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RunPro.com Web Site for Aspiring Professional Distance Runners Launched by Team USA Minnesota and USATF
From USA Track & Field (USATF)Indianapolis, IN
A new Web site at www.RunPro.com has been launched to assist promising distance runners make the transition from collegiate to professional athletes. The site was created and developed by Team USA Minnesota with the support of a 2010 Excellence Challenge Grant from USA Track & Field. USATF made the announcement on Wednesday, February 16, 2011.
Work on the site began last autumn with design and content put together by Team USA Minnesota athletes and board members. A companion four-day camp for selected recent graduates will be held in Minneapolis, MN in the summer of 2011.
"Our intent is to provide promising collegiate distance runners with a comprehensive overview of what it takes and what is involved in becoming a professional runner," said Pat Goodwin, president and founder of Team USA Minnesota, a distance training center created in 2001 and based in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St Paul.
"If we can attract more talented runners to the sport--from the 800 meters up through the marathon--the U.S. will continue its re-emergence toward competitive excellence in long distance running both nationally and internationally."
Sections on the site include information about training centers, representation (agents), competitions (track, cross country and the roads), the camp, financial and health support, anti-doping, and USATF, among other topics. There will also be frequent interviews posted with runners and others in the distance running field, as well as news and announcements.
The target audience for the Web site and camp is collegiate distance runners, coaches and parents/families with secondary audiences of training centers, current athletes, future runners (high school), elite recruiters, agents and anyone else interested in the sport of distance running.
USA Track & Field is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. The Excellence Challenge Grants support the advancement of performance excellence in five areas including long distance running. The 2010 awards were announced last July. See www.usatf.org for more information.
About Team USA Minnesota
Team USA Minnesota is based in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul. Formed in 2001, the purpose of the training center is to improve the competitiveness of post-collegiate American distance running and to develop Olympians. The athletes are coached by Dennis Barker, head cross country and track coach at Augsburg College in Minneapolis, MN. Team USA Minnesota's major sponsor is Life Time Fitness (www.lifetimefitness.com) and its silver sponsor is Twin Cities In Motion (www.mtcmarathon.org). It is also supported by the New York Road Runners and the USA Distance Project. For more information, view the team's web site at www.teamusaminnesota.org or contact Pat Goodwin at 952-924-1081; pfgoodwin@teamusaminnesota.org.