Marilson Gomes Dos Santos and Jelena Prokopcuka to defend their titles at the ING New York City Marathon 2007

New York, July 19, 2007 - Two-time defending champion Jelena Prokopcuka of Latvia and last year's surprise champion Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil will both return to defend their titles at the ING New York City Marathon 2007 on Sunday, November 4, it was announced today by New York Road Runners president and CEO and race director Mary Wittenberg.

Wheelchair defending champions Kurt Fearnley of Australia and American Amanda McGrory will also return to headline a stacked field of wheelchair racers that is expected to include all of the past ING New York City Marathon male and female winners since the first official race in 2000.

In his ING New York City Marathon debut last year, Gomes, 29, sent shock waves by beating a world-class field that included world record-holder and defending champion Paul Tergat, Olympic gold medalist Stefano Baldini, ING New York City Marathon 2004 champion Hendrick Ramaala, and American favorite and Olympic silver medalist Meb Keflezighi. It was a major upset victory that catapulted Gomes into the ranks of the world's best. Gomes's winning time was two hours, nine minutes, 58 seconds.

�"Last year's ING New York City Marathon was Marilson's coming-out party as one of the world's top marathoners," said Wittenberg. �"What a thrill it was to welcome our first South American across the line last year. I fully expect Marilson to prove this year that he is no one-hit wonder."

Gomes, who finished eighth at the 2007 Flora London Marathon and won the 5000 meters and the 10,000 meters at the 2007 Brazilian Championships in June, will return to his native country this month to compete at the Pan American Games in the 5000 meters on Monday, July 23, and the 10,000 meters on Friday, July 27, in Rio de Janeiro.

�"Becoming the first Brazilian and the first South American to win in New York last year was the greatest moment of my running career," said Gomes. �"It was truly gratifying to see the incredible excitement and acclaim that my win generated back home.

�"I know that to repeat as champion in 2007 will not be easy, but I learned last year that I can run with, and defeat, any of the world's top marathoners. I know that I will not have the element of surprise on my side this year, so I must be prepared to run much faster than ever before."

Prokopcuka, 30,took a commanding lead during the 2006 race and won her second consecutive ING New York City Marathon in two hours, 25 minutes, five seconds. She triumphed over a deep women's professional field that included American record-holder Deena Kastor and Kenyans Rita Jeptoo, Catherine Ndereba, and Susan Chepkemei.

Prokopcuka is bidding to become the first three-peat champion since 1986. Already she is one of only five women to win two or more consecutive ING New York City Marathons.

�"This race excites me very much because if I win, I'll become the second woman after Grete Waitz to win the ING New York City Marathon three times in a row," said Prokopcuka. �"This can make me a legend."

Prokopcuka sits atop the World Marathon Majors series leaderboard. A win in New York in November would very likely make her the champion of the first two-year WMM series and net her half of the $1 million jackpot prize. Prokopcuka finished second at the BAA Boston Marathon in both 2006 and 2007. She was in New York in June of this year to compete in the NYRR New York Mini 10K, where she finished fifth in 32:26.

�"There is a lot on the line for Jelena as she strives to win the first-ever World Marathon Majors title and to continue on her path of being New York City's modern-day Grete," said Wittenberg. �"Jelena has the strength, speed, and poise to win it all and comfortably wear all the crowns."

In 2006, Fearnley set the men's course record en route to victory in the wheelchair division, crossing the finish line in 1:29:22, more than six minutes faster than second-place finisher Aaron Gordian Minz of Mexico. In her first appearance in New York, McGrory, a student at the University of Illinois, led the women's division race with a time of 1:54:17. Most recently, both New York champions won the wheelchair division titles at the prestigious Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta on July 4. The 2007 field is expected to be competitive, as athletes will be racing for a wheelchair prize money purse of $40,000 plus time bonuses, with the male and female winners taking home $7,500 apiece.

Gomes, Prokopcuka, and 2004 champion Ramaala are the first professional athletes announced for the ING New York City Marathon 2007, one of five events in the World Marathon Majors series that showcases the sport's top athletes and awards an unprecedented $1 million champion's prize. The WMM also includes the Boston Marathon, the Flora London Marathon, the BMW Berlin-Marathon, and the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon.