Central Park Challenge to Bring Top Athletes to NYC in Olympic Year

Dathan Ritzenhein, Alan Webb, and Shalane Flanagan highlight outstanding fields

On March 15, fans of distance running will witness two world-class races in NYC as New York Road Runners hosts the Central Park Challenge. After the NYRR 8000 people’s race at 7:30 a.m., the USA Men’s 8K Championship will take place at 9:00, followed by a new event, the Women’s Invitational, at 9:30.

Eight Olympians and 10 current and former USA champions are entered in the two 8K (4.97-mile) races. There is a total prize-money purse of $70,000—$20,000 of which will go to the top male and female finishers ($10,000 each)—plus a $10,000 bonus offered to any winner who breaks the American 8K record of 22:04 for the men (Alberto Salazar, 1981) or 24:36 for the women (Deena Kastor, 2005).

NYRR hosted the USA Men’s 8K Championship in 2002–2005 and again last year. This year’s race will be more exciting than ever as it features a host of 2008 Olympic hopefuls eager to test their early-season fitness. Dathan Ritzenhein, who won the USA Cross Country Championship in San Diego in February, will take on American mile record-holder Alan Webb in a renewal of one of America’s leading long distance rivalries.

Ritzenhein holds a 5–2  advantage in races against Webb, a 2004 Olympian. The pair has taken turns in the top spot in their last two meetings; Webb won the 10,000-meter race at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational in 2006, and Ritzenhein beat Webb in the 2-mile at the Prefontaine Classic last year.

“Stars since high school, Alan and Dathan are among the most exciting and accomplished runners the United States has ever seen,” said NYRR president and CEO Mary Wittenberg. “They are both riding high heading into the Olympic year, and we are honored they have chosen the Central Park Challenge to make their 2008 New York City debuts.”

Ritzenhein, 25, of Eugene, OR, earned a berth on the 2008 U.S. Olympic team in the marathon by finishing second in an epic U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Men’s Marathon race in Central Park last November. He also won the 2007 Healthy Kidney 10K in a Central Park record of 28:08.

“Alan [Webb] and I seem to have been attached at the hip since high school,” Ritzenhein said. “Every time we race it seems to be an exciting competition, and hopefully it will be another one at the USA 8K Championship.”

“I am really excited about running the USA 8K champs,” Webb said. “It will be great to start my season off by running in New York City.”

Also in the field is Jorge Torres, the 2005 USA 8K champion and 2006 national 10,000-meter champion. Other entrants include Aaron Aguayo, Bolota Asmerom, James Carney, Josh McAdams, Ed Moran, and Edwardo Torres. Ritzenhein, Jorge Torres, and Moran have all made the U.S. team for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, to be held March 30 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Click here for a complete USA Men’s 8K Championship entrant list.

Olympian Shalane Flanagan, 26, of Pittsboro, NC, headlines the field for the Women’s Invitational. The American record-holder at 5000 meters (14:44.80) and 3000 meters indoors (8:33.25), making her Central Park professional debut, is fresh off a commanding victory at the USA Cross Country Championship. She has spent most of the past two months training at 6,500 feet  in the rugged mountains of San Luis Potosí, Mexico, with two-time New York City Marathon champion German Silva. Carrie Tollefson, Amy Rudolph, Katie McGregor, and Erin Donohue are also among the leading contenders in this inaugural event. Click here for a complete entrant list.

“Shalane is a shining star on the fast track to Beijing,” Wittenberg said. “However, this will be no stroll in the park for her as we have assembled a formidable field of the best distance runners from the mile to the marathon to challenge her.”

“My preparation in Mexico has been geared toward running longer races,” Flanagan said. “The 8K distance fits well in my training schedule. The altitude, weather, and hospitality in Mexico have allowed us to improve on our aerobic base and lay a great foundation for the upcoming Olympic year.”

McGregor, 30, of St. Louis Park, MN, qualified for her sixth IAAF World Cross Country Championships team this year with a fourth-place finish at the USA Cross Country Championships. She made her marathon debut in 2006 at the ING New York City Marathon, finishing ninth. McGregor is expected to contend for an Olympic berth at 10,000 meters.

Tollefson, 31, of Minneapolis, MN, a 2004 Olympian at 1500 meters, won the 2006 USA Cross Country Championships in Van Cortlandt Park. Rudolph, 34, of Providence, RI, was an Olympian in 1996 and 2000 at 5000 meters.

Olympic hopefuls Carmen Douma-Hussar of Canada, Liliya Shobukhova of Russia, and Lisa Galaviz of the United States are also in the field.

American mile record-holder Alan Webb will open his Olympic-year campaign on March 15 at the Central Park Challenge.