10-05-2007
Contact:
Jim Estes
Senior Manager of LDR and Marketing
USA Track & Field
317-713-4661
Boston, MA -- Two of America's preeminent female distance runners have officially entered the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon, officials from USA Track & Field and the Boston Athletic Association announced Friday.
Deena Kastor (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.) and Colleen De Reuck (Boulder, Colo.) became the first women to announce their intent to compete in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon in Boston on April 20, 2008, when they submitted their entries this morning.
Kastor and De Reuck are in Boston this week to compete in the USA Women's 10 km Championship, hosted on Monday by the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women.
Kastor, 34, placed second in the 2004 Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon, then won the bronze medal in the Athens Olympic Games, becoming the first American to win a women's marathon medal since Joan Samuelson. She has twice set the American Record in the marathon, first at the 2003 Flora London Marathon (2:21:16), then again at the 2006 Flora London Marathon (2:19:36) where she became the first U.S. woman to break 2:20:00. Kastor has recently one two major marathons, the 2005 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon (2:21:25) and the 2006 Flora London Marathon.
De Reuck, 43, is a four-time Olympian and the defending champion of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon. De Reuck competed in three Olympic Games for her native South Africa, placing as high as ninth (in the 1992 Barcelona Games 10,000m), before becoming a U.S. citizen in 2000. She captured the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon in St. Louis with a time 2:28:40, the fastest winning time in Trials history. De Reuck gave birth to her second daughter, Tara, on July 4.
To enter the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon, women must first qualify. The event's "A" standard is 2:39:00, while the "B" standards are 2:47:00 in the marathon or 33:00.00 in the 10,000 meters. The qualifying standards must be met from January 1, 2006 through March 23, 2008 or at the 2005 USA Marathon Championships (October 2, 2005). Currently 127 women have qualified for the Trials, with 16 having met the "A" standard. Qualified athletes may enter the race at www.usatf.org.
Additional information about the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon can be found at www.bostontrials2008.com.
USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.
USATF is a volunteer-driven, not-for-profit organization with a staff of professional program administrators at the National Office in Indianapolis. The mission of USATF is to foster sustained competitive excellence, interest, and participation in the sports of track & field, long distance running, and race walking. For more information, visit www.usatf.org.
Boston Athletic Association
Established in 1887, the Boston Athletic Association is a non-profit organization with a mission of managing athletic events and promoting a healthy lifestyle through sports, especially running. The B.A.A.'s Boston Marathon is the world's oldest annual marathon, and the organization manages other local events, including the B.A.A. Half Marathon presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund, and supports comprehensive charity, youth, and year-round running programs. Since 1986, the principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon has been John Hancock Financial Services. The B.A.A. is the local organizing committee for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials Women's Marathon.
Media Contacts:
B.A.A.: Jack Fleming (617-236-1652, x2627; mobile: 617-459-1587; [email protected])
or Marc Chalufour (617-236-1652, x2632; mobile: 617-459-1586; [email protected]).
USATF: Jim Estes (317-713-4661; [email protected])
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