Boston, Mass. -- The Boston Athletic Association, in conjunction with NBC Sports and NBCSports.com, announced today that live coverage of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women’s Marathon will be available on NBCSports.com/marathon on Sunday, April 20. Additionally, a 60-minute highlights show will air on MSNBC on Sunday, April 27 from 12:00-1:00 p.m. ET.

The 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon will be held at 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 20, and will be run on a unique multi-loop course in downtown Boston and Cambridge. The race will feature more than 100 of the top female marathoners in America vying for a chance to represent the United States at the Olympic Games in Beijing this summer. Among the athletes entered in the field are 2004 Olympic Marathon bronze medalist Deena Kastor, 1984 Olympic Marathon gold medalist Joan Samuelson, and 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon champion Colleen De Reuck.

"Playing host to the event, the Boston Athletic Association felt strongly that the U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon in Boston, on the occasion of Patriots' Day weekend and the Boston Marathon, should feature television and internet coverage with video streaming," said Guy Morse, B.A.A. Executive Director. "These are America's best female marathoners and many have been training their entire athletic lives for this moment. They deserve to receive the spotlight that our broadcast coverage will give them as we simultaneously provide inspiration for the next generation of U.S. women."

NBCSports.com

The top American female athletes compete for the chance to represent the U.S. in Beijing this summer with LIVE streaming coverage of the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Women’s Marathon. The race will be streamed in its entirety for FREE via the Web at NBCSports.com on April 20 starting at 8:00 a.m. NBC Sports commentator Al Trautwig and 10-time NCAA All-American Ed Eyestone, provide commentary for the wire-to-wire coverage.

MSNBC

MSNBC will broadcast a one-hour highlights show on Sunday, April 27 from 12:00-1:00 p.m. ET, with analysis by Trautwig and Eyestone. The one-hour show will be the premier episode in a series highlighting a number of Olympic Trials events leading up to the Beijing Olympic Games in August.

The Trials online and over the air broadcast is a joint production of the USOC, Boston Athletic Association, NBC Sports and USA Track & Field.

More information about NBC's coverage of Olympic Trials events and the Olympic Games can be found at NBCOlympics.com. Additional information about the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon can be found at bostontrials2008.com.

Boston Athletic Association

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, including the B.A.A. Half Marathon presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund, and supports comprehensive charity, youth, and year-round running programs. Since 1986, the principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon has been John Hancock Financial Services. The B.A.A. is the local organizing committee for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials- Women's Marathon.