Posted: February 17, 2004

Athletics: Gate River Run Offers Equalizer Bonus and Olympian Marla Runyan to Compete

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - (February 16, 2004) - With the Gate River Run on Saturday, March 13 serving as the USA 15K Championship for the 11th consecutive year, race director Doug Alred expects another strong field of top American men and women competing for a $55,000 prize purse. New this year is the "Equalizer Bonus", awarding $5000 to the first male or female to cross the finish line, with the top-seeded women starting 5 minutes before the men.

The head start was based on the 5 minute difference between the course and U.S. records by four-time champion Deena Drossin 47:15 (2003) and five-time champion Todd Williams 42:22 (1995).

Marla Runyan, a legally blind runner and one of the brightest stars among American women in distance running, will return to the race following her inaugural national runner-up performance last year at Gate River. Runyan, 35, from Eugene, Ore., had a strong 2003 with USA titles at 5000 meters (road and track) and 20K (also setting a U.S. record of 1:05:52). At the Sydney Olympics in 2000, she finished 8th in the 1500 meters.

According to Alred, entries are ahead of last year for the 27th annual Gate River Run, a Jacksonville sports mainstay and the second largest 15K road race in the country (7,153 finishers in 2003).

The Jacksonville Track Club's Gate River Run includes the signature 15K race, The Florida Times-Union 5K (3.1 miles) Run and Walk for Charity; adidas Junior River Run (1 mile) for children 13 and under; Diaper Dashes for up to age 4 and a three-day MPS Group Fitness Expo. All events begin and end at the Jacksonville Sports Complex.

For more information, call (904) 739-1917 or go to: /www.gate-riverrun.com.

From Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Services