FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Mark Winitz
Win-It!z Sports Public Relations
Tel: (650) 948-0618
PALO ALTO, Calif. - March 13, 2009 - Olympians, fitness motivators, and
inspiring professional athletes will be on hand to motivate and mentor
participants of all ages at the 2009 Lifelong Fitness Alliance Dare To Be
Fit Races and Community Walk on Sunday, March 22 at Stanford University.
Two 5-kilometer runs (3.1 miles), a variable distance community fitness
walk of one to five kilometers, a health and food fair, and athletics
clinics for children offer fun for the entire family. Event "central" is
located at PAC 10 Plaza, adjacent to Stanford Stadium in Stanford's
athletics complex. Fitness activities begin at 8:30 a.m. (the health fair
begins at 8:00 a.m.). Online event registration is available at
www.lifelongfitnessalliance.org/race. On-site, event-day registration is
offered starting at 7:30 a.m.
The emcees for the event are fitness guru Joanie Greggains and Don
Bowden. Bowden claimed fame in 1957 by becoming the first American to
break four minutes in a mile race. Greggains will lead a fun warm-up
routine at 8:00 a.m. Both Greggains and Bowden will participate in the
community walk and meet participants throughout the morning.
In addition, starting at 10 a.m., All Stars Helping Kids will present
special sports clinics for children in which U.S. Olympians Brandi
Chastain (soccer), Kate O'Neill (track and field/ distance running), and
Erica McLain (track and field/triple jump), and others, will serve as
clinicians. Children ages 5 through 13 can learn soccer strategies, get
track and field tips, and measure their baseball pitching speed in these
clinics. All Stars Helping Kids, a 20-year-old non-profit organization
founded by football great Ronnie Lott, promotes a safe, healthy, and
rigorous learning environment for disadvantaged children in low-income
communities.
Brandi Chastain, who will assist with the children's soccer clinic, is a
professional soccer player who plays for the FC Gold Pride in Women's
Professional Soccer. She competed on U.S. women's Olympic soccer teams
that earned gold medals in 1996 and 2004, and a silver medal in 2000.
Chastain is widely known for her game-winning penalty kick against China
in the 1999 World Cup final.
Erica McLain and Kate O'Neill will help out with the children's track and
field clinic. McLain, a graduate of Stanford University, was a member of
the 2008 Olympic team in the triple jump. She qualified for the Olympic
team by finishing third at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials and
was 14th overall in Beijing. O'Neill competed on the 2004 U.S. Olympic
team in the 10,000 meter race. She was an All-American cross country and
track and field athlete at Yale University. In 2008, she was the USA
women's half marathon champion.
Two 5K runs are offered on race day, one for runners younger than age 50,
and the other for runners age 50 and older. The latter race, the 26th
Annual Paul Spangler Memorial 5K Run at 8:30 a.m., has a history that is
rich with outstanding performances by many of the top senior runners in
the U.S.
According to Running USA, a national non-profit organization for the
sport, senior runners (age 50 and over) are now running road races in
record numbers.
"In 2007, there were nearly 1.5 million (age) 50-plus finishers in U.S.
road races compared to 364,000 in 1992, a four-fold increase in 16
years," said Ryan Lamppa, Running USA researcher.
Joy Johnson, 82, a retired physical education teacher who lives in San
Jose, Calif. returns as one of the event's most distinguished age-group
competitors. Johnson, who began running at age 59, won USA Track & Field
Masters Runner of the Year Awards in her 80 to 84 year-old age division
in 2007 and 2008. She runs almost every day. Among her many races,
Johnson has completed 21 consecutive New York City Marathons. She
invariably wins her age division, but Johnson said she doesn't compete
for accolades or awards.
"I run because I want to stay healthy and live a quality life until I
drop," Johnson said. "I don't want to be in a wheelchair."
Among men, Michael Dove, age 62, of Salinas, Calif. will line up on the
starting line as a four-time winner of the race. He claimed overall
victories in 1997, 1999, 2000, and 2004 when the race was a highly
competitive Pacific Association/USA Track & Field Championship for
seniors.
"I've run this race every year except when I've been injured. It's
exciting and fun because it's the only race that I know of that has a
separate race for age 50 and over runners," Dove said. "I've found that
runners who participate all have positive attitudes. They'd rather talk
about their next athletic challenge rather than the topics of a lot of
seniors such as health ailments and their prescription medications. That
attitude carries over into other aspects of their lives."
Dove will compete and then take in the kids events with keen interest. He
is the developer of Just Run, an innovative running program for children
started in 2004 that now has over 6,000 youth participants in 70 schools
located in 13 states.
"The place to ingrain good habits is when children are as young as
possible." said Dove. "If you can inspire kids and communicate to them
that there's a link between physical activity, fun, and good health at an
early age, then you've made a lifelong impact on them. It doesn't
necessarily need to be running, but running is easy and convenient to do."
Stephanie Atwood will bring a group of about 20 female runners and
walkers to the Lifelong Fitness Alliance Dare To Be Fit Races and
Community Walk who are members of the WOW Team, a fitness group for women
that she founded. Atwood believes that people can derive similar health
benefits from walking and running.
"The recommendation now is at least 30 minutes of exercise at least every
other day," said Atwood, who is a trainer and coach who specializes in
fitness for life. "If it's good, solid walking where you can feel your
heart pounding, rather than just strolling or sauntering, you can gain
fitness benefits."
Also attending, and running in, the event is Amby Burfoot, 62, winner of
the 1968 Boston Marathon, and a longtime editor for Runner's World
magazine. Burfoot, who has run over 100,000 miles, said he originally was
inspired to strive for a long, healthy life filled with exercise by John
A. Kelley, the running legend of the Boston Marathon who competed in the
race 61 times and won it twice.
ABOUT THE EVENT: The Dare To Be Fit Races and Community Walk are
organized by Lifelong Fitness Alliance (formerly Fifty-Plus Lifelong
Fitness), a 30-year-old non-profit organization which advocates lifelong
wellness, and provides information and opportunities for health and
fitness. All proceeds from the Lifelong Fitness Community Walk benefit
All Stars Helping Kids. Proceeds from the running races benefit the
Lifelong Fitness Alliance's programs for seniors.
EVENT ENTRY: Details and online event registration for the Dare To Be Fit
Races and Community Walk are available via the Lifelong Fitness Alliance
web site at www.lifelongfitnessalliance.org/race. A downloadable
registration form is also available on the web site, or contact the
Lifelong Fitness Alliance office (Redwood City, Calif.): (650) 361-8282,
E-mail: [email protected].
Many thanks to our major sponsors who help make the Dare To Be Fit Races
and Community Walk possible: City of Palo Alto Recreation, Palo Alto
Weekly, Brookdale Living, Sports Authority, Piazzas Fine Foods, and Whole
Foods.
MEDIA NOTE: For media credentials, further information, or interviews,
contact Mark Winitz, Win-It!z Sports Public Relations, Tel: 650-948-0618,
Fax: 650-949-2172, E-mail: [email protected].
