 10,000 meters
in Barcelona in 1992. After a disappointing 4th place finish in Atlanta in
1996, Derartu repeated her gold medal win in Sydney in 2000.
Kenya's Irene Limika will look for a strong showing after finishing third
in last year's event. She recently represented the Kenyan team at the
recent World Track and Field Championships in Berlin. Also expected to
challenge after finishing 4th in Philadelphia last year will be fellow
Kenyan Neriah Asiba who owns a half marathon PR of 1:10:24.
The men's field will showcase Ryan Hall of Mammoth Lakes, California. Ryan
set the U.S. half marathon record in Houston in January 2007, when he won
the U.S. Half Marathon National Championship in 59 minutes, 43 seconds. His
time smashed the previous U.S. record set by Missouri's Mark Curp that had
stood for 21 years (60:55). Four of the top five half- marathon
performances of all-time by U.S. men, including Curp's record setting
performance in 1985, have been run in Philadelphia.
Hall will be joined by fellow American Josh Rohatinsky who owns a half
marathon PR of 1:02:45 which he set in his debut at the distance at last
year's Rock 'n' Roll San Jose Half Marathon. Following San Jose, Rohatinsky
finished 7th overall and 2nd American at the 2008 ING New York City
Marathon.
Rounding out the men's field will be 2009 Rock 'n' Roll Seattle Marathon
Champion Peter Omae, and recent 4th place finisher at the Rock ‘n' Roll
Half Marathon in Virginia Beach and fellow Kenyan Samuel Ndereba, who has a
half -marathon PR of 1:01:51, and had a strong showing at last year in
Philadelphia finishing 5th overall. Making his half marathon debut will be
Simon Bairu of Canada, a two-time NCAA cross country champion while at the
University of Wisconsin.
The professional field of elite runners will be introduced at the event
press conference on Friday, September 18 at 2:00 pm in the Health & Fitness
Expo at the ING Runner's Lounge.
The race will begin at 7:45 am at Eakins Oval, on the Ben Franklin Parkway
in front of the Philadelphia Art Museum. From the start line, runners head
southeast towards Center City on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, passing
Logan Circle at the one-mile mark, then City Hall a half-mile later.
As they approach two miles, runners make two right turns and head back
towards their starting location before, swinging around the left side of
Logan Circle just before the four-mile mark. For the next five miles the
course traces alongside the picturesque Schuylkill River affording runners
an ideal racing environment. At nine miles, runners cross the river on the
Falls Bridge and head back on the opposite bank along Kelly Drive, which
takes them all the way to the finish line at Eakins Oval.
Weekend festivities begin Thursday, September 17, when hundreds of future
marathoners are set to kickoff the ING Run for Something Better training
program at Franklin Field, home of the Penn Relays, the oldest and largest
track and field competition in the United States. The kickoff event begins
at 11:00 am.
The event's free two-day Health & Fitness Expo begins Friday, September 18
at the Philadelphia Convention Center. Race registration will be available
at the Expo from 11:00 am – 6 pm Friday and 9 am – 5 pm Saturday. The
Health & Fitness Expo is open to the public and features over 100
exhibitors with the latest in endurance sports gear and nutrition products.
For more information, please visit www.competitor.com.
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