10th Annual B.A.A. Half Marathon Reflects Community Partnership, Touts Talented Field of Professional Athletes
Posted Friday, 8 October, 2010
Community Partnership
The 10th Annual B.A.A. Half Marathon, presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and The Jimmy Fund, highlights the beauty of Boston’s Emerald Necklace park system while furthering the B.A.A.’s mission of promoting health and fitness.
The City of Boston Parks and Recreation Department works in collaboration with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, the Town of Brookline, and the Emerald Necklace Conservancy to protect and maintain the beautiful Emerald Necklace park system.
With the vital work of these important agencies, not only is the B.A.A. Half Marathon annually held here, but thousands of pleasure-seekers enjoy the urban parks throughout the year. To learn more about the beautiful parks that fill the city of Boston, visit the online home for the Parks and Recreation Department (http://www.cityofboston.gov/parks/), which so diligently cares for them.
Professional Athletes
The men and women’s elite field and their biographical information is available today at: www.baa.org/Races/Half-Marathon/Event-Information/Elite-Athletes.
Top finishers in the open, masters and push-rim wheelchair divisions will vie for a total prize purse of $30,000.
The men’s professional field is highlighted by 20-year-old Kenyan Alan Kiprono and 25-year-old Julius Kogo, also from Kenya, both of whom are riding a wave of road racing success into Sunday. Kogo’s personal best of 1:02:09 is 11 seconds ahead of Thomas Nyariki’s 2007 course record (1:02:20), while Kiprono’s fastest is 1:02:38. The women’s professional field is highlighted by Caroline Rotich of Kenya. Her personal best of 1:10:23 is 34 seconds ahead of the 2003 course record (1:10:57) set by Marie Davenport of
Ireland.
Established in 1887, the Boston Athletic Association is a non-profit organization with a mission of managing athletic events and promoting a healthy lifestyle through sports, especially running. The B.A.A.'s Boston Marathon is the world's oldest annual marathon, and the organization manages other local events and supports comprehensive charity, youth, and year-round running programs. Since 1986, the principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon has been John Hancock Financial.
