Top U.S. men's distance runner to compete in the ING New York City Marathon for the third straight year.
New York, September 6, 2006-After two consecutive top-three finishes at the ING New York City Marathon, Olympic marathon silver medalist Meb Keflezighi of the United States will give the 26.2-mile course through New York's five boroughs another go on November 5, 2006. Keflezighi's plan to participate in the 37th running of the ING New York City Marathon was announced today by race director Mary Wittenberg, president and CEO of New York Road Runners. Keflezighi joins a professional men's field that includes defending champion and marathon world record-holder Paul Tergat of Kenya and fellow Americans Alan Culpepper and Dathan Ritzenhein.
"'Third time is the charm' should be Meb's mantra this time out," said Wittenberg. "I think this is Meb's year to win New York. He is fit, strong, healthy, and experienced. There's no time like the present for him."
Seventy days after capturing the 2004 Olympic marathon silver medal in Athens, Keflezighi finished as New York's runner-up with a time of 2:09:53. Last year, he posted a time of 2:09:56 to place third behind Tergat and Hendrick Ramaala. His marathon debut was at the 2002 New York City Marathon, where he placed ninth in a time of 2:12:35.
"I am very excited to come back for the ING New York City Marathon," said Keflezighi, a resident of San Diego. "It will be my eighth marathon and the fourth time in New York City. The ING New York City Marathon allows me to perform on a world stage against the best marathoners in the world. I am looking forward to competing against the announced field and I know there will be more great runners added in the near future."
Keflezighi, 31, is currently tied for fifth on the men's 2006-07 World Marathon Majors leaderboard. He ran the series-opening Boston Marathon in April where he turned in a third-place performance with a time of 2:09:56.
Other notable achievements for Keflezighi this year include his second-place showing at the inaugural NYC Half-Marathon Presented by NIKE (1:01:28), which was his debut performance at the half-marathon distance. Keflezighi was edged out by Tom Nyariki of Kenya (1:01:22), who recently announced that he will also run the ING New York City Marathon this year. Keflezighi also won the 2006 USA 15K Championships (43:43) and was second in the 10,000 meters at the USA Track & Field Championships (28:18.74).
Keflezighi was seventh at the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon in 2003 (2:10:03) and placed second at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials in Birmingham, Alabama, with a time of 2:11:47.
New York Road Runners
New York Road Runners, soon to celebrate its 50th anniversary, is dedicated to promoting the sport of distance running, enhancing health and fitness for all, and responding to community needs. Our road races and other fitness programs draw upwards of 300,000 runners annually, and together with our magazine and website support and promote professional and recreational running. A staff of 60, assisted by thousands of volunteers, stages the ING New York City Marathon, as well as a road race nearly every weekend plus many track and cross country events. NYRR's home base in New York, and its lifelong identification with Central Park, have given many of its events iconic status, attracting the world's top professional runners. Our youth programs provide running to 15,000 New York City schoolchildren who would otherwise have few or no fitness opportunities. For more information visit www.nyrr.org.
The ING New York City Marathon
The premier event of New York Road Runners, the ING New York City Marathon is one of the world's great road races, drawing more than 90,000 applicants. The race attracts many world-class professional athletes, not only for the more than $600,000 in prize money, but also for the chance to excel in the media capital of the world before two million cheering spectators and 312 million worldwide television viewers. As any one of the 672,000 past participants will attest, crossing the finish line in Central Park is one of the great thrills of a lifetime. For more information visit www.ingnycmarathon.org.
Contacts:
Richard Finn 212.423.2229 | rfinn@nyrr.org
Kerrin Perniciaro 212.423.2294 | kperniciaro@nyrr.org
Media Relations Department, New York Road Runners Lorraine DelliCarpini 212.642.7772 | lorraine.dellicarpini@edelman.com
