Minneapolis/St. Paul - July 19, 2010 - Eight Team USA Minnesota distance runners - including 2010 National Champions Antonio Vega and Katie McGregor - will join a field of more than 5,000 participants at the Life Time Fitness Torchlight 5k in downtown Minneapolis on July 21.  Vega is the 2010 USA Half Marathon Champion and McGregor is the 2010 USA 15k and 25k Champion.

Additional Team USA Minnesota runners at the fun run event include Kristen Nicolini, Michelle Frey, Heather Dorniden, Jason Lehmkuhle, Josh Moen and Matt Gabrielson.  The Torchlight 5k, which begins at 7:30 p.m., kicks off the Minneapolis Aquatennial Torchlight Parade.  A portion of the proceeds from each registration will be donated to Second Harvest Heartland and the Life Time Fitness Foundation.

The run starts at the Basilica of St. Mary, winds through downtown Minneapolis, goes over the Mississippi River on the Stone Arch Bridge, and finishes on Nicollet Island.  A post-race party features live entertainment, prizes and refreshments for participants.  The Torchlight 5k was recently featured by Runner's World as the July "Race of the Month."

Weekend Results - July 17-18

Michelle Frey won the Run for Oromia 10k on July 17 in a time of 35:33.  The race was held on Saturday morning at Lake Harriet in Minneapolis.

Running in Europe on the track, Heather Dorniden finished second in her heat of the 800 meters and 7th in the combined listing of two heats with a time of 2:01.78.  The meet was held on Sunday, July 18, in Lignano, Italy.

About Team USA Minnesota

Team USA Minnesota is based in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis/St. Paul.  Formed in 2001, the purpose of the training center is to improve the competiveness of post-collegiate American distance running and to develop Olympians.  The athletes are coached by Dennis Barker, head cross country and track coach at Augsburg College in Minneapolis.  Team USA Minnesota's major spnosor is Life Time Fitness (www.lifetimefitness.com) and its silver sponsor is Twin Cities In Motion (www.mtcmarathon.org).  It is also supported by the New York Road Runners and the USA Distance Project along with a grant from Running USA.  For more information, visit the team's web site at www.teamusaminnesota.org.

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Contact:

Pat Goodwin

952-924-1081

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