18th Annual Mayor's Cup Cross Country Races to be Held Sunday at Franklin Park
from: BAA
October 26, 2007

Past Champions Highlight Elite Field

BOSTON, MA – Nearly 800 runners took part in last year's Mayor's Cup Cross Country Races at Franklin Park in Boston, making 2006 one of the most successful editions of the event yet. With the cross country season in full swing across the country, the 2007 Mayor's Cup on Sunday, October 28 is positioned for another exciting day of races for men, women and children. The event is presented by the Boston Athletic Association and adidas, and directed by USATF-New England and the Boston Centers for Youth & Families.

The Mayor's Cup is composed of five races: girls' and boys' 1.1-mile races will begin the day, the open Franklin Park 5K will follow, and then the day culminates with the Women's Championship 5K and Men's Championship 8K.

Two past champions are entered in the men's field: defending champion Stephen Chemlany (KEN) and 2005 champ Jarrod Shoemaker (Sudbury, MA). Chemlany defeated one of the deepest fields in Mayor's Cup history last year, finishing the 8K course in 23:32, and leading eight men under 24 minutes. Shoemaker ran just four seconds slower than his winning time from 2005, yet placed well behind the leaders in 15th. Shoemaker was recently named to the 2008 U.S. Olympic triathlon team.

Looking to challenge Chemlany and Shoemaker will be Jorge Torres (Boulder, CO), making his Mayor's Cup debut. Torres, one of the top young distance runners in the United States, has a near-perfect cross country resume. Torres was three-time Illinois state champion and 1999 national champion in high school. At the University of Colorado he placed in the top three at the NCAA Cross Country Championships three times, winning the national championship in 2002. Since graduating he has been a consistent top-five finisher in the USA Cross Country Championships, and placed 13th in the world at the 4K distance in 2006.

Defending women's champion Aziza Aliyli (ETH) returns Sunday looking to make it back-to-back Mayor's Cup victories. In 2006 she edged Amy Mortimer by two seconds, and beat out a women's field in which the top four finished within nine seconds, and the top seven within 17 seconds.

This year Aliyli will have to fend off two former NCAA stars. Maureen McCandless (Syracuse, NY) placed fifth for Pittsburgh at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in 2004, while Anne Shadle (Fairfax, VA) was in NCAA Indoor mile champion in 2005 for Nebraska.

Serving as the honorary starter of the Women's Championship 5K will be 2003 Mayor's Cup champion Kate O'Neill. The Milton, MA, native, was a member of the 2004 U.S. Olympic team (10,000m), and is in town to tour the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon course in Boston and Cambridge. She qualified for that event three weeks ago at The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon where she placed third with a time of 2:36:15.

The Mayor's Cup Cross Country Races are open to the public, and race-day registration is available until the start of the races. Proceeds from the event are used to maintain Franklin Park.

Sunday's schedule of events:

10:10 a.m.       Girls 1.1-mile

10:30 a.m.       Boys 1.1-mile

10:50 a.m.       Franklin Park 5K

11:30 a.m.       Women's Championship 5K

Noon               Men's Championship 5K

Past Mayor's Cup Champions

Year    Men                                                                Women

2006    Stephen Chemlany (Westchester TC)           Aziza Aliyli (Westchester TC)

2005    Jarrod Shoemaker (B.A.A.)                             Kim Smith (Reebok)

2004    Mark Carroll (adidas)                                      Atalelech Keteme (Westchester TC)

2003    Keith Kelly (New Balance)                              Kate O'Neill (Nike)

2002    Keith Kelly (New Balance)                              Kristin Chisum (New Balance)

2001    Sandu Rebencuic (U.S. Army)                       Priscilla Hein (Indiana Invaders)

2000    Francis Kirwa (Life University)                        Sarah Dupre (B.A.A.)

1999    Sammy Nyamongo (Life University)               Christine Junkermann (adidas)

1998    Francis Kirwa (Life University)                        Lesley Lehane (B.A.A.)

1997    Silah Misoi (Life University)                             Kathy Franey (Nike International)

1996    Silah Misoi (Life University)                             Kate Fonshell (ASICS)

1995    Seamus McElligott (ASICS)                            Lynn Jennings (Nike International)

1994    Abidi Bouazza (Westchester TC)                  Lynn Jennings (Nike International)

1993    Brad Schlapak (NYAC)                                   Carmen Troncoso (Nike Texas)

1992    Brad Schlapak (NYAC)                                   Kathy Franey (Reebok Racing)

1991    Andy Ball (Nike Running Room)                     Gwyn Coogan (Nike Boston)

1990    Michael Baugh (HFC Striders)                        Michelle DiMuro (Reebok Racing)

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