Americans Win World Masters 100K Championship: Team USA Sweeps in the Medals

For Immediate Release
December 16, 2005

USATF Mountain/Ultra/Trail Running Council
http://www.usatf.org/groups/MountainUltraTrail/
Lorraine Gersitz, USATF MUT Council Member/Masters Ultrarunning Representative
E-mail: bruceandlo@earthlink.net (714)526-5340

Americans Win World Masters 100K Championship:
Team USA Sweeps in the Medals

Bariloche, Argentina - On the hot and hilly course at the foothills of the Andes, American Mark Godale (35) won the 2005 World Masters Athletics 100-kilometer (62 mile) world championship in Bariloche, Argentina. The Ohioan finished over 9 minutes ahead of silver medalist Morales Jose Antonio. American women team of Amanda McIntosh (40), Tania Pacev (46), and Dee Dee Grafius (56) swept the gold, silver and bronze medals. The USA Track & Field's eight-member powerhouse team scored a total of nine medals, two more than the second place Argentinean team and three times the number of medals awarded to third place Uruguay. The impressive USATF masters team also set four age-group course records at the WMA 100K World Championship contested on December 11, 2005.

This team was the largest team that the United States has sent to a masters world ultra championship and the four returning veteran team members showed their experience against teams from Canada, Columbia, Spain, Uruguay, and host country Argentina. On previewing the scenic race course, veteran USATF 100K team member Pacev said, "The course is very hilly, the part aound the lake and the last 20K has lots of hills...the temperature may be up to 80F. It looks like running in San Francisco."

The four men and four women USATF masters 100K team represented a mix of states and two decades of age groups. The WMA 100K World Championship is an opportunity for American ultrarunners age 35 and over to compete in a world 100K championship exclusively for masters runners. The goal of the 2005 USATF Masters 100K Team is to provide broad American age-group presence at the World Cup 100K demonstrating American support for the masters 100K world competition and to compete for individual world age-group medals.

USATF provides partial funding for the WMA 100K Team and team members are self-funded. Donations to the team are welcome. Contributions to the team are tax-exempt through International Masters Athletics Foundation. To contribute to the 2005 USATF WMA 100K Team, contact Katy Cotton at IMAF, Inc. @ imaf_inc@yahoo.com. For information about IMAF, go to: http://www.cerritos.edu/lgersitz/IMAF/Home.htm

Team USA Results:
(source: www.mundial100k-wma.com.ar)

Mark Godale, 35, OH, 8:28:10*
Roy Pirrung, 57, WI, 9:09:07*
Chris Frost, 54 CA, 11:57:14
Craig Robertson, 46, TX, 13:56:45
Amanda McIntosh, 40, TX 9:22:49
Tania Pacev, 46, CO, 10:00:08*
Dee Dee Grafius, 56, CA, 11:25:46*
Katy Cotton, 39, WY, 13:06:18*

Rivero Jorge of Argentina set a Masters course record, winning the Gold with a time of 8:51:30*

*Age Group Course Record

For full results, go to the World Masters Athletics website at: http://www.world-masters-athletics.org or the Mundial Ultramarathon 100K - WMA 2005 website: http://www.mundial100k-wma.com.ar
Check out the January, 2006 issue of http://wwww.ultrarunning.com for race coverage/results and for a Calendar of Events.

--Constance Karras