TWIN CITIES AWARDED VARIOUS USA ROAD RUNNING CHAMPIONSHIPS
By David Monti
(c) 2008 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with permission.

Twin Cities Marathon, Inc., the Minneapolis not-for-profit which organizes the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon, has been awarded various USA road running championships over the next several years, including the first-ever USA road mile championships.  All of the championshpis were awarded at the recent USATF convention in Reno, N.V.

The championships are as follows:

USA Road Mile Championships (Men & Women): 2009 - 2012
USA Women's Marathon Championship: 2009
USA Men's 10 Mile Championship: 2009
USA Men's Marathon Championship: 2010
USA Women's 10 Mile Championship: 2010
USA Masters Marathon Championships (Men & Women): 2009 - 2015

"USATF is delighted to work with Twin Cities Marathon, Inc., in presenting these championship events," said Fred Finke, Interim High Performance Division chairman and Long Distance Running Chairman of USATF.  "Twin Cities Marathon, Inc., has a long history of support for American athletes and the development of distance running in this country.  Their quality events and attention to the athletes reflects the mission of USATF and makes the Twin Cities a natural choice for hosting national championships."

The awarding of a 1 mile road championship is interesting, given that such a championship category did not previously exist.  Held in early May, the Medtronic TC 1 Mile should appeal to track athletes as they ramp up for the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships which take place in late June in Eugene, Ore.  A $20,000 purse will be on offer.

"This will be the first time for a road mile championship in USATF history and we're excited and honored to have the opportunity to showcase Minneapolis in this way," said Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. race director Brian Mastel.

More detailed information is available at the organizer's official website: http://www.mtcmarathon.org.