Marathon/Running News: 3/15/08 - 3/22/08

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News From: Thursday, March 20, 2008
	2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		With late race charge, Kastor takes U.S. Marathon trials title (IAAF) Although Magdalena Lewy-Boulet charged out to an early lead at the 2008 US Olympic Team Trials, favorite Deena Kastor closed an almost two minute gap starting at mile 15. Kastor passed Lewy-Boulet after mile 23 to win the race in 2:29:35. Lewy-Boulet was second in 2:30:19 and Blake Russell was third in 2:32:40.
	City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)
		Non-Marathon/ Other Running
		ChronoTrack Systems and Impinj Bring RFID Technology to LA Marathon (Marketwire) Recently formed ChronoTrack Systems, Inc. today announced that the company's road race timing system, based on Impinj UHF Gen 2 radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, performed flawlessly at the 2008 Los Angeles Marathon. ChronoTrack's "D" timing tag allows race organizers to print an integrated bib and tag for each participant, encoding the runner's bib number into the tag's RFID chip at the time of printing. The peel-off, disposable portion of the bib becomes a tag that runners attach to their shoes.
	Danube Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Bratislava to Host Third Annual Marathon (Slovakia Today) The 2008 Bratislava Marathon in its third year is expecting a record number of runners. The Korean and American ambassadors to Slovakia have registered for the relay run, while a number of politicians and famous personalities such as national tennis player Dominik Hrbaty have made surprise entries as well. Nearly 1,300 competitors in all have put their names down for the marathon event, which is expected to feature last year's winner Bogdan Dziuba and Artur Blasinski from Poland.
	Marathon des Sables
		Human Interest Story
		McGrath preps for marathon; Mountaineer ready to take on Sahara Desert (The Sudbury Star) Meagan McGrath, who has climbed to the top of Mount Everest and has conquered the Seven Summits, will challenge herself against the heat of the Sahara Desert in the 2008 Marathon des Sables. The seven-day, 245.3-kilometre footrace is a feat forcing competitors to deal with extreme heat, different types of terrain, sandstorms and insects and animals in the desert. Runners must carry all of their food and supplies for the duration of the race in a bag on their backs and are required to bring certain items with them, such as anti-venom kits. Water is provided by the organizers, as well as tents for shelter at night.
	Odds And Ends
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Team Kennet athlete wins UKs toughest marathon (Newbury Today) Mark Shepherd clinched his second long distance success in just eight days when winning the event billed as the UKs toughest marathon. Shepherd completed the 26.2 mile event at Wendover Woods, Buckinghamshire in a course record breaking time of 4:14:30. Competitors faced an arduous examination of their durability with a 21-lap circuit of Wendover Woods that included a 6,000 feet near vertical climb that even needed the help of a rope, before a 6,000 descent. He went on to win the Welsh Championship at the Barry 40 mile track race.
	Two Oceans Marathon (56km)
		Human Interest Story
		Brave runner takes on Two Oceans for charity (IOL.co.nz) Darryl Howe who was born with cerebral palsy will be competing in the 2008 Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon after having completed eight marathons in the past seven years. Known as "Daz" to his friends, he said his disability was limiting him in terms of the amount of intense training he could do, but maintained that he ran between up to thirty kilometers per week and woke up as early as 3am to train. Daz has been granted an hour head start for the race and is confident that he will complete the fifty-six kilometer marathon in good time
News From: Wednesday, March 19, 2008
	Knoxville Marathon
		Humor
		Ellington making marathon leap in Knoxville (Go Volsxtra) Former four-time All-American distance runner at the University of Tennessee, Stewart Ellington, is keen on winning the 2008 Knoxville Marathon. Ellington, a 5K trck star, has been running about ninety miles per week in preparation. He has run the half marathon three times, but never with competition in mind.
	Olympics 2008 (Men)
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Gebrselassie claim about Beijing Olympics purely personal (China View) The Ethiopian ambassador, Haile-Kiros Gessesse, to China made a statement about the world marathon record holder Haile Gebrselassie's announcement declining to compete in the Beijing Olympic marathon is a personal decision made without consulting the country's Olympic committee. Gessesse said only the Ethiopian Olympic Committee could decide who will play and who will not and the committee has not yet decided the final list of athletes attending the 2008 Olympic games.
