Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K Ready to Present the 2019 PRRO Championship
The 43rd edition on Sunday, May 5 offers a guaranteed prize purse of $81,000 including $20,000 U.S.-only prize money; PRRO Circuit event champions will also vie for $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus as well as PRRO Event Champion's Bonus money
SPOKANE, Wash.
- (April 25, 2019) - The 43rd Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K on Sunday morning, May 5 will host the
PRRO Championship for the second time, and at the iconic road race, a top international field will compete for $81,000 in guaranteed prize money with a $50,000 Open purse going 15-deep plus $20,000 for top U.S. finishers. Along with 24th PRRO Championship and race titles at stake,
PRRO Circuit 2018-19 event champions also qualified to compete for the $10,000
PRRO Super Bonus
as well as PRRO Event Champion's Bonus money.
The following athletes are eligible for the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus:
Jemal Yimer (Ethiopia), Buze Diriba (Ethiopia),
Gabriel Geay (Tanzania), Mary Wacera (Kenya),
Scott Fauble (USA), Aliphine Tuliamuk (USA) and Rosemary Wanjiru (Kenya).
"With great pleasure and anticipation, Bloomsday welcomes hosting the PRRO Championship in this, my final year as race director," said
Don Kardong, Professional Road Running Organization (PRRO) President and Bloomsday race director.
"Having been directly involved in the development of prize money in road racing,
I take special pride in having race champions from other outstanding U.S. prize
money races compete here in Spokane."
The classic Northwest road race, founded by 1976 Olympic marathoner Don Kardong, draws more than 40,000 participants, from professional runners to first-timers, who cover a 7.46 mile course that weaves across the Spokane River gorge before finishing above awe-inspiring falls in downtown Spokane. Since 1977, more than 1.7 million runners have crossed the Bloomsday finish line.
Last year's Bloomsday 12K champions were Ethiopians Jemal Yimer and Buze Diriba, clocking 34 minutes, 18 seconds and 39:27, respectively. In 1996, Bloomsday hosted the inaugural PRRO Championship, and
Lazarus Nyakeraka of Kenya and Colleen De Reuck of South Africa won the respective first titles in 34:07 and 38:48.
The Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K on May 6, 2018 opened the PRRO Circuit 2018-19. The PRRO Circuit
- celebrating its 25th year - showcases world class competition at 4 classic American road race events shorter than the marathon distance and features more than $330,000 in guaranteed prize money overall, with $109,500 available for U.S. athletes.
PRRO CIRCUIT 2018-19 SCHEDULE
Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K, May 6, 2018, Spokane, WA
$81,000 in prize money ($20,000 U.S. prize money)
Winners: Jemal Yimer*, Ethiopia (34:18) and Buze Diriba*, Ethiopia (39:27)
Boilermaker 15K, July 8, 2018, Utica, NY
$66,000 in prize money ($14,500 U.S. prize money)
Winners: Gabriel Geay*, Tanzania (43:40) and Mary Wacera*, Kenya (50:01)
Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon,
February 24, 2019, Tampa, FL
$40,000 in prize money ($30,000 U.S. prize money)
Winners: Scott Fauble*, USA (1:05:09) and Aliphine Tuliamuk*, USA (1:12:29)
Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile, April
7, 2019,
Washington, DC
$65,000 in prize money ($25,000 U.S. prize money) plus performance bonuses
Winners: Jemal Yimer*, Ethiopia (45:36) and Rosemary Wanjiru*, Kenya (50:42)
Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K: The PRRO
Championship,
May 5, 2019, Spokane, WA
$81,000 in prize money ($20,000 U.S. prize money)
*Qualified to compete for the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus at the 2019 PRRO Championship.
At the PRRO Championship, reigning champions and any athlete who has won one of the 2018-19 Circuit events are eligible to compete for the $10,000
PRRO Super Bonus, which is awarded to the winner of the 2019 PRRO Championship (bonus 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 finish in places 2-10 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 be awarded $2500 each as the PRRO Championship Circuit winners in addition to the prize money at the PRRO Championship event.
To-date, PRRO Circuit events have produced 17 world and 17 U.S. road records, awarded more than $7.5 million in prize money and seen more than 2.4 million runners cross their finish lines. In addition, since 1996, the PRRO Championship race has paid out more than $1.8 million, including $148,500 in PRRO Circuit 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 2017-18 season, more than 50 in-competition tests and an undisclosed number of pre-competition tests were conducted. The 2018-19 season will have a similar number of tests.
PRRO Championship and Circuit Year
The PRRO Circuit, launched in 1995, starts and finishes the Circuit Year at the same event that will also host the season-ending PRRO Championship race. The reigning titlists of the PRRO Championship and the event winners on the current Circuit are eligible to compete for the PRRO Super Bonus at the PRRO Championship.
Visit PRRO.org for more
information, including PRRO's history and past champions, as well as how to join the PRRO Circuit.
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