Press Release - Colorado Colfax Marathon - 10/19/05

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                    Contact: Chris Gallegos, (303) 382-4072


           Inaugural Post-News Colorado Colfax Marathon to Host 
                2006 USATF Club Relay Marathon Championships

DENVER - (October 19, 2005) - The inaugural Post-News Colorado Colfax 
Marathon continues gaining national prominence. Race officials from the 
Colfax Marathon Partnership have announced that the USA Track & Field Club 
Relay Marathon National Championships will be contested during the May 21, 
2006 running of the Post-News Colorado Colfax Marathon. Officials from USA 
Track & Field (USATF) cited the popularity of marathon and relay running in 
their decision to bring the championships to the state.

"We applaud the efforts of the Post-News Colorado Colfax Marathon to bring 
our national championship event to Colorado. Here at USA Track & Field, we 
are committed to do everything we can to make this event a success and 
bring added national significance to our running club program," said Bill 
Roe, President, USATF.

This will only be the third time the USATF has held a club relay marathon 
national championship. Club relay marathon competitions are one of the few 
opportunities runners have to compete as a team since most marathon events 
only involve individual running competitions.

Colorado USATF spokesman John Tope said state clubs, such as the Boulder 
Road Runners, are excited to compete at the national championships in their 
home state.

"There will be clubs coming from all over the country and we have to defend 
our home turf," Tope said. "This is a great opportunity to show the rest of 
the country that Colorado running clubs are among the best in the nation."

The club relay marathon national championships will include USATF clubs and 
members and will feature five runners with each running either 5K, 10K or 
12K legs. The event joins the Wheelchair Track & Field USA National 
Wheelchair Marathon Championships in selecting Colfax to host their 
competitions. 

"For Colfax to be selected for this unique event is truly an honor," said 
Jay Gershen, Executive Vice Chancellor for the University of Colorado at 
Denver and Health Sciences Center and the Chairman of the Colfax Marathon 
Partnership. "I'm certain that communities along the Colfax corridor and 
throughout the state will show these elite competitors the passion we have 
for the sport."

The inaugural Post-News Colorado Colfax Marathon will be held on Sunday, 
May 21, 2006. Dubbed "America's Main Street Marathon", it starts on 
historic Colfax Avenue in Aurora, passes the state capitol in Denver and 
finishes at the foot of the Rocky Mountains in Lakewood. Race organizers 
predict more than 6,000 participants in either the full or half-marathon or 
in the unique five-person relay. Proceeds from the event will be donated to 
local community-based charities that support youth health and fitness.

To learn more about the race, visit: www.ColoradoColfaxMarathon.org





                            ###