Posted: May 17, 2006

Running: "Get Psyched for Ottawa Race Weekend" Dinner

At 6:30PM on Monday, May 22nd the 4th Annual Running Room "Get Psyched for Ottawa Race Weekend" dinner will be held at the Arrow and the Loon at the corner of Bank Street and Fifth Avenue. The dinner, which has helped raise over $40,000 for the Ottawa Hospital Foundation, again features 3 world class guest speakers!

The fund, which was named after Phil Marsh's mom and dad after his mom passed away last fall from lung cancer, has been supported through a variety of events that have been sponsored by John Stanton and the Running Room and thanks to the folks at the Loon, 100% of all money received will again go directly to the Fund!

This year, the guest speakers include:

* Jason Dunkerly... blind Paralympian who was a silver medalist in the 2004 Athen's Paralympic Games. Jason is an accomplished track athlete and is currently back in training. His training and racing experiences are truly inspiring and he has faced adversity that many of us will never know but has still stayed strong and positive and is an inspiration to both his Ottawa Lions teammates and to all runners. He is also engaged to Colleen who is also the foundation upon which Jason has built this wonderful career.

* Dagne Debela... marathoner, future Canadian! Dagne hails from the home of elite marathon running in Ethiopia and was ranked the 12th fastest marathoner in the world in 2000! He won the Tokyo marathon in 2001 with a time of 2:13, has been top 3 at Tokyo, Paris, Vienna marathons. He has a best time in the half marathon of 1:00:56 and was third in the World Championships in 1990 and had wins in Lusanne and Lisbon. He is currently living and training for a comeback in Ottawa in the hopes of representing Canada and is bringing his family to Canada this summer and his racing experience at the world class level and the challenges he faces now in a new country will inspire all runners!

* Lynne Bermel...3rd ranked Ironman female in the world in the 80's, with a personal best of 9:24 at Ironman Australia, 15 Ironmans under 10:30, winner of Niagara Marathon 1994, Commonwealth Games team member, Canadian Champion Master's 10km, 10km best of 34:56, Gold Medalist World Military Triathlon Championships 1990, broadcaster and journalist and contributor to the Running Room magazine. Lynne brings so much racing and training experience, she has been around some of the greatest Ironman competitors ever and she understands what it takes to not only become a champion but also to have the courage to step out of the box and take on new life challenges and adventures.

The speakers will begin at 6:30PM and dinner will begin around 7:30 and there will be a silent auction with many terrific and unique items and every penny of the proceeds going directly to the Ottawa Hospital Foundation! For tickets, please drop by the 901 Bank Street Running Room or call Phil Marsh at 868-4588. Donations are gladly accepted as are silent auction items and very much appreciated!

Source: Phil Marsh runningroom.com.

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