26 September 2007

CONTACTS: (Please do not publish these numbers or emails. Race information is available on the web at www.cherryblossom.org, by email at info@cherryblossom.org, or on the race hotline, 301-320-3350)

Phil Stewart
Event Director
301-320-6865
pstewart@cherryblossom.org

Frank McNally
Media Coordinator
703-801-2566 (cell); 703 572-4040 (d); 540-338-5648 (e)

Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Expands Field to 12,000;
Unveils New Course Starting on Washington Monument Grounds

On-line Registration Opens on Dec. 11th

WASHINGTON -- The Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile, the Washington, DC area’s most popular spring running event, will expand its field to 12,000 for the 2008 race, scheduled for April 6, 2008. Event Director Phil Stewart said, “The success of the wave start in 2007 made us confident that we can provide a quality event for more runners than ever before. It’s a good feeling to know we can do more to meet the demand on the part of runners from the Washington Metropolitan area and around the country.” The event, known as “The Runner’s Rite of Spring,” always fills to capacity in a matter of days after the opening of registration in December.

The opening of the on-line registration process for the 2008 event will take place on Tuesday, December 11 at 8 a.m. Runners can sign up to receive an email reminder about the opening of on-line registration or a mail-in entry form at the event’s website at www.cherryblossom.org.  

The event also will feature a new course with the start and finish on 15th St. adjacent to the Washington Monument grounds. The revised route will feature more cherry trees than ever before, with a 3-mile circuit under a canopy of legendary trees in East Potomac Park (Hains Point) in addition to the traditional sections past the trees along the Tidal Basin, Independence Ave., and the always popular Memorial Bridge crossing.

The new, Washington Monument grounds staging area will be readily accessible by Metro, with the start-finish line less than a quarter mile from the Smithsonian stop. Metro will open two hours early, at 5 a.m., on race day to transport the race participants, volunteers and spectators.

The event, which serves as the only world-class road race in the Nation’s Capital, will offer $35,500 in prize money and time incentives to elite athletes from around the world. The top male and female athletes will earn checks for $6,000 each.

The sponsoring Credit Union Miracle Day, Inc. hopes to raise over $1 million dollars for the Children’s Miracle Network through donations and fundraising on the part of the runners and individual sponsoring Credit Unions and partners. About a third of these funds support Washington, DC’s own Children’s National Medical Center (“Children’s Hospital”).

The event takes place on the second weekend of the National Cherry Blossom Festivalâ, a two-week celebration of sporting and cultural events that commemorates the blossoming of the fabled trees donated to this country by Japan in the early 20th century.

The event is part of the Professional Road Running Organization Circuit. In addition to title sponsorship from Credit Union Miracle Day, Inc. and its affiliated Credit Unions and Partners, the event enjoys supporting sponsorship from Gatorade, Navy Federal Credit Union, and Metro Run & Walk.