Mayor’s Cup XC This Sunday – Full Schedule

19th
Annual Mayor’s Cup Cross Country Races to be Held Sunday at Franklin Park

Online
and race-day registration remain open for interested
runners

BOSTON,
MA – With 800 participants per year, the
Mayor’s Cup at Franklin Park in Boston continues to be one of the nation’s top
open cross country events. This year’s event will be held on Sunday, October 26,
beginning at 10:00 a.m. 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 offers races for all ages and abilities. Kids can take part in one
of three youth events, designed for ages 10-and-under, 11-12 and 13-14, and held
from 10:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Next on the schedule is the Franklin Park 5K, an open race for men and women of all
ability levels, at 10:50 a.m. Then, at 11:30 a.m. and noon, respectively, will
be the Women’s Championship 5K and Men’s Championship 8K for the top
athletes.

Headlining
the championship races are 2006 men’s champion Stephen Chemlany (Westchester, NY
/ KEN) and two-time defending women’s champion Aziza Ayilu (Westchester, NY /
ETH), both of the Westchester Track Club.

Looking
to challenge Chemlany for the men’s title will be Houston University alum Stephen Magness (Chino Hills, CA), who owns
a PR in the mile of 4:01.02, and North
Carolina State alum
Stephen Furst (Raleigh,
NC). Furst was an NCAA Southeast
Region all-regional selection in cross country in 2006.

Ayilu
will face a deep and experienced women’s field as she attempts to become the
first woman or man to win three consecutive Mayor’s Cup titles. Samia Akbar
(Herndon, VA) is coming off an 18th-place finish at last April’s U.S. Olympic
Team Trials-Women’s Marathon in Boston, and she has twice placed fourth in the
Mayor’s Cup (2005 and 2006). Mary Cullen (Providence, RI / IRL),
runner-up in 2005, and Maureen McCandless (Syracuse, NY),
fourth last year, both return looking to improve on their best Mayor’s Cup
placings. Newcomers Barbara Parker (Tallahassee, FL / GBR), a 2008 Olympian and
British record-holder in the steeplechase, and Jess Minty (Blowing Rock, NC), a
Division III cross country All-American while at Colby College, will also look
to challenge Ayilu.

The
Mayor’s Cup is 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.

Full
results and a race report will be available at www.baa.org on Sunday
afternoon.

Sunday’s
schedule of events:

10:00
a.m.      
Boys’ & Girls’ 10-and-under 1.1-mile

10:15
a.m.      
Boys’ & Girls’ 11-12 1.1-mile

10:30
a.m.      
Boys’ & Girls’ 13-14 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

2007    Girma Tola (Westchester
TC)                                   
Aziza Ayilu (Westchester
TC)

2006    Stephen Chemlany (Westchester
TC)          
Aziza Ayilu
(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)

Past
Mayor’s Cup Team Champions

Year    Men                                                   
           
Women

2007    Boston Athletic Association                           
RIADHA/Shoes 4 Africa

2006    Westchester Track Club                   
           
Westchester Track
Club

2005    Boston Athletic Association               
           
Westchester Track
Club

2004    Boston Athletic Association               
           
Boston
Athletic Association

2003    Boston Athletic Association               
           
Boston
Athletic Association

2002    Bryn Mawr Running Club                   
           
Boston
Athletic Association

2001    Boston Athletic Association                           
Indiana
Invaders

2000    Reebok Boston                      
                       
Boston
Athletic Association

1999    Life University                                                 
Syracuse
Chargers

1998    Reebok Enclave                     
                       
Boston
Athletic Association

1997    New Balance              
                       
           
ASICS Club East

1996    New Balance              
                       
           
Boston
Running Club

1995    Life University                                                 
Boston
Running Club