Photo by www.photorun.net: Deena Kastor finished the Olympic Marathon on a hot Greek evening in the stadium and won a bronze medal.

One woman took Olympic bronze in Athens and one woman captured Olympic gold in Sydney. Both athletes are the most recognized running celebrities in their respective countries. On Sunday, September 18, 2005, American Deena Kastor and Japan's Naoko Takahashi will face off at the Jefferson Hospital Philadelphia Distance Run. It will be the first time these two women have matched strides at the 13.1-mile distance.

After winning the bronze medal in the Athens marathon, only the second American women's medal in Olympic marathon history, Kastor, 32, has her sights set on the 21-year-old American half marathon record (1:08:34) set by Joan Benoit Samuelson at the 1984 Philadelphia Distance Run. Samuelson, gold medalist in 1984 at the Los Angeles Games, was the first American woman to medal in an Olympic marathon.

Kastor's potentially record-setting tour will be spurred by a strong women's field featuring the 2000 Sydney Olympic marathon gold medalist Naoko Takahashi, who finished 4th at the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon two weeks ago. Although she was not victorious in Virginia Beach, Takahashi showed the late-race surge that took the 33-year-old to a marathon world record in 2001 at the Berlin Marathon, simultaneously becoming the first woman to break the 2:20:00 time barrier.

Japan's Rie Ueno, 29, back-to-back champion at the 2004 and 2005 Kyoto City Half Marathon, should prove a threat in the women's field if her plan to set a personal best time in the low 68-minute range is realized. American Laura O'Neill, 25, will make her half marathon debut as she steps up in distance after a strong showing at the 2005 USATF National Championships in the 10,000m.

With the fastest half marathon time (60:33) in the men's field, Chistopher Cheboiboch, 27, would like to record one last victory before he returns to his home near the Rift Valley in Kenya to train for the ING New York City Marathon in November. In June, Cheboiboch overcame flu like symptoms to win the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon in 2:09:17.

Fellow Kenyan John Korir arrives at the start line having already earned three victories in 2005 at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile, the Lilac Bloomsday 12K and the World's Best 10K.

Both the third and fourth place finishers from the 2005 P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon, Ethiopians Tekeste Kebede and Gudisa Shentema, join the men's field. Shentema, who won Bolder Boulder this past May, will make his half marathon debut in Philadelphia.

This year, athletes from eight countries will compete for the largest prize purse offered in the event's 28-year history. The prize purse of $62,000 will award the top 10 elite men and women and includes course record bonuses, masters and first male and female Philadelphia resident prize money.

This year the Jefferson Hospital Philadelphia Distance Run welcomes more than 9,000 runners and walkers on September 18. To learn more about the half marathon and the prize purse, visit www.runphilly.com or call 800 311-1255.

2005 Men's Elite Open Field as of September 9, 2005

NAME                   AGE  COUNTRY    BEST            FACT/COMMENT


Christopher Cheboiboch 27   KEN  60:33  1st 2005 Coca-Cola Zero Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
Mohammed Amyn          29   MAR  62:30  5th 2005 Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon
Araya Haregot          24   ETH  63:02  1st 2005 Salt Lake City Marathon
Tekeste Kebede         26   ETH  62:59  3rd 2005 Rock 'n' Roll Mar,
                                                4th 2005 San Blas Half Mar
Gudisa Shentema        25   ETH  Debut  4th 2005 P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll AZ Mar,
                                                1st 2005 Bolder Boulder                                                 1st 2005 Bolder Boulder
Giday Amaha            27   ETH  N/A    3rd 2005 Standard Charter Dubai Marathon
Luke Metto             29   KEN  61:18  4th 2004 Phila. Distance Run, 1st 2004
BAA Half Mar
Michael Aish           29   NZL  63:59  9th 2005 Cardinal Invit'l 10,000m,
                                                2nd Guidant Heart of Summer 10K
Abdelrahime Bouramdane  27  MAR  63:56  1st 2005 Marrakesh Marathon
Likhaya Dayile         32   RSA  64:13  N/A
Ernest Kimeli          19   KEN  64:20  4th 2005 Lilac Bloomsday
Abdelhadi Habassa      29   KEN  61:20  1st 2002 Casablanca Marathon
Abderrahim Haji        27   MAR  61:28  1st 2004 Baltimore Half Marathon
John Itati             31   KEN  62:04  1st 2005 Broad Street Run
John Korir             29   KEN  61:00  1st 2005 World's Best 10K, 1st Lilac Bloomsday
Linus Maiyo            22   KEN  Debut   1st 2005 Rift Valley Cross Country Championships
Samuel Ndereba         28   KEN  62:48  1st 2005 21K de Montreal, 7th 2005 Bix 7 Mile
Francis Bowen          31   KEN  31:11  1st 2005 Parkersburg Half Marathon
Reuben Chebii          33   KEN  60:59  2nd 2005 Park Forest 10 Mile


Country Key: ETH, Ethiopia - GBR, Great Britain - JPN, Japan - KEN, Kenya - MAR, Morrocco 
RSA, Republic of South Africa - RUS, Russia - USA, United States

2005 Women's Elite Open Field as of September 9, 2005

NAME                 AGE   COUNTRY  BEST          FACT/COMMENT


Deena Kastor         32    USA  70:08  2004 Athens Olympic Mar Bronze Medalist - 2:27:20,
                                                American Mar Record Holder - 2:21:16
Naoko Takahashi      33    JPN  68:55  2000 Sydney Olympic Marathon Gold Medalist - 2:23:14
Rie Ueno             29    JPN  69:57  1st 2004  2005 Kyoto City Half Marathon
Ichiyo Naganuma      33    JPN  72:57  1st 2003 Long Beach Half Marathon
Laura O'Neill        25    USA  Debut   6th 2005 USATF National Champion 10,000m,
                                                5th 2004 SBLI Falmouth Road Race
Molly Austin         25    USA  75:20  Two-time member USA World Cross Country Team
                                                (2003  & 2004)
Kathy Butler         31    GBR  71:24  12th 2004 Olympic 10,000m
Samia Akbar          N/A   N/A  Debut   N/A
Margaret Atodonyang  26    KEN  69:12  2nd 2004 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon,
                                                2nd 2003 Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon
Shitaye Gemechu      24    ETH  70:46  1st 2004  '05 P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll AZ Marathon
Tatyana Chulakh      24    RUS  73:35  1st 2005 America's Finest City Half Marathon,
                                                1st 2005 Parkersburg Half Marathon
Teresa Wanjiku       31    KEN  71:42  4th 2005 Indianapolis 500 Festival 21K
Leah Malot           33    KEN  69:35  2nd 2004  1st 2003 JH Philadelphia Distance Run

Read about the 2004 Jefferson Hospital Philadelphia Distance Run.