Marathon/Running News: 3/7/08 - 3/14/08

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News From: Friday, March 14, 2008
	London Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		High Blood Pressure Results in High Mileage (Matlock Mercury) Phil Heler, of Dales, will run London, New York and Berlin this year. He is joining Lord Seb Coe, a double gold medalist, to raise money and awareness for Get Kids Going. Heler got started when he tested positive for high blood pressure. His sedentary lifestyle days were over.
	Odds And Ends
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Training prepares running group for Chuckanut 50K (Bellingham Herald) Hundreds are preparing for the grueling 2008 Chuckanut Mountain 50K Trail Run. The race will start and end with flat 10Ks of the Interurban, while the middle 30K has 5,000 of elevation gain and equal loss. Local runners who are part of the Evening Epic Run may have an advantage since the members gather each Wednesday night to go on strenuous trail runs for up to two hours.
		Non-Marathon/ Other Running
		Elite runners united for peace (Daily Nation) A few of Kenyas top elite runners, past and present, will be in Iten on Saturday not to run, but to support a unique peace race. Runners like world champion Luke Kibet, Joyce Chepchumba, Martin Lel, Robert Cheruiyot, Daniel Komen, Nyantika Maiyoro and Douglas Wakiihuri will be present at the Shoe4Africa Peace race, a unique 5K competition for junior athletes organized by US based Shoe4Africa. Shoe4Africa is recognized for promoting Aids awareness through sport
		Secret anti-doping probe (The Australian) Australian anti-doping investigators have been secretly trawling through athletes' medical records on the eve of the Beijing Olympics for any evidence that they are taking performance enhancing drugs. They will be evaluating the results of its secret trial, in which investigators cross referenced athletes' names with prescription records held by Medicare which is highly confidential since it violates the doctor-patient confidentiality clause. Marathon legend Rob de Castella called on ASADA to pursue those who corrupted and misled athletes, the head of ASADA said intelligence sharing by federal agencies would help to ensure coaches, trainers, doctors, sports organizations and third parties did not avoid punishment.
	Olympics 2008 (Men)
		Human Interest Story
		Geb is Got: World Record Holder Forced into Olympic Marathon (Sport) Haile Gebrselassie thought he was headed to Beijing to run the 10,000 meter race. He had opted out of the marathon due to exercised induced asthma that would be worsened by the extreme pollution in Beijing. The IOC supported his decision . The Ethiopian Athletic Federation said that it was not Geb's choice to opt out of one race and jump into another. The world record holder will be forced to run in the pollution
	Roma (Rome) Marathon
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		High quality field expected at Rome Marathon (European Athletics) Over 13,000 athletes are expected at the 2008 Rome Marathon of which nineteen in the elite men's field have performances under 2:10 and sixteen elite women have sub 2:30 finishes. A new course record is expected with Philip Singoei leading the field with a personal best of 2:07:57 in Eindhoven in 2007. Galina Bogomolova is the female star of the race with her 2:20:47 from the 2006 Chicago Marathon.
	Seabrook Lucky Trail Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Sisters run the distance together at Seabrook (Galveston County Daily News) Sisters, Saundra Stockholm, Alisa Daigle, Connie Bourque, Judy Thomas and Barbara Murphy, who have been running together for more than thirty years are planning to run the 2008 Seabrook Lucky Trail Marathon. The sisters picked Seabrook to coincide with a family milestone - one of the sister's fiftieth birthdays. Four of the sisters have competed in marathons in San Antonio, Austin, Houston and Baton Rouge, La., while Bourque is running her first full marathon Sunday.
	Shamrock Sportsfest Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		The Shamrock Marathon Grows a Little More Green (Pilot Online) The Virginia Beach Shamrock Marathon is green in more ways than one and this year it grows a little more green. The 26.2 mile race has always been centered around St. Paddy's day and displayed all levels of green in the past. This years race will be environmentally friendly and recycling receptacle are being placed on the course and plastic goody bags are replaced with cloth backpacks. The race has been designated as a Runner's World Green Team event and a Virginia Green Event.
News From: Thursday, March 13, 2008
	Marathon des Sables
		Human Interest Story
		Desert marathon test for footballer (Royston Crow) Martin Westcott, former Royston Town footballer, will be taking part in the 2008 Marathon des Sables, a 151-mile endurance race through the Sahara Desert. Westcott will be raising money for pupils at Castle School in Cambridge, a specialist school for children and young people with complex learning difficulties. Westcott's training is limited, having never experienced the terrain or the heat that he will encounter in the Sahara.
