Minneapolis/St. Paul - June 16, 2010 - Three Team USA Minnesota distance runners will compete on the roads on June 19 including at the Steamboat Classic 4 Miler in Peoria, the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon in Duluth, and at the BK 5K Road Race in Winona, Minn.

Antonio Vega returns to the roads at the 37th edition of the Steamboat Classic after running a personal best of 2:13:47 at the Boston Marathon in April.  The 2010 USA Half Marathon Champion will toe the line in downtown Peoria along with a deep international field.  Vega has bests of 8:06 in the 3000m and 14:10 in the 5000.

Heading up to Duluth will be Michelle Frey who will make her third appearance at the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon.  The race starts at 6:30 a.m. on Old Highway 61 along the north shore of Lake Superior and is a point-to-point run on the second half of the Grandma's Marathon course, finishing in Canal Park.  Frey has a best in the distance of 1:12:42.

Kristen Nicolini will head to the southeastern part of Minnesota to run in the 10th annual Bk 5k Road Race.  All proceeds from the event go to various Winona area youth organizations and programs.  The race starts at 9:00 a.m.  Nicolini has a best in the 5000 of 15:51.  Last weekend she won the Back in Shape 5k with a time of 16:47.

Weekend Results - June 12-13

Kristen Nicolini placed first and Michelle Frey was second in the Back in Shape 5k in Minneapolis on June 12.  Nicolini's time was 16:47 and Frey finished in 16:49.  In the men's race, Josh Moen was second in a time of 14:13.

Heather Dorniden was third in the 800 meters at the adidas Grand Prix in New York City on June 12.  Her time was 2:03.83.

At the USATF North Region Open Outdoor Track & Field Championships in St. Paul on June 13, Katie McGregor was first in the 5000 meters and Meghan Armstsrong was second.  Their times were 15:57.29 and 16:00.35 respectively.

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.

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Contact:

Pat Goodwin

952-924-1081

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