FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ginny Cassidy
Marketing & PR Manager
(763) 287-3888 x 13
JOAN BENOIT SAMUELSON TO RUN 2005 TWIN CITIES MARATHON
1984 Olympic Gold Medalist Joins Deep Elite Field
for USATF Men's, Women's and Masters Championships
(Minneapolis, MN) - American marathon icon Joan Benoit Samuelson - winner
of the first women's Olympic Marathon at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles
and a two-time Boston Marathon champion - will compete in the masters
division of the 24th annual Twin Cities Marathon on Oct. 2, 2005.
Samuelson, 48, of Freeport, Maine, has run four of the five best marathon
times ever recorded by American women. Her American record of 2:21:23, set
in 1985 at the Chicago Marathon, was broken only two years ago by Deena
Kastor, at the 2003 London Marathon. Kastor went on to win the bronze medal
in the 2004 women's Olympic marathon in Athens.
Samuelson, a top seed in the Women's Masters field, joins a broad and deep
field of elite runners assembling for the 2005 USATF National Marathon
Championships for American men, women and masters.
Mbarak Hussein, 40, is a favorite to win both the open and masters' titles
at the TCM. Born in Kenya, Hussein became a U.S. citizen in 2004 and has
run a 2:08:10 marathon within the last two years. The world record for
masters men is 2:08:48, set by Mexican Andres Espinosa at the 2003 Berlin
Marathon.
Several up and coming runners, including James Carney, Kyle Baker, Sergio
Reyes and Joseph Driscoll, will also be vying for the national open title,
while Dennis Simonaitis, Joseph Cresko, John Mirth and Daniel Boyle are
expected to be in contention for the masters championship.
On the Women's side, strong performances are expected from marathon
newcomers Nicole Aish and Dana Coons, who will compete against veterans
Jill Boaz, Kim Pawelek (1999 TCM champion) and Kimberly Fitchen-Young.
Janet Robertz, 2004 U.S. Women's Masters Marathon Champion, Sharon Stubler
and Debbi Kilpatrick-Morris round out the Women's Masters Field. Following
is the TCM seeding list as of Sept. 26, 2005:
Elite Men - Open
James Carney 2:13
Kyle Baker 2:14
Sergio Reyes 2:14
Joseph Discroll 2:15
Brandon Leslie 2:16
David Ernsberger 2:16
Nick Cordes 2:17
Chris Banks 2:17
Pat Moulton 2:17
Mark Pilja 2:18
Art Siemers 2:18
Wynston Alberts 2:18
Jeff Gardina 2:18
Ben Rosario 2:18
Chris Lundstrom 2:18
Timothy Parr 2:19
Andrew Cook 2:19
Kelly Mortensen 2:19
Avery Blackwell 2:19
Elite Men - Masters
Mbarak Hussein 2:08
Dennis Simonaitis 2:18
Joseph Cresko 2:26
John Mirth 2:28
Daniel Boyle 2:29
Elite Women - Open
Nicole Aish 2:35
Jill Boaz 2:36
Kim Pawelek 2:37
Kim Fitchen-Young 2:38
Dana Coons 2:40
Nicole Hunt 2:40
Jennifer Derego 2:41
Molly Austin 2:41
Katie Koski 2:42
Christina Blackmer 2:42
Judy Johnson 2:42
Zika Palmer 2:42
Johanna Olson 2:43
Genevieve Kiley 2:44
Paula Morrison 2:44
Melissa Rittenhouse 2:44
Elite Women - Masters
Sharon Stubler 2:41
Joan Benoit Samuelson 2:42
Debbi Kilpatrick-Morris 2:42
Janet Robertz 2:43
Susan Loken 2:44
Brenda Graham-Gray 2:44
Lisbet Sunshine 2:44
The 2005 Twin Cities Marathon weekend will take place September 30 -
October 2, 2005. The three-day weekend celebration of fitness includes a
5K run/walk, children's fun runs, pasta dinner, health and fitness expo and
TC 10 Mile in addition to the marathon. TCM continues its 15th consecutive
year as the designated USATF National Masters Championship for both men and
women and will also host the USATF men's and women's open Marathon
Championships. Major corporate sponsors include Cub Foods, Capella
University and ING. Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. is a non-profit organization
that directs the TCM weekend as a community service for the Minneapolis/St.
Paul area. Visit www.twincitiesmarathon.org for more information.
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