5k Championship Website / Event Website / USARC

2011 Men’s Results
Ben True 13:43
Aaron Braun 13:44
Robert Cheseret 13:48

2011 Women’s Results
Julie Culley - 15:39
Kim Conley - 15:47
Emily Brown – 15:55

U.S. Championship Prize Money (Men & Women)
1^st - $5,000
2^nd - $3,000
3^rd – $2,000
4^th - $1,500
5^th – $1,000
6^th - $900
7^th - $700
8^th - $500
9^th - $300
10^th - $100

Overall Prize Money (Men & Women)
1^st - $3,000
2^nd - $2,000
3^rd - $1,000

Men’s Preview

With the track season just about wrapped up, the attention falls to road racing this coming weekend, as the U.S. 5k Championships take place at the CVS Downtown 5k in Providence, Rhode Island.

The men’s field is considered the strongest in event history, according to elite athlete coordinator Jim Harvey. With seven athletes in the field who’ve run 13:21 or faster for the event (on the track), along with many other notable athletes who are capable of breaking 13:30, the race is lining up to be incredibly fast.

Leading the way is pre-race favorite Andrew Bumbalough. Bumbalough finished fourth in the 5k at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials earlier this summer, while performing well on the track post-Olympics. He recently ran a 3k time of 7:44 in Stockholm, while coming back in Belgium to run 3:45 for 1,500m. He’s still race sharp and enters the race with the fastest 5k track time in 2012 of the field.

Another pre-race favorite Sam Chelanga. While Chelanga was rather quiet this summer, the Oregon Track Club athlete is starting to turn his track speed to the roads, where he’ll test his current fitness against the rest of the field. Chelanga, along with other international athletes like David McNeill and Leonard Korir, while not able to win U.S. championship money, still have a shot to win some nice overall top three prize money.

Last year’s champion Ben True, who dealt with a case of Lyme disease heading into the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, returns to challenge for the victory once again. Despite his illness at the Trials, True finished sixth in the 5,000m and 12^th in the 10,000m. He seems poised and ready to run another fast race and could very well challenge for the win in Providence.

The athlete sure to get the most attention prior to the race is Alan Webb. Yes, Webb is taking on the 5k road challenge, as he looks to regain confidence heading into the off-season. As a tune-up to Sunday’s race, Webb easily won the Chik-Fil-A 5k in 14:29 this past weekend. Fans have been speculating what Webb’s next move would be (will he move up in distance?), so it will be interesting to see how he stacks up against strong competition.

While quietly going about his business earning a fifth place finish in the 5,000m at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, Aaron Braun has shown he’s taking his running to another level this season. Last year’s runner-up in this event, where he lost to True by a mere second, Braun should challenge for a top three finish, and don’t be surprised to see him even challenging for the win in the final 400m. He’s got the momentum on his side.

Not to be overlooked, former Northern Arizona University standout David McNeill and former Iona great Leonard Korir challenge their fitness against the field. McNeill, Korir, Elliott Heath, Ben Bruce, Jake Riley, Robert Chesert, Augustus Maiyo, AJ Acosta and Christo Landry round out the top contenders, all capable of a top three finish on a good day.

The amazing depth of the field should mean some big race results are in store for this year’s U.S. 5k Championships.

Women’s Preview

While the men’s race is stacked with talent, the women’s race should be equally as competitive. Providence-based runner Molly Huddle headlines the event, as the Olympic 5,000m standout wraps up her racing season looking for a win. Huddle, who finished second in the 5k at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials and earned a runner-up finish in the U.S. 15k Championships earlier this season, should pace the field right from the start.

Following closely on her heels will be Gabriele Anderson, Liz Maloy and Ashley Higginson. All three athletes had successful track seasons, especially at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials. Anderson finished a close fourth in the 1,500m, Higginson finished fourth in the steeplechase and Maloy finished seventh in the 5k. All three have the speed and strength necessary to really challenge for the win in Providence.

One wild-card in the field is former DII standout Neely Spence. Spence, who now trains with the Hansons-Brooks team, has a proven track record of turning in tremendous performances at the 5k distance, so she should feel right at home in Sunday’s race. She’s fully recovered from a foot injury and is excited to get back to racing against top competition.

Another wild-card is Maegan Krifchin. The unheralded athlete from Ithaca, NY finished third at the U.S. 15k Championships back in March, finishing behind Olympians Janet Cherobon-Bawcom and Molly Huddle, but ahead of notable distance runners Alisha Williams, Lindsey Scherf (who’s competing in Providence) and Adriana Nelson-Pirtea.

The tremendous amount of talent taking the line in Providence is impressive. A strong collection of talent vies for the prize purse, end-of-season bragging rights and the perfect race to finish their seasons.

Men’s Start List
AJ Acosta
Chris Barnicle
Aaron Braun
Ben Bruce
Andrew Bumbalough
Christopher Burke
Sam Chelanga
Robert Cheseret
Michael Crouch
Craig Forys
Matthew Forys
Giliat Ghebray
Bobby Hartnett
Elliott Heath
Christian Hesch
Leonard Korir
Christopher Landry
Colin Leak
Cory Leslie
Augustus Maiyo
Anthony Mallory
David McNeill
Kenyon Neuman
David Nightingale
Harbert Okuti
Jon  Phillips
Jake Riley
Aaron Rowe
Tommy Schmitz
Sebastian Schwelm
Matthew Tebo
Ben True
Alan Webb

Women’s Start List
Gabriele Anderson
Megan Brown
Jamie Cheever
Ari Fisher
Kaitlin Gregg
Ashley Higginson
Molly Huddle
Kellyn Johnson
Emma  Kertesz
Maegan Krifchin
Kyle Linn Feldman
Sarah Lee
Liz Maloy
Katie McGregor
Stephanie Pancoast
Leonora Petrina
Meghan Peyton
Sarah Porter
Catherine Robbie
Lindsey Scherf
Neely Spence
Laura Thweatt