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Katie McGregor Wins Women's Title, Mohamed Trafeh Earns Men's Title at USA 15K Championships
From USA Track & Field & Team USA Minnesotaat the 2010 USA 15K hosted by the Gate River Run
March 15, 2010
Jacksonville, FL
After finishing as runner-up the previous two years, Team USA Minnesota's Katie McGregor of Saint Louis Park, MN easily claimed the women's title in 49:50 (personal best) at the USA 15K Championships on Saturday, March 13 in Jacksonville, FL. Mohamed Trafeh of Duarte, CA took control from the start of the men's title race to win his first ever U.S. title, running 42:57. The weather conditions at the start were clear and cool.
With this year's race once again featuring the Equalizer Bonus, the elite women's race started five minutes before the rest of the field. Katie McGregor; two-time champion Jen Rhines of Mammoth, CA; 2006 champion Blake Russell of Monterey, CA; 2008 Olympian Magdalena Lewy Boulet of Oakland, CA; and 2004 Olympian Colleen De Reuck of Boulder, CO led more than 45 of the top U.S. women through the opening miles.
By five miles, Katie McGregor and Jen Rhines had pulled away from the field and were in a two woman race for the championship. Approaching six miles, McGregor made her move and began to pull away from Rhines.
As she made her way up the famous Hart Bridge, Katie McGregor steadily extended her lead and reached the finish 36 seconds ahead of Jen Rhines. Magdalena Lewy Boulet held on to take third in 50:38 as Colleen De Reuck took fourth in 50:50, and Rebecca Donaghue of State College, PA finished fifth in 51:12.
In the men's race, Mohamed Trafeh jumped to an early lead, building a 10 second lead by the time he passed the first mile in 4:22. As his lead grew with each mile, Trafeh had only Katie McGregor to chase for the Equalizer Bonus.
Shortly after passing 10K in 28:19, Trafeh passed the lead women to cruise to a 54 second win ahead of runner-up Tim Nelson of Corvallis, OR. 2010 USA Half Marathon champion Antonio Vega of Minneapolis, MN took third in 43:55 while his Team USA Minnesota teammate Jason Lehmkuhle of Minneapolis, MN finished fourth in 43:59. Sean Quigley of Braintree, MA rounded out the top-five in 44:05.
2010 marked the 17th year that the championships have been hosted by the Gate River Run 15K, and featured a total prize purse of $58,000; Trafeh and McGregor each earned $12,000 for their championship titles.
Mohamed Trafeh also earned the Equalizer Bonus of $5,000 for being the first male or female to cross the finish line. The 5 minute "head start" was based on the time differential of the U.S. 15K records: 42:22 for the men (Todd Williams, 1995) and 47:15 for the women (Deena Drossin, 2003), both set on the Gate River Run course.
Team USA Minnesota notes that Katie McGregor is a five-time national champion (10,000m, 10K road twice, 25K and 15K). "Last year the women went out at a lot easier pace than this year," said McGregor, who along with eight other competitors went through the first mile in 5:12. "There were so many people together and I didn't know how long that would last. There was a much deeper field this year with at least 10 women who on any given day could go for the win."
"I never did feel super confident that I had the race won until a spectator yelled on the bridge (miles 8 to 9) that I had a 200 meter lead, commented McGregor. "I felt really comfortable the whole time and had one of those days where everything came together. I was excited to be able to win today. This is a fun race, and it's great to be part of the team challenge as well."
Video Highlights
Video highlights of the USA 15K Championships and pre- and post-race video interviews with top athletes are available at www.usatf.org in cooperation with RunnerSpace.com.
About the USARC
The USA 15 km Championships were the second stop on the 2010 USA Running Circuit (USARC). The 2010 USARC is a USA Track & Field road series, featuring USA Championships from one mile to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners. The circuit features ten events each for men and women.
The 2010 USARC will once again see a record amount of circuit prize money for a non-Olympic year with total prize purse of $623,850 offered by host events. U.S. athletes will also have the opportunity to qualify for various Team USA events, including the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships and the Chiba International Ekiden.
The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USARC race (15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1), with a final $12,500 grand prix purse ($6,000, $4,000, and $2,500) for the top three men and women point scorers overall. The USARC points at the USA Marathon Championships will be doubled.
The mission of the USA Running Circuit is to showcase, support, and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USARC and its races have provided over $6 million dollars to U.S. distance runners.
For more information on the 2010 USA 15K Championships, see www.usatf.org.