	Odds And Ends
		Human Interest Story
		Hitch for Blind Marathon Runner (BBC Sports) Blind man Dave Heeley, 50, hoping to complete seven marathons in seven days has had to alter his route just weeks before his first marathon since he is not allowed to use Argentinian air space to reach Chile for his second. Organizers said the second challenge would now take place in Brazil. After the first two marathons in South America, the father-of-three and guide, Malcolm Carr, hope to run five further grueling legs in Los Angeles, Sydney, Dubai, Tunis and London.
News From: Wednesday, March 12, 2008
	A Run Through Time
		Human Interest Story
		A Run Through Time always begins with a marathon (The Mountain Mall) Scout Hut in Riverside Park near Salida will be a hive of activity on Saturday morning. Jon MacManus, race diretor, hopes to get at least 225 participants. The list tallied 175 for the marathon on March 7th with no previous winners having signed up.
	Boston Marathon
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Boston Marathon Finalizes Elite Fields (Race Results Weekly) The final elite fields for the 2008 Boston Marathon has been announced. Jelena Prokopcuka and Rita Jeptoo heading the women's field. Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot and Patrick Ivuti leading the men's field.
		Boston Marathon: A showdown of international proportion. (The Earth Times) Boston Marathon race organizers have put together a field of athletes that will make up one of the most talented and decorated fields in the history of the marathon. The men's side will boast three time Boston Champion Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot as well as names like Kwambai, Ivitu, Asfaw and Bouramdane. The women's field touts defending champion Lidiya Grigoryeva of Russia and former champions Rita Jeptoo (2006) and Margaret Okayo (2002) of Kenya.
	Dong-A Seoul International Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Elite Runners to Compete in Seoul Intl Marathon (Dong A IIlbo) 2008 Seoul International Marathon is expecting 25,000 participants, 1,225 of whom have finish times under three hours. The men's elite field will include two-time champion Buzinggo Donatien from Burundi, Korea's National Record Holder Kim Yong-taek and winner of the Gyeongju International Marathon Kim Young-bok. The women's field defending champion Lee Jeong-sook, 43, will have competition from female runners in their 40s and 50s such as Moon Ki-sook, 46, whose personal best is 2:47:52 and Kim Jeong-ok, 54, whose personal best is 2:52:25.
	Georgia Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		A peach of a treat before the ING Georgia Marathon (Atlanta Journal Constitution) Boston Marathon winner Gayle Barron knows a thing or two about preparing for the 26.2 mile race known as the marathon. She has encouraged runners to get massages in the days leading up to the race and taper off the running mileage too.
	London Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Racing to Cure Cystic Fibrosis (Motor Sport) Oliver Gavin has won the LeMans auto race three times. He is now turning his intensity and training toward the London Marathon where he hopes to race to a sub three hour marathon and raise money toward finding a cure for cystic fibrosis.
	Odds And Ends
		Training/ Health
		Surmount the Wall in a Marathon (JournalGazette,net) The notorious "wall" in marathoning can occur when approaching mile 20 of a marathon when a wave of fatigue hits your body wants to melt into the pavement before a rush of dizziness and disorientation. The feared episode occurs when the body uses up its stockpile of glycogen, a stored form of glucose thats kept in the liver and muscles. When hitting the wall, runners should slow their pace and immediately take in carbs in the form of sports drinks, gels, energy bars or fruit.
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Olympic Officials Reject Geb's Marathon Switch (CNN) Haile Gebrselassie, an asthma sufferer and Ethiopian world record holder, is reconsidering his decision from earlier this week to sit out of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Marathon which is set for a hot, humid and polluted course in Beijing in August. Gebrselassie feared pollution could damage his health; but would reconsider if the marathon venue could be switched. Chinese Olympic officials have dismissed Gebrselassie's offer.
	Olympics 2008 (Men)
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Flip flopping like a politician, Gebrselassie hints about Olympic Marathon. (BBC Sport) The 34 year-old marathon world record holder, Gebrselassie, says that he might run the 2008 Olympic marathon if the start time and the starting location were changed. His words were not meant to seem selfish, but to address the concerns of all athletes participating in the marathon
	Pikes Peak Marathon
		Non-Marathon/ Other Running
		After snafu last year, organizers relieved as sign-ups for Pike's Peak Marathon, Ascent go smoothly (Colorado Springs Gazette) Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon organizers are breathing easy as registration for the Aug. 16-17 races went off without a hitch a year after a crashed server at active.com delayed sign-ups by twelve days and frustrated thousands of runners. Award registration starts at noon Wednesday. There are 64 free spots for the top finishers from the 2007 races.
