Posted: August 26, 2005

Athletics: 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist, Women's Defending Champion Face-Off at Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon presented by SunTrust

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - (Aug. 23, 2005) - In 2004, 34-year-old Romanian Nuta Olaru laid out a blistering pace through the 13.1-mile course that went virtually unanswered from the rest of the women in the elite field at the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon presented by SunTrust. Motivated by revenge from a disappointing marathon performance at the Athens Olympics, Olaru's on-course dominance laid waste to a Japanese contingent favored to produce a champion. This year, Olaru will need to match strides with 33-year-old Japanese running icon, Naoko Takahashi, the gold medalist in the marathon at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games (2:23:14).

Fueling the competition will be an elevated prize purse for winners, with increased emphasis on time bonuses. The race, which is celebrating its fifth anniversary on Sunday, Sept 4, already boasts the largest half-marathon prize purse outside of the IAAF World Championships. Both the male and female winners each earn $12,000 for their victories and prize money is awarded to the top 10 finishers. Along with a $10,000 world record bonus (m: 59:17, w: 66:44), there is $5000 on the line for an American record (m: 60:55, w: 68:34) and $5000 for an American soil record (m: 60:27, w: 68:30).

The course record bonus has been increased, awarding $3000 to the male who can lower Martin Lel's mark of 61:27 set in 2003 and Margaret Okayo's 69:17 also set in '03. Additional time bonuses will be awarded to the first male who runs sub-60:30 ($2000) and first under 61:00 ($1000) and the first female who runs sub-68:35 ($2000) and sub-69:00 ($1000).

Following Takahashi's Olympic gold performance, she earned instant celebrity in her homeland. She then magnified her elite status when she broke the world record in 2001 at the real Berlin Marathon, simultaneously becoming the first woman to break the 2:20:00 time barrier with her 2:19:46.

Kenyan Margaret Atodonyang, 32, returns to Virginia Beach to better her second place finish in 2003. And, the 23-year-old Russian newcomer Tatyana Chulakh is sure to make a splash along the beach. Recently, Chulakh made her half-marathon debut at the America's Finest City Half Marathon (Aug 14, San Diego, Calif.) winning in 1:13:36 and beating Kenyan Anastasia Ndereba by almost three minutes.

On the men's side, Kenyans rule the field in Virginia Beach. Haron Toroitich returns in 2005 after inching out fellow countryman Joshua Chelanga at the finish in 2004; both were timed in 1:01:55. With last year's win, the 26-year-old Toroitich earned the $12,000 first place check along with a $25,000 musical marathon bonus awarded to the athlete who won both the 2004 P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon (January) and any of the other three musical races staged by Elite Racing that year.

Joining the Kenyan arsenal are tough-as-nails Christoper Cheboiboch, 27, who won the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon (2:09:17) in San Diego in June while battling flu-like symptoms, and youngster James Kwambai who holds the fastest half-marathon time in the men's field at 60:22.

Among the 11 Kenyans in the men's field stands Ethiopian Tekeste Kebede and the American Celedonio Rodriquez. Kebede, who has all the running skills to win in Virginia Beach, will be seeking to improve on his 11th place finish from 2003. For Rodriquez, the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon will be an opportunity to compete against the toughest field this young runner has experienced thus far in his career.

This year, the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon, the country's 3rd largest half, welcomes more than 20,000 runners and walkers on Sept. 4. To learn more about the half-marathon and the prize purse, visit RNRHalf.com or call (800) 311-1255.

Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon Elite Field as of August 23, 2005

MEN
NAME / AGE / COUNTRY / HM BEST / FACT-COMMENT
Haron Toroitich, 27, KEN, 60:53 1st '04 Rock 'n' Roll Half, RnR AZ Marathon
Paul Kirui, 25, KEN, 60:52 2004 World Half-Marathon Champion
Christopher Cheboiboch, 27, KEN, 60:33 1st '05 Coca-Cola Zero RnR Marathon
James Mwangi, 22, KEN, 61:28 1st '04 Sapporo Half-Marathon
James Kwambai, 22, KEN, 60:22 1st '05 San Blas Half, 1st '05 Bogota Half (CR)
Tekeste Kebede, 26, ETH, 62:59 3rd '05 RNR Marathon, 4th '05 San Blas Half
Araya Haregot, 24, ETH, 63:02 1st '05 Salt Lake City Marathon
Yusuf Songoka, 25, KEN, 60:53 1st '04 South Africa Half, 6th '03 World Half
John Korir, 29, KEN, 61:00 2005 World's Best 10K & Lilac Bloomsday winner
Nephat Kinyanjui, 28, KEN, 63:33 1st 2005 Country Music Marathon
Ronald Mogaka, 27, KEN, 61:25 3rd '05 Litchfield 7 Mile, 2nd '04 Indy Half
Celedonio Rodriguez, 24, USA/CO, 65:59 6th '05 Mount Sac 10,000m
Julius Kibet, 23, KEN, 61:18 1st '04 Jefferson Hospital Philly Distance Run
James Koskei, 36, KEN, 62:07 5th '05 Beach to Beacon 10K, 7th Falmouth Road Race
Hironori Arai, 25, JPN, 61:58
Yoichiro Akiyama, 25, JPN, 61:58
Shinichi Watanabe, 28, JPN, 62:38
Michinori Takano, 23, JPN, 62:50
William Chebor, 22 KEN, 64:02 6th '05 Falmouth, 6th '05 Beach to Beacon 10K

WOMEN
Nuta Olaru, 35, ROM, 69:00 1st '04 Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon
Naoko Takahashi, 33, JPN, 68:55 2000 Sydney Olympic Marathon Gold Medalist
Alevtina Ivanova, 30, RUS, 71:54 2nd 2005 Beach to Beacon 10K & Falmouth
Salina Kosgei, 27, KEN, 71:26 1st '04 Paris Marathon
Luminita Talpos, 32, ROM, 70:08 
Askale Tafa, 25, ETH, Debut 3rd '05 Maratona della Citta de Roma
Zivile Balciunate, 26, LTU, 71:57 2nd '05 City of Los Angeles Marathon
Galina Bogomolova, 27, RUS, 72:12 6th '03 World Champs 10,000m; NR 10,000m 30:26
Margaret Atodonyang, 32, KEN, 68:34 2nd '04 & 03 Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon
Grace Momanyi, 23, KEN, 70:16 1st '05 Coban Half-Marathon
Mihaela Botezan, 29, ROM, 69:24 11th '04 Olympic 10,000m (Athens)
Tatyana Chulakh, 23, RUS, 73:35 1st 2005 America's Finest City Half Marathon
Elena Orlova, 35, RUS, 72:40 7th '04 Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon
Masdoka Ougi, 19, JPN, 70:31
Ikuko Nagao, 23, JPN, 72:09
Fujiko Takahashi, 22, JPN, 70:17
Nami Kosugi, 21, JPN, 72:08

Country Key: ROM - Romania, JPN - Japan, RUS - Russia, KEN - Kenya, LTU - Lithuania, ETH - Ethiopia

Source: Audra Fleming / Susan Reid, Elite Racing, Inc., (858) 450-6510