FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Karen Boe
(801) 230-5404
[email protected]

ELITE FIELD ANNOUNCED FOR SALT LAKE CITY MARATHON
International Field to Set Inaugural Course Records

Salt Lake City (April 15, 2004) - An international elite field of
extremely talented world class runners from around the globe will be vying
to set the course records for the inaugural Salt Lake City Marathon, Run,
Bump & Boogie on April 24, 2004.

These amazing athletes will compete for a prize purse of over $100,000 with
the top male and female winners receiving $25,000 for their dramatic wins,
with overwhelming support from the thousands who line the course to cheer
them on.

Heading the mens' field with what promises to make up a very healthy
competition to set course records is John Kariuki from Kenya. Having
finished 1st in the Detroit marathon in 2002 with a time of 2:19:04,
Kariuki's personal record for a marathon is 2:12:51at the 2002 Suzuki
Rock-N-Roll Marathon in San Diego. Fellow Kenyans challenging him for the
record will be Michael Mislay who took 1st place in the 2003 Hartford
Marathon. Mislay boasts a best of 2:14:25, and Gabriel Muchiri who ran a
close 2:14:53 in the 2003 Minneapolis Marathon. David Rotich, also from
Kenya is strong in the running for a course record with a 2003 Ruhr
International Marathon from Germany of 2:17:00. Mike Korir will be running
with a best of 2:18:43 and Kenyan Christopher Koech is in the running with
a personal record of 2:26:44 from the 2004 Houston Marathon.

Also in the running for the prize money is Ethiopian Kassahun Kabiso who
ran a 2:15:38 while on the Ethiopian National Team. Juan Carlos Gutierrez
from Columbia, with a 2003 half marathon time of 1:02:53 from Bogata will
be challenged by Mindaugas Pukstas of Lithuania, who took 3rd place in his
marathon debut in Austin in 2004 with a 2:14:59. Also competing for course
records will be Aleysey Khokhlov who took first overall in Copenhagen in
2003 with a 2:18:00. Retta Feyissa from Ethopia with a record of 2:23:53
will be running alongside Hector Lopez who took 4th place overall in the
2003 Big Sur Marathon with a time of 2:27:00.

United States athletes competing this inaugural year include Sasha Pachev,
a California resident and 2003 winner of the Top of Utah. Pachev's best
time is 2:24.47 in the 2003 St. George Marathon. William Kemey from
Albuquerque enters his debut marathon with a half marathon best of 1:04.
Local elite runner Kevin Herd will be searching for his local personal
record after winning his debut marathon, the 2004 Las Vegas Marathon with a
time of 2:28:13. Ogden Runner Joe Wilson who owns a time of 2:21:30 after
coming in second in the Austin Motorola Marathon is expected to be in
direct competition with Farmington runner Corbin Talley, also with a
personal record of 2:21:30, having finished third in the St. George
Marathon.

Heading up the master men's division will be Bernie Boettcher from Silt,
Colorado, having clocked a personal best of 2:34:36 in 2002 at the Tucson
Marathon. Boettcher will be competing against Russian Gennady Temnikov
with a 2:20 from the 2003 Boston marathon, coming in third in his master
class, and Chris Clark from the United States. Clark took first place in
the 2003 Napa Valley Marathon with a time of 2:37:58

Look for strong performances from the women's field. Heading an
international field will be Rose Chichi from Kenya with a time of 1:13:29
from the 2003 Kenya Half Marathon running against Rimma Dubovik from
Russia. Dubovik clocked time of 2:26:50 to take first place in the 2003
Eurasia Intercontinental Marathon in Turkey. She also took first place in
the 2002 Eurasia race. Fellow Russian Lioudmila Kortchaguina will be
competing to set the women's course record.

Taking first in the 2003 Pittsburgh Marathon with a time of 2:29:53, she
recently won the 2003 Dallas White Rock Marathon and came in sixth in the
2004 Los Angeles Marathon. Aurica Buia from Romania ran 2:34:15 in the
2003 Los Angeles Marathon and boasts a personal record of 2:31:39 from
Vienna. Look for Maria Portilla from Peru to be hot on her heals. Maria
was closely behind Buia in the 2003 Los Angeles Marathon with her best time
of 2:35:30. Canadian born veteran runner Stephanie Hodge will be running
in this pack to beat her personal record of 2:55:23 from the 2002 St.
George Marathon.

United States women are closely matched in times with the international
field. Paula Morrison of Tucson, Arizona took third place in the 2002 St.
George Marathon with her personal record of 2:44:50. She was a U.S.
Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifier this year.

Provo, Utah runner Maggie Chan-Roper boasts a personal record of 2:37:52
from the 2002 Richmond Marathon and will be challenged by Michelle
Simonitis. A Draper resident, Simonitis won the St. George Marathon in
2003 and boasts a record of 2:40:34, run in the 2002 National Marathon
Championships. She is also the winner of the Top of Utah Marathon in 2000
and is a three time Olympic Trials Qualifyer. Norway-born Ingunn Earl, one
of Utah's newest elite distance runners, took first place in the Ogden
Relay in 2003 with her personal best of 2:50:02. Becky Sontag from Casper,
Wyoming will be competing in this field. Her 2:50:00 best run in Houston
landed her first place. Also at the start line will be Julie Thomas of
Holladay who has taken 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th in the Deseret News Marathon,
achieving her personal record of 2:52:00 in 2003. She won the Ogden
Marathon in 2001. Right on her heels will be Lisa Mangum a local mother of
five children, who ran the 2002 St. George Marathon for her personal best
of 2:55:23.

Elite masters women division runners include Irena Bogacheva from Russia.
Bogacheva boasts a personal record of 2:26:27and took 1st in the 2002 Twin
Cities Marathon with a 2:29:39. She took third place in the 2002
Rock'n'Roll Marathon, placing 1st in 1999 and 2nd in 1998) and has been a
two-time Olympia for Kyrgystan and has already been selected for the 2004
Athens Games. In one of her biggest performances, she finished 2nd at the
Boston Marathon in 2000.

Competing with Bogacheva in master class is Luzma Caballero from Pico
Rivera, California. She placed 3rd overall in 2003 at the Mexicalli Mexico
Marathon with a time of 3:00:16.

Slated for the inaugural running on April 24, 2004, the Salt Lake City
Marathon & 5K, themed "Run, Bump & Boogie," is destined to be the most
spectacular new Marathon & 5K on the horizon. With a prize purse of
$100,000, the Salt Lake City Marathon & 5K is certified and sanctioned
through USATF, and is a qualifier for the Boston Marathon. The Huntsman
Cancer Institute, the premiere cancer research and care facility in the
Intermountain West is the charity organizers have selected to partner with.

Registration is easy and efficient at www.saltlakecitymarathon.com where
participants can download entry forms, course descriptions and entry
details. The Devine Racing offices are located at 136 E. South Temple in
Salt Lake City, Utah. For race information, contact Scott Kerr, Race
Director at (801) 412-6060. The presenting sponsor of the Salt Lake City
Marathon & 5K is Ken Garff Automotive Group.

Editors Note:
Elite athlete press conference will be held Friday, April 23, 2004
Where: Gallivan Center Stage
When: 10:00 a.m.

Top elite athletes will be available for interview following a press
conference.

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