04-11-2006
   
Contact:
Jim Estes
LDR Programs Manager
USA Track & Field
317-713-4661

INDIANAPOLIS - Abdi Abdirahman (Tucson, Ariz.), returns to Louisville, Ky., to defend his USA Men's 10 Mile title at the Papa John's 10 Miler this Saturday, April 15. This year marks the fourth consecutive year Papa John's is hosting the USA Men's 10 Mile Championship.

Abdirahman, a two-time Olympian at 10,000 meters, heads into this year's race with his eyes on breaking the 10 mile championships record of 47:27, which he set in last year's event. His competition will include fellow Olympians Anthony Famiglietti (New York, N.Y.) and Dan Browne (Portland, Ore.). Browne is the 2004 USA Men's 10 Mile Champion.

Browne is returning to action for his first USA Championship since winning the 2005 USA Half-Marathon title in Houston, Texas. Since then, a series of set-backs including two knee surgeries and an emergency appendectomy sidelined him.

The trio of Olympians can also look for challenges from the likes of Andrew Carlson (St. Paul, Minn.), fifth at the 2006 USA Men's Half Marathon Championships; James Carney (Marina, Calif.), fifth at the 2006 USA Men's 15 km Championships; and Matt Lane (Palo Alto, Calif.), and Matthew Downin (Westwood, N.J.), fourth and fifth, respectively, at the 2005 edition of the 10 Mile Championships.

The Papa John's 10 Miler/USA Men's 10 Mile Championship is the third stop on the 2006 USA Running Circuit (USARC) and pays a total of $26,500 in prize money, with the winner earning $10,000.

The USARC, a USA Track & Field road series, features USA Championships from 5 km to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners, including several Olympians. The eleventh edition for the men and tenth for the women, the 2005 circuit has nine events for men and eight events for women.

The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USARC race (15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1), with a final $12,500 grand prix purse ($6000, $4000, and $2500) for the top three men and women point scorers overall. The USARC points at the USA Marathon Championships will be doubled.

The mission of the USA Running Circuit is to showcase, support, and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USARC and its races have provided over $4 million dollars to U.S. distance runners.

For more information on the 2006 USARC and USA Men's 10 Mile Championship visit www.usatf.org.