	Olympics 2008 (Women)
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Rwandan Nyirabarame Qualifies for Beijing Olympics (allafrica.com) Epiphanie Nyirabarame beat the minimum qualification mark for the Games as she clocked 2:41;33 to finish eleventh at the 2008 Rome Marathon. So far, Nyirabarame is one of two athletes to qualify for Beijing from Rwanda. The Rwanda Athletics Federation technical director Emmanuel Murenzi told Times Sport yesterday that he expects more athletes to qualify for the Beijing Games during the African Championship due to be held in Ethiopia in late April.
	Two Oceans Marathon (56km)
		Human Interest Story
		Marathon fever to hit the Tygerberg (TygerBurger) Hundreds are preparing for the 2008 Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon. The cut-off time for the 56 km ultra-marathon is seven hours and three hours for the half marathon.
		City to partner Two Oceans Marathon (Athlone) The City of Cape Town is, for the first time, a partner of the Two Oceans Marathon. As one of the top events in International Athletics, the city has agreed to lend aid to the race on many levels. Some of which include covering the cost of traffic services for the International Friendship Run, providing buses for the transport of athletes, providing volunteers to shadow marshals as part of the City's volunteer capacity building programmes, covering the cost of the road closure signs and waiving the cost for the hiring of the Good Hope Centre for the expo.
	US Men Olympics Trials
		Human Interest Story
		Marathoner Shay's death ruled due to natural causes (Chicago Tribune) Ryan Shay's death during the 2008 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials was because of natural causes linked to an irregular heartbeat and an enlarged heart stated the New York City Medical Examiner. Joe Shay, father of the marathoner, confirmed that the toxicology report dating back to December was negative. Joe Shay said the evidence in the autopsy report should lead many other runners, especially older runners, to be more attentive to their health.
		Mystery lingers in Shay's case; runner's heart failed, but reason unknown (Detroit Free Press) It has been four months of testing on Ryan Shay's heart tissue samples following his sudden collapse and death at the 2008 US Men's Olympic Trials in New York. Experts are still not certain what exactly the cause of death is. The toxicology report came back 100% clean.
News From: Tuesday, March 18, 2008
	Atlanta Marathon
		Training/ Health
		Medical concerns are high priority at this year's ING Atlanta Marathon race (The Signal) Deaths and other health issues in several races last year raised concerns about the preparedness of medical staff for the 2008 ING Atlanta Marathon. Dr. Perry Julien, co-medical director of the ING Atlanta Marathon, cites adequate training and frequent fluid intake as a runner's best defense against high temperatures like those experienced at the Chicago Marathon. When asked about the two deaths that took place during those races, he said that while unfortunate the fatalities were due to preexisting health conditions and not the eighty eight degree heat or the races themselves.
		Human Interest Story
		Weather Channel to Sponsor Atlanta Marathon (Race Results Weekly) The Weather Channel (TWC) will now be the title sponsor of the Atlanta Marathon & Half-Marathon. TWC will produce and air segments profiling five runners training for the race in different geographic areas (and climates) throughout the USA. The cable channel will also use it's website, weather.com to display additional information about the race, including training profiles, video vignettes, blogs from the featured runners, running tips, running calculators, and local route maps.
	London Marathon
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Will Yelling get through the Great Wall? (Dorset Echo) Liz Yelling is looking to fulfill her childhood dream of winning gold at an Olympic Games. A good finish at the 2008 London Marathon will guarantee a spot for her on the British Olympic Team. This is the last shot at the Olympics for thirty-three year old Yelling who is coached by Alex Stanton.
		Human Interest Story
		Stroke victim stuns doctors by entering marathon (The Standard) David Morris, a twenty-three year old who suffered a life-threatening stroke less than eighteenth months ago, has stunned doctors by making a miracle recovery after the stroke which left him with bleeding in the brain and fifty per cent speech loss. Now, just 16 months later, he is preparing to take part in Britain's most famous road race - and he is still on the lookout for sponsorship for his charity CLIC Sargent is the UK's leading children's cancer charity.
		Super slimmers marathon bid (Express and Star.com) Leslie Joyner, who used to eat junk food and do no exercise before she shed more than six stones, is gearing up for her third London Marathon. Joyner, who works for a stockbroker in Birmingham, was inspired to become a weight loss leader after being asked by complete strangers how she had slimmed down. She has completed one hundred twenty half marathons as well as several full marathons
	Odds And Ends
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Ngomane wins marathon for 4th time (Sowetan) Former Comrades marathon winner Sipho Ngomane won the 2008 Sappi Elands Valley Marathon in 2:21:31. Although he was using the race to add to his mileage, this was Ngomane's fourth successive win. Sara Mahlangu was the winner of the women's race in 3:05;13.
