5/29/08 By David Monti (c) 2008 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved - used with permission
NEW YORK (28-May) -- They finished 1-2-3 in Boston at the USA Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon last month, and now Deena Kastor, Magdalena Lewy Boulet and Blake Russell will be teaming-up again to compete in the 37th edition of the NYRR New York Mini 10-K. Slated for Saturday, June 7, the "Mini" is the oldest all-women's road race in the world, founded by Fred Lebow and the New York Road Runners in 1972.
"This is a formidable and very experienced squad with legitimate Olympic medal hopes that all of America should be very proud of," commented Mary Wittenberg, president and CEO of the New York Road Runners. "Having them all here for the Mini reflects our commitment to America's top athletes and demonstrates that the road to Beijing continues to run through Central Park for America's Olympians."
Kastor, 35, of Mammoth Lakes, Calif., won the Mini in 2004 in 31:44, about two months before she won an Olympic bronze medal in the marathon. Since then, she's won the Chicago and London Marathons, set the USA marathon record (2:19:36), and won last month's Trials marathon. Beijing will be Kastor's third Olympic Games and her second as a marathoner.
Lewy Boulet, 34, of Oakland, Calif., set a personal best 33:32.02 for 10,000m at the Stanford Invitational on April 4, before finishing a surprising second at the Trials Marathon, a race she led through 24 miles before Kastor passed her. Born in Poland and becoming an American citizen on Sept. 11, 2001, Lewy Boulet has run the Mini twice before, in 2004 and 2006.
Russell, 32, of Pacific Grove, Calif., finished third in the Trials to make her first Olympic team. She led the 2004 Trials marathon most of the way, but she faded in the second half to finish fourth and did not make the team. She's been a consistently high-level performer, and her national road running titles include the 15-K in 2006 and 20-K in 2005. This will be her first appearance at the Mini.
Challenging the USA Olympians will be international stars Hilda Kibet of the Netherlands and Madai Perez of Mexiso. Kibet, 27, a cousin of world record holder Lornah Kiplagat, won last summer's NYC Half-Marathon presented by NIKE and ran a world leading 31:01 for 10-K on the roads in Schoorl, Netherlands, back in February. Kibet has run the Mini twice before, finishing sixth twice. Perez, 28, is the Mexican record holder for the marathon (2:22:59) and won the Mexican Olympic trials race for the marathon on May 11 in Ixtapa. This will be her Mini debut.
A total prize purse of $34,000 is up for grabs, with $10,000 going to the overall winner. The top American over the line will receive $5,000. There is also a prize money purse for New York Road Runners members, and organizers expect a strong turnout of local athletes to run with the stars.
The Mini got its name when race founder Fred Lebow convinced the first sponsor to run a six-mile "mini" marathon —named for the miniskirt, which was then in fashion— rather than a full marathon. The first race featured just 78 participants. Mini champions include Norway's Grete Waitz and Kenya's Tegla Loroupe —each of whom won five Mini titles-— The Netherlands' Lornah Kiplagat (four titles), Norway's Ingrid Kristiansen (two titles) and Paula Radcliffe.
For years, women have been drawn by the race's festive atmosphere, spirit of solidarity and dramatic start on Central Park West. The event is open to women of all abilities, and entry information is available at http://www.nyrr.org.
