Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. Awarded 2009 USA Championship Events
USA Women's, Men's and Masters' Marathon Championships, USA Men's and Women's 10 Mile Championships and Inaugural USA 1 Mile Road Championships

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Posted Thursday, 18 December, 2008

MINNEAPOLIS - (December 12, 2008) - USA Track & Field has named Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. host of the inaugural 2009 Men's and Women's USA 1 Mile Road Championships through 2012 with an annual prize purse of $20,000. Also awarded were the 2009 USA Women's Marathon Championship and the 2009 USA Men's 10 Mile Championship. Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. will also host the 2010 USA Men's Marathon Championship and the 2010 USA Women's 10 Mile Championship. The current USA Masters Marathon Championships are held at Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon through 2010, and will now continue through 2015. The announcements were made during the 30th USA Track & Field Annual Meeting. National championship events offer professional runners the chance to compete for the national title and a significant prize purse.

"USATF is delighted to work with Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. in presenting these championship events," said Fred Finke, Interim High Performance Division Chair and Long Distance Running Chair, USATF. "Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. has a long history of support for American athletes and the development of distance running in this country. Their quality events and attention to the athletes reflects the mission of USATF and makes the Twin Cities a natural choice for hosting national championships."

The 5th Medtronic TC 1 Mile, which will serve as the Inaugural USA 1 Mile Road Championships, takes place on Thursday, May 7, 2009 along the Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis. Race officials expect a very competitive field in what has become the second largest one mile road race in the nation.

"This will be the first time for a road mile championship in USATF history and we're excited and honored to have the opportunity to showcase Minneapolis in this way," said Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. race director Brian Mastel.

The Twin Cities will host the 28th Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon and 11th Medtronic TC 10 Mile on Sunday, October 4, 2009. As host to the USA Women's Marathon Championship, and the USA Masters Marathon Championships, and USA Men's 10 Mile Championship, Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. will welcome top-named athletes from across the nation, who will compete for a USA Women's Marathon Championship prize purse of $72,500 and a USA Men's 10 Mile Championship prize purse of $25,000.

"The timing of hosting these championships on October 4 means top athletes from all over the United States will comprise our professional fields, as the women compete for the national title and as the men prepare for the 2008 USA Men's Marathon Championship later in the year," said Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. executive director Virginia Brophy Achman. "As we saw in 2007, when we hosted the USA Men's 10 Mile Championship, this race draws a very competitive field because the distance ties in closely with training for a final long distance event like the marathon championship. It will be an exciting year for us and we are proud to have been selected as host of all of these events."

In 2008, Twin Cities Marathon, Inc. hosted the USA Women's 10 Mile Championship and the USA Men's Marathon and Masters Marathon Championships on October 5.

Visit MTCMarathon.org for more information.