		Training/ Health
		Growth hormone no benefit to athletes: U.S. study (Reuters) US researchers have found that people who take human growth hormone in the hope of boosting athletic performance are not only breaking the law, but fail to improve athletic performance. Growth hormone did develop more lean body mass, but this did not translate to either more strength or exercise capacity. Those same people had swelling of their tissues due to lactate acid and more fatigue compared to people not taking the drug.
		Human Interest Story
		Website Offers a Marathon of Long Distance Facts (Star-Gazette.com) MarathonGuide.com is the go-to Web site for everything you've always wanted to know about marathoning but were afraid to ask. There's basic information, results, reviews and news at your fingertips.
	Olympics 2008 (Men)
		Training/ Health
		IOC will have a back up plan to tackle Beijing smog (European Athletics) Concerned with the smog and pollution in Beijing, the International Olympic Committee has taken measures to monitor the air quality especially for the outdoor endurance events lasting longer than one hour. Such measures will include daily monitoring of air quality and weather conditions at the venue, a reporting process from the Beijing Environment Protection Bureau to the IOC and relevant sports Federation, and a joint IOC-sports Federation decision to postpone the event if necessary.
		Human Interest Story
		China's Olympic Problems Grow With Tibet Unrest, Beijing Smog (Bloomeberg.com) While China is under fire for human rights problems for actions in Sudan and Tibet and facing difficulties due to the pollution shrouding Beijing, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao stresses the need to not politicize the Olympic Games. Other politicians, including European Union ministers, have rejected the idea of a boycott of China. The last Olympic boycott took place in 1984, when the Soviet Union and fourteen East European countries chose to skip the Los Angeles Games.
		Baldini states Athletes to China on Peace Mission (AGI News On) With the crises in Tibet and the pollution concerns marring the days leading up to the 2008 Olympic Marathon in Beijing, Stefano Baldini, 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist in the marathon, states that the athletes are going to China on a peace mission and a boycott of the Olympics would be a defeat. An in response to Gebrselassie's decision to attempt the 10,000 meters and withdraw from the marathon, Baldini finds Geb's decision contradictory seeing there is no air conditioning in the stadium where the 10,000 meters will be held.
	Two Oceans Marathon (56km)
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Netshifhefhe, Biktagirova to Defend Two Oceans Titles (Race Results Weekly) The 2008 Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon is expecting 19,000 runners in the ultramarathon and half-marathon events. 11,213 are expected for the half. Returning champions Bethuel Netshifhefhe who won in 3:07:56 and Madina Biktagirova who won the women's race in 3:35:04 will lead the elite fields.
News From: Monday, March 17, 2008
	Boston Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Swampscott residents to make statement at Boston Marathon (Swampscott Reporter) Bill Flannery and Dan Santanello are running the 2008 Boston Marathon with the MassGeneral Marathon Team Fighting Kids Cancer One Step at a Time. The team has come a long way since its modest beginning in 1998, when a team of 10 runners raised almost $50,000 to support the pediatric cancer program. Now, a team of 122 runners has banked a cumulative $4 million and the number continues to rise.
	Dong-A Seoul International Marathon
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Persistent Marathoner Stages Successful Comeback (Donga.com) Kim Yi-yong yesterday proved himself one of the nations elite runners again at the 2008 Dong-A Seoul International Marathon. Kim who was first Korean finisher and overall seventh place finisher in 2:11:14. Sammy Korir won the marathon in 2:07:32. The winner of the women's race was Zhang Shu Jing of China in 2:26:11.
	London Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Marathon challenge will aid the disabled (The Flintshire Standard) Trudie Richards of Hope will tackle the Flora London Marathon next month, in a bid to raise £1,500 for disability charity Scope. Richards, a fitness coach, is also a classroom assistant at Ysgol Estyn, coordinates the after school club at Derwen School in Kinnerton and is a youth worker during the evenings.
		Liz gets set for marathon effort (The Press) Liz Davis, of Haxby, York, will tackle the 26-mile course next month in an effort to raise £1,000 for the St. Leonard's Hospice. The mother-of-two is no stranger to tests of endurance - having completed the London Triathlon last year.
		Two soldiers in Iraq training to run London marathon (The Bolton News) Corporal Damien Byrne and Sergeant Major Stephen Tickle will join other members of the 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster regiment in returning to the UK to compete in the 2008 London Marathon. Following the marathon, these soldiers will be heading back to their base in Basra. The Battalion members will run in a bid to raise £7,500 for the charity Sense, which supports children and adults who are deaf/blind or have associated disabilities.