Posted: June 5, 2005

Athletics: Leghzaoui Sets Course Record at Freihofer's Run for Women 5K

Troncoso Wins 4th USA 5K Masters Title

ALBANY, N.Y. - (June 4, 2005) - Once the gun sounded to send 3,510 runners on their way at Saturday morning's 27th Freihofer's Run for Women 5K - open to international runners for the first time since 1992 - it was all about Asmae Leghzaoui who dominated the field and broke eight-time winner Lynn Jennings' 10-year-old course record of 15:24 with her 15:18.

The 28-year-old Moroccan had been on a barn-storming campaign since her return from a two-year suspension for EPO use. Six competitive outings had brought her five victories, four course records and one pending world best. Her sole loss, last weekend in Ottawa, was due largely to a course direction error. In Albany, the question, then, was not so much if Leghzaoui would win, but if she would break Jennings' mark and by how much.

A tentative first kilometer in the region of 3:10 saw Leghzaoui sitting comfortably in a group with Nicole Aish (CO), Katie McGregor (MN), Kim Smith (NZL) and Marie Davenport (IRL), with the rest of the field rapidly stringing out in their wake. That split time, evidently, was the Moroccan's cue to set the course alight. Immediately after the roadside timing clock, Leghzaoui injected a surge to which none could offer any response. Within 100 meters, Leghzaoui had opened a 20m gap, a margin she extended all the way to the line.

The increase in pace was evident at the one-mile marker. The 5:00 split was the fastest seen at that juncture for some years; even so, it extrapolated to somewhere in the region of 15:30, substantially shy of Jennings' venerable mark. With every stride, however, the leader was gaining ground on the field and on the course standard. As Smith, McGregor, Aish, Davenport and Ethiopia's Merima Hashim all vied for second, the diminutive front-runner (she is 5' tall and 90 lbs) roared onwards.

As Leghzaoui powered through the long downhill sweep to the finish line, it became ever clearer that this was to be the year that Jennings' name was to be erased from the books. Blasting through the finishing tape adjacent to the magnificent Empire State Plaza, Leghzaoui stopped the clock at 15:18, a six second improvement, and the fourth fastest road time in the world thus far this year.

"I felt I could get the course record in the second kilometer when I saw the split time go from 3:10 to 2:58," said Leghzaoui, whose first place finishes following her suspension include Sallie May 10K, 31:27 CR (4/16); Salt Lake City 5K, 15:14 (4/23); Lilac Bloomsday 12K, 39:33 (5/1); Bay to Breakers 12K, 38:22 (CR, pending world best; 5/15); Rite-Aid Cleveland 10K, 31:10 CR (5/22).

Asked about the controversy that surrounded her appearance here - four runners, including Kenyan/Dutch star Lornah Kiplagat and 2004 World Cross Country champion Benita Johnson from Australia, withdrew in protest - the winner simply commented, "A mistake like that (her EPO use) will never go away. It will always be a fingerprint. But this will give me some motivation. When I speak publicly about what I have done, there is a sense of relief for me."

For her victory, Leghzaoui earned $10,000. Kim Smith won the race for second with a time of 15:41 ($5000) with Marie Davenport third in 15:45 ($2500). The first American was Team USA Minnesota's Katie McGregor, fifth overall, in 15:51 ($1000).

Evergreen Carmen Troncoso, 46, impressively running her 15th Freihofer's Run for Women, won the USA 5K Masters Championship, emulating her results from 1999-00 and 2003. Her time of 17:07 placed her 18th overall and earned her $750.

"I had a great run, from beginning to end," said the Austin, Texas resident. "It was really tough, though".

Second and third in the masters national championship were Debbi Kilpatrick-Morris, 41, (17:10) and Marisa Hanson, 41, (17:27).

"This was a superb display of world-class running from all of our elite runners," commented Event Director George Regan. "Many great runners have tried to take down our course record and failed. For Asmae to have done it today is a testimony to her and to the caliber of this international field. This was a great day for Albany."

Event sponsors included the Charles Freihofer Baking Company (a division of George Weston Bakeries Inc.), Price Chopper Supermarkets, B95.5 FM, NewsChannel 13 and The Clarion Hotel of Albany.

27th Freihofer's Run for Women 5K: USA Masters Championship -Albany, NY, Saturday, June 4, 2005

1) Asmae Leghzaoui, MAR, 15:18*, $10,000
2) Kim Smith, NZL, 15:41, $5000
3) Marie Davenport, IRL, 15:45, $2500
4) Merima Hashim, ETH, 15:49, $1500
5) Katie McGregor, USA/MN, 15:51, $1000
6) Leah Malot, KEN, 16:09, $750
7) Nicole Aish, USA/CO, 16:13, $500
8) Laura O'Neill, USA/CT, 16:22, $300
9) Naomi Wangui, KEN, 16:26, $250
10) Yimenashu Taye, ETH, 16:32, $200
*course record (previous record, 15:24, Lynn Jennings, June 3, 1995)

USA MASTERS (40 and older)
1) Carmen Troncoso, TX, 17:07, $750
2) Debbi Kilpatrick-Morris, OH, 17:10, $600
3) Marisa Hanson, NY, 17:27, $350
4) Doreen McCourbrie, PA, 17:46, $200
5) Monica Joyce, MI, 17:47, $100

For more race results, go to: FreihofersRun.com.

From: Edward Parham

Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Services Director
385 Oak View Lane
Santa Barbara, CA 93111

(805) 696-6232, fax (805) 967-5958
Ryan@RunningUSA.org
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