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For Immediate Release
Contact:
Ryan Lamppa, PRRO
Circuit Media Contact
media@prro.org
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Hall, Kibet Kick to Win Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon
Race champions capture final $10,000 Super Bonus qualifying berths for upcoming 2018 PRRO Championship; 14th Publix Gasparilla Half offered $30,000 U.S.-only prize purse
 TAMPA, Fla. - The Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon, the 2018 PRRO Circuit racing season opener on Sunday, February 25, featured two down-to-the-wire finishes under warm, humid conditions. In the women's professional race,
Sara Hall, 34, from Redding, CA, edged defending champion
Stephanie Bruce, 34, from Flagstaff, AZ, by one second: 1 hour, 12 minutes, 1 second to 1:12:02; both shattered the course record of 1:12:35 by
Jen Rhines in 2015. For the men, Colorado residents
Elkanah Kibet, 32, Colorado Springs and Parker Stinson, 25, Boulder also battled to the finish line with Kibet prevailing by two seconds, 1:03:39 to 1:03:41.
The 14th edition offered a U.S.-only prize purse totaling $30,000 that went 5-deep ($8000, $3500, $2000, $1000 and $500) as well as a local purse of $10,000. In addition, as race champions, Kibet and Hall captured the final two qualifying spots to compete for the $10,000
PRRO Super Bonus at the 23rd
PRRO Championship, hosted for the first time by the
Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile on Sunday, April 8 in Washington, DC.
"As a first time host of a PRRO Circuit event, the Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon proved to be a great addition to the series," said
Don Kardong, Professional Road Running Organization (PRRO) President. "To
have both men's and women's races decided by a final sprint is something we all
dream of."
In February 2017, the Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon in Tampa, FL joined the PRRO Circuit 2017-18 to become the 5th Circuit event member. The half marathon was one of the four events of
Publix Gasparilla Distance Classic weekend
- a 15K and 5K were held on Saturday and the half marathon and an 8K on Sunday
- that attracted more than 30,000 participants to downtown Tampa.
The 45th Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile on April 2, 2017 opened the
PRRO Circuit 2017-18. The PRRO Circuit showcases world class competition at 5 classic American road race events shorter than the marathon distance and features more than $340,000 in prize money overall with $119,700 available for U.S. athletes. The annual international spring road race will also host the 2018
PRRO Championship race on April 8.
PRRO CIRCUIT 2017-18 SCHEDULE
45th Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile,
Apr. 2, 2017,
Washington, DC
$65,000 in prize money ($25,000 U.S. prize money) plus bonuses
Winners: Stanley Kebenei*, USA, 46:36 and Hiwot Gebrekidan*, Ethiopia, 53:37
Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K, May 7, 2017, Spokane, WA
$81,000 in prize money ($20,000 U.S. prize money)
Winners: Gabriel Geay*, Tanzania, 34:31
and Buze Diriba*, Ethiopia, 40:19
40th Boilermaker 15K, July 9, 2017, Utica, NY
$66,000 in prize money ($14,500 U.S. prize money)
Winners: Silas Kipruto*, Kenya, 43:55
and
Mary Wacera*, Kenya, 49:18
5th EQT Pittsburgh 10 Miler, The
2017 PRRO Championship, Nov. 5, 2017, Pittsburgh, PA
$26,200 in prize money ($5200 U.S. prize money)
PRRO Champions: Panuel Mkungo*, Kenya, 47:03
and
Buze Diriba*, Ethiopia, 52:11
Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon,
February 25, 2018, Tampa, FL
$40,000 in prize money ($30,000 U.S. prize money)
Winners:
Elkanah Kibet*, USA, 1:03:39 and Sara Hall*, USA, 1:12:01, course record
Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile, The PRRO Championship, April 8, 2018,
Washington, DC
$65,000 in prize money ($25,000 U.S. prize money) plus bonuses
*Qualified for the PRRO Super Bonus at the 2018 PRRO Championship.
At the PRRO Championship, reigning champions and any athlete who has won one of the 2017-18 Circuit events
are eligible for the $10,000
PRRO Super Bonus, which is awarded to the winner of the 2018 PRRO Championship (split if an eligible male and female win the PRRO titles). Those aforementioned runners are also eligible for the
PRRO Event Champion's Bonus ($1500 cumulative for eligible athletes who do not win the PRRO Championship but do place in the top 10 at the PRRO Championship). Any athlete who wins the PRRO Super Bonus is not eligible for the PRRO Event Champion's Bonus.
If the male and female winners of the PRRO Championship have not won any of the events on the current Circuit, they will win $2500 each as the PRRO Circuit champions in addition to the prize money at the PRRO Championship event.
PRRO Circuit events have produced 17 world and 17 U.S. road records, awarded more than $7.1 million in prize money and seen more than 2.3 million runners cross their finish lines. In addition, since 1996, the PRRO Championship race has paid out more than $1.7 million including $134,500 in PRRO Championship bonus money.
The PRRO Circuit, a long-time pioneer and champion of a clean sport, has funded drug testing at its events since 2006. During the 2016-17 season, USADA conducted more than 50 in-competition tests and an undisclosed number of pre-competition tests.
PRRO Championship and Circuit Year
The PRRO Circuit, launched in 1995, rotates among the PRRO Circuit races with the Circuit Year starting and finishing at the same event. The winners of
the 2017 PRRO Championship at the EQT Pittsburgh 10 Miler as well as the event winners on the 2017-18 Circuit serve as Super Bonus qualifiers for the PRRO
Championship at the 2018 Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile.
Visit PRRO.org for more
information, including PRRO's history, as well as how to join the PRRO Circuit.
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