		Human Interest Story
		Pikes Peak Marathon. 800 Slots to climb the mountain (KOAA) March 12 at 11:30 am Pacific Time marks the opening of registration for the Pikes Peak Marathon and Ascent 1/2 Marathon that takes place August 16th and 17th this year. The Marathon allows only 800 slots.
	Roma (Rome) Marathon
		Training/ Health
		Aniko Kalovics Promoting a Marathon Mindset (European Athletics) Hungarian record-holder at 10km up to the half-marathon, Aniko Kalovics of Hungary is trying to encourage national interest in road running. Also on the agenda is marathon training - 110-130km training weeks. Her next big goal races are the 2008 Rome Marathon and the 2008 New York City Marathon. Citing her lack of experience in hot temperatures, Kalovics has opted out of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Marathon.
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Rome Marathon Bigger, and Maybe Faster, Than Ever (Race Results Weekly) The 2008 Rome Marathon is expecting 14,500 runners and has a field of decorated elites in this first big European marathon of the year. The men's field consists of Philip Singoei, Teferi Wodajo, Dejene Birhanu, Ottavio Andriani, Jonathan Kosgei Kipkorir and Paul Kimugul who is debuting in the 26.2 mile distance. The women's field will include Galina Bogomolova, Aniko Kalovics, Larissa Zousko, Ornella Ferrara and Baysa Atsede.
	Safaricom Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Lewa Marathon set for June 28, says Safaricom boss (The Standard) The 2008 Safaricom Marathon will take place at the Lewa Conservancy in Northern Kenya on June 28. Race organizers are expecting over 1,000 participants and a substantial part of the funds will be used to support community projects mainly in education, health and environment. Run on a rough terrain and under harsh climatic conditions, the marathon has gained reputation as being one of the top 10 toughest marathon events in the world.
	Shamrock Sportsfest Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Shamrock Marathon going extra mile to protect the environment (WVEC.COM) Preparations are underway for the 2008 Shamrock Marathon Sportsfest and with 18,000 participants the race organizers are thinking about how they can reduce their carbon footprints. In an effort to put together the first "Virginia Green" event, the race is turning to recycling, the use of reusable bags and donations to food banks. In addition Soles for Souls will be collecting used shoes at the expo.
News From: Tuesday, March 11, 2008
	Antarctica Marathon
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Aptos man wins Antarctica Half Marathon (Santa Cruz Sentinel) Greg Hales from Aptos, CA won the 2008 Antarctica Half Marathon in 1:42:15 and Tony Casselberry of Santa Cruz, CA won the Antarctica Marathon in 6:43. Both men faced temperatures way below freezing and avoided frostbite. The races included 221 participants from eighteen countries. With no manned aid stations, all participants either carried their water and food or stored them at designated rest stops.
	Duchy Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		500 Marathons in under 3 Hours and 20 minutes. 449 And Counting (Cotswold Chatterblog) Steve Edwards finished the 32nd Duchy Marathon on March 9th at Penventon Park Hotel in Redruth, Cornwall with a time of 3 hours, 13 minutes, and 26 seconds. This was his 449th marathon under 3 hours and 20 minutes. Edwards is on his was to complete 500 marathons by the year 2012 and hopes that all of them will be under 3 hours and 20 minutes.
	Georgia Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Atlanta Falcons Linebacker Keith Brooking Prepares to 'Run for Something Better' at ING Georgia Marathon (Earth Times) Linebacker Keith Brooking will participate in ING's "Run for Something Better" program during the 2008 ING Georgia Marathon and Half Marathon. Brooking, a professional football player for the Atlanta Falcons, is the only player on Atlanta's current roster who played on the Falcons' 1998 Super Bowl team. Brooking is serving as a role model to encourage thousands of children in the metro Atlanta area to embrace physical activity and work towards setting their own personal fitness goals.
	Marathon de Mayo
		Human Interest Story
		Recession Claims the Marathon de Mayo (Reno Gazette-Journal) The Marathon de Mayo, the only marathon in Reno, has been canceled. Race organizers have cited the lack of sponsors funding the race due to the economic downturn as part of the reason. The other was that the 2-year-old race received a grant from the Reno Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority to the tune of 10,000 dollars.
	Odds And Ends
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Hengelo path to Beijing for Gebrselasssie (IAAF) World marathon record holder and two-time Olympic and four-time World 10,000m champion Haile Gebrselassie announced that he intends to compete in the 2008 FBK Thales Games in Hengelo. Gebrselassie also mentioned that he will not run the 2008 Beijing Olympic Marathon; but may participate in the 10,000 meters. Gebrselassie will face some formidable competiton in Hengelo - reigning Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele and silver medallist Sileshi Sihine, Tadesse Tola and Abebe Dinkessa.