byLarry Eder
Allan Steinfeld Award Winners, Team USA Arizona, photo courtesy of Peter Abraham of the Honda LA Marathon.
The Running USA Conventions Awards dinner is one of the highlights of the event. This year was no exception. The honorees included Team USA Arizona who received the Allan Steinfeld Award, named in honor of the former ING NYCM race director and founding member of Running USA. Team USA Arizona has seventeen members (ten women, seven men), and includes Stephanie Rothstein, Aaron Braun Brett Gotcher and Nic Arciniaga, all who have excelled over the cross country, the roads and marathon distance this year. Also honored were Dr. Ken Cooper, the man who made aerobic running part of our lives, and Creigh Kelley, race director, race announcer, founding member of Running USA, former Men’s LDR chair, and a great friend, who were entered into Running USA’s Hall of Fame.
And finally the Cascade Run Off was honored, on the 30th anniversary of the race giving prize money over the table.Chuck Galford, Keith Peters and Anne Audain represented the event!
Chuck Galford was legal counsel, Keith Peters was race director and Anne Audain won the 1981 race. The Cascade Run Off was a wonderful 15k that showcased the City of Portland, Oregon. I had the priviledge of running it in 1980, and having Lorraine Moller wisk by me, dropping the last two miles just over five minutes per mile to win the women’s race. It was the first time I had been beat by a women in a road race, and Lorraine was magnificent. She had taken the hills well and just flew down the last 5k! (I also had the 1980 race shirt for probably a decade until it was stolen out of my hotel room).
Congrats to all of the winners! Well deserved to all and nice job for Running USA recognizing such important supporters of our sport. The Running USA convention will be held during the U.S. Olympic Trials for the marathon in Houston in 2012. And on a final note, the always enjoyable Running USA auction raised $52,000 this year to help support the sport.
Team
USA Arizona wins Allan Steinfeld Development Award; Hall of Champions
inductees Dr. Ken Cooper and Creigh Kelley; tribute to Cascade Run Off
highlight event
SAN ANTONIO – (February 14, 2011) – At the Running USA Hall of Champions Dinner and Live Auction on Monday evening at the Grand Hyatt San Antonio, the sport was celebrated and feted with the Allan Steinfeld Development Award, two Hall of Champions inductees and a tribute to the Cascade Run Off.
The evening was part of Running USA 2011: The Industry Conference which
opened to record registration on Sunday, February 13 in the Alamo City.
Team USA Arizona,
based at altitude in Flagstaff, was announced as the second Allan
Steinfeld Development Award winner. The development award was named
after Allan Steinfeld, a long-time leader in the sport,
who jump-started the U.S. distance running resurgence when as head of
the New York Road Runners he allocated $20,000 seed money ($1 per U.S.
entry at the 2000 New York City Marathon) for the development program
Team USA Distance Running launched in November 2000 that produced
training groups such as Team Running USA (two Olympic medals in 2004 and
major marathon wins) and Team USA Minnesota (winner of the inaugural
development award) and inspired others.
“Team
USA Arizona with its youth and talent is a perfect choice for our
training group development award. They represent the future of U.S.
distance running, and we look forward to their continued successes as
the 2012 Olympics near,” said Susan Weeks, Running USA CEO.
“If
we’ve learned one thing from the resurgence of U.S. distance running
over the last 10 years, it’s that all our Olympic hopefuls need is
opportunity. Running USA’s ongoing support of training groups through
the Allan Steinfeld Development Award allows more and more opportunities
for our deserving emerging elite athletes,” said Greg McMillan,
Team USA Arizona head coach and founder. “We are honored to receive
this award which will help us continue to provide opportunities for a
new generation of U.S. distance runners.”
The 17-member Team USA Arizona, with an average age of just 25, includes 10 women (Lindsay Allen, Erin Bedell, Alvina Begay,Danielle Domenichelli, Megan Duwell, Emily Harrison, Shayla Houlihan, Natasha LaBeaud, Stephanie Rothstein and Jaime Winslow) and 7 men (Marco Anzures, Nick Arciniaga, Fasil Bizuneh, Aaron Braun, Brett Gotcher, Jordan Horn and Scott Smith).
Gotcher and Rothstein currently have the fourth fastest U.S. Olympic
Marathon Trials 2012 qualifier times. For more information, go to: www.teamusaarizona.com
In addition, at the Monday evening awards banquet and live auction, the eighth class of the Running USA Hall of Champions was recognized for their contribution and dedication to the sport. The 2011 inductees were:
- Dr. Ken Cooper (Dallas, TX), best-selling author / researcher / pioneer / “father of aerobics”
- Creigh Kelley (Englewood, CO), race organizer / announcer / administrator / volunteer
The evening also included a tribute to the Cascade Run Off and
the 30th anniversary of its awarding of Open prize money, the first
such “over the table” money for a major U.S. road race. This historic
event led to the professionalization of the sport. At the tribute, race
founder Chuck Galford, race coordinator Keith Peters and 1981 women’s winner Anne Audain represented and celebrated the 15K race. Later a quilt made of past race shirts was auctioned for $2500.
Overall, the conference’s silent and live auctions raised more than $52,000 for Team USA Arizona and other Running USA programs.
For more information on Running USA 2011, visit: RunningUSA.org or contact Ryan Lamppa at (805) 696-6232 or ryan@runningusa.or
