Minneapolis/St. Paul - March 2, 2010 - Team USA Minnesota's Emily Brown has been selected as a member of the U.S. team that will compete at the NACAC (North America, Central America and Caribbean Athletic Association) Cross Country Championships on March 6.  The championships - which include a senior women's 6 km race, senior men's 8 km race and two junior races - will be held in Tobago, which is the smaller of two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.  It is located in the southern Caribbean Sea.

Brown was named to the team because of her seventh place finish at the USA Cross Country Championships held in Spokane, Wash., on Feb. 13.  At USA Cross in 2009, she was the national champion in the senior women's 8 km race, and in 2008, she placed third in the event.

USA Indoor Championships - Feb. 27-28

Competing in her first national championship as a professional runner, Heather Dorniden finished third in the finals of the women's 800 meters at the USA Indoor Track & Field Championships held in Albuquerque Feb. 27-28.  Her time in the final was 2:02.33, which was a personal best indoors (her best is 2:01.05 set outdoors in 2007).  By finishing third, she just missed a spot on the U.S. team for the IAAF World Indoor Championships that will be held March 12-14 in Qatar.

"I have learned that the only way to leave a race with no regrets is to lay everything out on the track with the greatest of expectations for how your body will handle it," said Dorniden, who graduated from the University of Minnesota in December.  "As we were cutting to the inside lane, there was a window of opportunity for me to take control of the race and I went for it.  I had been working out really well at 2:00 pace, so my plan was to get out there, make the race honest, and see how long I could keep it up.  It is always a little bit disappointing to lead a race for three laps and get taken in the last, but I can honestly say I left everything on the track.

"This past weekend was a great overall experience for me.  I went in there with the mindset that I am a professional now, I am prepared to race well, and I belong on the World team in Qatar.  Unfortunately, I was just under a second back from making that World team, but I am very happy with the way I raced and my new indoor PR time."

Dorniden made it to the final after winning her preliminary heat on Saturday, one of three heats held that day.  She trained at altitude in Albuquerque during February to prepare for the meet.

"My first run at altitude was interesting to say the least," she said.  "My chest was tight, my back got tight and I felt like I was really struggling to breathe normally.  After about a week though, I really felt like I was getting acclimated and I could get into a good rhythm earlier into my runs.  Luckily, my faster workouts on the track were the days that felt the best.  I don't think the altitude affected me as much when I was running at those paces."

Next up for Dorniden will be the outdoor track season.  "I feel that my race this weekend was such a great indicator that the training I've been doing with Team USA Minnesota is working well for me and is a great predictor of fast races to come in the outdoor season," she said.

Cowtown Half Marathon - Feb. 27

Michelle Frey won the Cowtown Half Marathon in Fort Worth, Texas, on Feb. 27 with a time of 1:18:26, a mark that beat the women's course record of 1:22:04.  The half marathon had more than 4,700 finishers and was held in conjunction with five other running events at Cowtown.  Frey is preparing to run the Boston Marathon in April.

World's Best 10k - Feb. 28

In her second appearance at the World's Best 10k, Meghan Armstrong finished 14th overall and third American in a time of 35:09.  The time bested her previous finish of 35:46 in the San Juan, Puerto Rico, race held in 2009.

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 competitiveness 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 sponsor 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.

***********

Contact:

Pat Goodwin

952-924-1081

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it