News and Notes, Volume9, Number 25

May 6, 2009

adidas Track Classic To Feature Top Early Season Distance Matchups

The 2009 adidas Track Classic at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. on May 16 will feature international matchups of Olympic medalists and World Champions at the middle and long distances, meet organizers announced Tuesday.

The third stop of USA Track & Field's 2009 Visa Championship Series, the adidas Track Classic will be televised live on ESPN2 from 8:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Headlining the women's 5,000 meters will be 2008 Olympic 10,000m bronze medalist Shalane Flanagan. Flanagan owns four American records including the 5,000m. She has already broken one American mark this year, for 5,000m indoors. Among her top rivals will be Ethiopian sisters Ejegayehu and Genzebe Dibaba. Ejegayehu is the 2004 Olympic silver medalist at 10,000m and 2005 World Championships bronze medalist at both 5000m and 10,000m, while younger sister Genzebe is a two-time World Junior Cross Country Champion and last weekend won the Ethiopian senior 5000m national title at only 18 years old.

The men's 1,500m will feature the entire 2008 U.S. Olympic squad of Bernard Lagat, Lopez Lomong and Leonel Manzano. Lagat, the American record holder at 1,500m, is the reigning World Champion at 1500m and 5000m - the first man ever to win that double. Joining them will be three-time U.S. Indoor 1,500m champion Rob Myers; Canadian 1,500m record holders Kevin Sullivan (outdoors) and Nate Brannen (indoors); and Mexican national indoor record holder Pablo Solares.

The adidas Track Classic will also highlight winners from the major Jamaica Invitational in Kingston last weekend. Among them are Americans Dawn Harper, the surprise 2008 Olympic gold medalist in the 100-meter hurdles, and Darvis Patton, a 100m finalist in Beijing; Jamaica's Novlene Williams, a 4x400m World Championship bronze medalist; and Rennie Quow, the 2006 World Junior champion at 400m from Trinidad and Tobago.

Produced by Global Athletics & Marketing, Inc., the adidas Track Classic is the third stop on USA Track & Field's Visa Championship Series. Tickets, from $40 (finish line) down to $10, are now available by calling Ticketmaster at 213-480-3232 or visiting www.Ticketmaster.com. For group sales, call 1-877-AEG-TICKETS. USATF welcomes you to pay with your Visa. Visit the event website at www.adidasTrackClassic.com for updates and more information.

Olympians head to Doha

Two-time Olympic silver medalist Allyson Felix, 2008 Olympic silver medalist Christian Cantwell and 2008 Olympic bronze medalist David Oliver will headline the American contingent for the 2009 Qatar Super Grand Prix Friday, May 8, in Doha, Qatar.

Felix returns to Doha having twice completed the 100-400 double over the past two years. This year she will run just the 400 meters, facing Olympic silver medalist Shericka Williams of Jamaica.

In the men's shot put, Cantwell enters fresh off three victories where each winning throw topped 21 meters. This will mark the first time last year's silver medalist will face reigning Olympic gold medalist Tomasz Majewski of Poland since the Games ended.

After setting a personal best in the men's 110m hurdles at this meet last year, David Oliver enters the competition as the current world leader. His main challengers will come in the form of compatriots Joel Brown, Antwon Hicks and Dexter Faulk.

Fans can watch the meet live on www.universalsports.com beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET on Friday, May 8. For more information, visit www.iaaf.org.

About USA Track & Field

USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.

For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org

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News and Notes, Volume9, Number 25

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