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Eleven Olympians to Run NYRR Dash to the Finish Line 5K on Saturday, November 2

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BYNYRR Staff
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New York, October 16, 2013—American Olympic medalist Shalane Flanagan will headline the professional athlete fields for the NYRR Dash to the Finish Line 5K on Saturday, November 2. New Zealand’s Nick Willis and Kenya’s Sally Kipyego are also among the Olympic medalists who will be part of the incredibly competitive fields assembled for the race, to be run during ING New York City Marathon weekend, it was announced today by New York Road Runners president and CEO Mary Wittenberg.

The field also includes American Olympian and eight-time USA Champion Molly Huddle and her 2012 Olympic teammate Kim Conley. Chris Derrick, the 2013 USA cross country champion, and his IAAF World Cross Country Championships teammate Ben True will also add to the strength of the field, unparalleled by any other 5K in the world this year, which includes 11 London Olympians, three Olympic medalists, 13 women with personal bests under 15:30, 16 men with personal bests under 13:30, 12 current and former USA Champions, and 18 former NCAA Champions. Additional athletes, notable performances, personal best 5K times, and Twitter handles are listed below.

The NYRR Dash to the Finish Line 5K brings together more than 5,000 runners, families, and friends from around the world to partake in the ING New York City Marathon race weekend. The event allows everyone to be a part of the infectious Marathon excitement. You’ll see another famous athlete “dashing” through the city: Professional women’s basketball player with the Connecticut Sun, and Team USA 2008 Olympic gold medalist Kara Lawson. The race, which will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, November 2, near the United Nations building, allows runners to take a high-speed tour of midtown Manhattan and finish at the famed Marathon Finish Line.

For the latest Marathon news, updates, features, and media information, please visit the NYRR online media room at media.nyrr.org or follow us on Twitter @nyrrnews.

Athlete Backgrounds and Notable Performances

  • Flanagan, 32, of Portland, OR, won the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in a time of 2:25:38 and went on to finish 10th in the Olympic Marathon. She is the American record-holder at 3000 and 5000 meters indoors and 10,000 meters outdoors. Flanagan was second at the 2010 ING New York City Marathon in her debut at the distance.
  • Huddle, 28, of Providence, RI, set the American 5000-meter record of 14:44.76 in 2010 at the Memorial Van Damme Diamond League meet in Brussels. Huddle also made the U.S. Olympic team for London, where she finished 11th in the 5000 meter; her sixth-place finish in the 5000 meters at the World Championships in August was the highest-ever finish by an American in that event.
  • Conley, 26, of West Sacramento, CA, was third at the 2012 Olympic Trials at 5000 meters (15: 19.79), and she also competed in the 2013 IAAF World Championships, 5000 meters, placing 12th in 15:36.58.
  • Willis, 30, of Ann Arbor, MI, was the 2008 Beijing Olympic 1500-meter silver medalist. He placed ninth in the 2012 London Olympic 1500 meters. Willis won the NYRR Fifth Avenue Mile in September in a time of 3:52.1, his second title on Fifth Avenue.
  • Evan Jager, 23, of Portland , OR is the American record-holder in the 3000-meter steeplechase. He finished sixth in that event at the London Olympics, and fifth at the World Championships in Moscow.
  • Lopez Lomong, 27, of Beaverton, OR is a two-time Olympian. He won the NYRR Wanamaker Mile at the Millrose Games in February, and broke the American record in the indoor 5000 meters at New York’s Armory Track & Field Center in March.
  • Derrick, 23, of Portland, OR, is the 2013 USA Cross Country Champion and finished third in the 2013 USA Outdoor Championships 10,000 meters. Derrick was a fourteen-time NCAA Division I All-American and has a 5000-meter personal best of 13:08.04.
  • True, 27, of Hanover, NH, is a two-time USA 5K champion and a two-time champion at the B.A.A. 5K on Boston Marathon weekend. He established a new 5000-meter personal best of 13:11.59 in Monaco in July.

Professional Women

First Name Last Name Personal Best 5K, Location, Year Twitter Handle Catherine Beck 16:39.79, Stanford, 2012 Julia Bleasdale 15:02.00, London, 2012 @JuliaBleasdale Andrea Bradshaw None Charlotte Browning 17:00.79, Knoxville, 2010 @CL_Browning Jeanna Composti None Kim Conley 15:09.57, Eugene, 2013 @KimConley Liz Costello 15:45.11, Oxy, 2012 Sarah Cummings 16:14.84, Mt. SAC, 2011 @sarahccummings Esther Erb 16:42, Boston, 2012 @estherb86 Brie Felnagle 15:14.33, Oxy, 2013 @BrieFelnagle Shalane Flanagan 14:44.80, Mt. SAC, 2007 @ShalaneFlanagan Sarah Groff 16:42, Boston, 2011 @sgroffy Sara Hall 15:20.88, Naimette, 2006 @SaraHall3 Genna Hartung 16:38.32(i), Boston, 2012 @GennaHartung Stephanie Herrick None Ashley Higginson 16:02.32, Mt. SAC, 2010 @AshleyHigz Molly Huddle 14:44.76, Brussels, 2010 (NR) @MollyHuddle Emily Infeld 15:28.60, Eugene, 2012 @emily_infeld Allie Kieffer 15:52.37, Stanford, 2011 @AllieKieffer Caroline King None Sally Kipyego 14:30.42, Zurich, 2011 @sallykipyego Erin Koch None Katie Mackey 15:23.65, Stanford, 2013 @KatiefMackey Alexi Pappas 15:47.13(i), Fayetteville, 2013 @AlexiPappas Lauren Penney 15:56.80, Stanford, 2013 @lpenney Caitlin Phillips None Chelsea Reilly 15:10.14, Zurich, 2013 Cydney Ross None @cydmarie16 Betsy Saina 15:12.05, Stanford, 2013 @bcsaina Melissa Salerno 16:21.30, Raleigh, 2012 Nicole Schappert 16:09, Providence, 2011 Neely Spence Gracey 15:26.51, Mt. SAC, 2013 @neelyspenceG Rebeka Stowe 16:08.77, Stanford, 2013 @rdstowe7 Renee Tomlin 17:02, New York, 2011 @ReneeTomlin Nicol Traynor 16:10.37, Mt. SAC, 2011 @nicolwithnoE Lisa Uhl 14:55.74, Saint-Denis, 2010 @lisa_uhl Amanda Winslow 15:54.66, Raleigh, 2013 @awin250 Jane Vongvorachoti 17:24, New York, 2012

Professional Men

First Name Last Name Personal Best 5K, Location, Year Twitter Handle Mark Amirault 13:45.69, Stanford, 2011 @slamirault Robby Andrews None @RA_Andrews Wayne Bartholomew None Scott Bauhs 13:28.40, Oxy, 2012 @ScottyBauhs Erik