Posted: September 2, 2004

Athletics: California runner wins contest to train in Ethiopia

Already excited about running the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon next month, now Natalie Mitchell has something else to get ready for: the trip of a lifetime, to train with 2000 Olympic marathon champion Gezahegne Abera and other great Ethiopian distance runners in Addis Ababa later this fall. Mitchell’s name was drawn earlier this week by Wayne Carlson, founder of The Teff Company, which sponsored the contest.

Mitchell, of Valley Village, Calif., has a personal best of 3:32:31 from the 2000 Los Angeles Marathon and called the chance to run with Abera “a dream. I love the art of taking apart a race to see how I can get better, and to train with these runners is unbelievable.” The 31-year-old voice-over actress, who also works in marketing for ABC Entertainment, has completed four marathons, and hopes to run a Boston Marathon qualifying time in Chicago.

“To learn what makes these runners stand out, I’m so excited to get close to that,” she said yesterday,

The Teff Company (www.teffco.com) is run by Carlson in Caldwell, Idaho. While living and working in Ethiopia in the early 1970s, Carlson “discovered” teff, a tiny grain about the size of a poppyseed that’s traditionally used to make the spongy bread called injera, a staple of the Ethiopian diet. High in protein, calcium, iron and potassium, the nutrition and easy digestibility of teff is called a perfect fit for endurance athletes, and is highly adaptable to American cooking.

Abera is the 2000 Olympic marathon gold medalist and 2001 World Champion, the only man to hold both titles. He also won, in his trademark sprint finish, the 2003 Flora London Marathon.