FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Pennel, Erb Win USA Titles at Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon
Hussein Wins Record Fifth USA Masters Championship, Piers Wins Third
St. Paul, Minn. - October 5, 2014 - First-time marathoner Tyler Pennel of
Blowing Rock, N.C. and last year's women's third-place finisher Esther Erb
of Richmond,Va. earned victories at the 33rd annual Medtronic Twin Cities
Marathon today. Pennel clocked 2:13:32 on the course that starts in
downtown Minneapolis and finishes on the State Capitol grounds in St. Paul.
Erb ran 2:34:01.
The victorious pair earned USA Marathon Championship titles with the wins
and pocketed $25,000 each for their efforts.
Pennel, who was content to be part of a seven member lead pack at the
half-way mark, was building a lead by mile 21 that stretched to a
comfortable 29 seconds by the finish line. Jared Ward of Provo, Utah
finished second in 2:14:00, while Scott Smith of Oklahoma City was third in
2:14:40.
"I wanted to relax until 20 miles," Pennel said. "Scott went first, then I
did. I was scary to run the last few miles alone. Miles 23 and 24 were all
out. I was happy when I got to Summit, because those earlier hills really
hurt."
Erb survived a sleepless night, and mid-race stop, and the mid-race lead
built up by Heather Lieberg of Helena, Mont. and Brianne Nelson of Golden,
Colo. for the win. Down 42 seconds to the duo at the half-way mat, Erb
closed to within 10 seconds at the 24 mile mark.
"I couldn't sleep last night I was so excited," Erb admitted. "I was up for
about three hours in the middle of the night thinking about the race. I was
trailing them for a really long time. I had to stop at mile 20 for the
bathroom and I made up time pretty quickly."
Lieberg finished runner-up in 2:34:09. Brainne Neslon was third in
2:34:24.
In the USA Masters Marathon Championships held in conjunction with the
event, 49-year-old Mbarak Hussein of Albuquerque won a record-setting fifth
title in 2:22:27. At the finish line, he learned his wife Liana had gone
into labor with their first child. In women's masters competition, Sheri
Piers, 43, defended her title in 2:42:46.
In wheelchair competition, defending champions Josh George of Champaign,
Ill. and Susannah Scaroni of Urbana, Ill. defended their titles. George
clocked 1:39:16; Scaroni finished in 1:57:21.
In the Medtronic TC 10 Mile held earlier in the day, Jon Peterson of
Minneapolis defended the men's title in 48:12, while Allison Mendez of
Austin, Texas won the women's race in 56:27. Twin Cites In Motion regrets
that the course this year was short due to an error with the lead vehicles.
Missing the turn to 11th Avenue from West River Parkway cut 0.14 miles off
the 10 mile course. Runners rejoined the correct course when they turned on
13th Avenue.
8867 runners finished the marathon, a new event record. A new field record
was also set at the companion Medtronic TC 10 Mile with 8574 runners
finishing the race. All told, more than 24,441 people participated in
Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon Weekend events which included a 5K run/walk,
10K, and family events.
"We were blessed with a lovely day for running, and we were so pleased to
provide the opportunity for so many people to achieve such a major life
accomplishment," Twin Cities In Motion Executive Director Virginia Brophy
Achman said. "The Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon is a community treasure,
and we couldn't have done it today without the over 5,000 volunteers and
300,000 spectators who made the day what it is."
About Twin Cities In Motion (TCM): Twin Cities In Motion organizes the
region's premier running events, including the Medtronic Twin Cities
Marathon, a Top 10 U.S. Marathon. With a mission of promoting healthy
lifestyles through running events and community outreach, TCM contributes a
portion of every race dollar to local youth and professional athletes and
helps raise more than $800,000 annually with its charity partners. For more
information, visit us at tcmevents.org, or find us on Facebook and on
Twitter @tcmarathon.
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