The boys Saratoga XC Club and girls Hilton XC Club reigned supreme and were crowned the fastest XC clubs in the nation at the 2nd Annual Nike Team Nationals in Portland, Oregon on December 3, 2005.
Teams Top the Competition with Collective Times of 1:25:58.20 and 1:43:39.40 Respectively
BEAVERTON, Ore., Dec. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- The boys Saratoga XC Club and
girls Hilton XC Club reigned supreme and were crowned the fastest XC clubs in
the nation at the 2nd Annual Nike Team Nationals in Portland, Oregon on
December 3, 2005. The race pits the fastest boys and girls cross country teams
against each other to settle the score and name the fastest teams in the
nation. Leading the boys' field with a blazing combined team time of
1:25:58.20, the Saratoga club edged out Elmhurst XC Club with their time of
1:26:18.30. In the girls' race, the Hilton club, with a collective team time
of 1:43:39.40, narrowly beat out second place finishers Saratoga Streaks XC
Club with their time of 1:43:39.16. On hand to congratulate the teams was
Marathon world-record holder Paul Tergat and XC champions Lauren Fleshman,
Dathan Ritzenhein, Alan Webb and Shalane Flanagan.
Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051203/NYSA017
“To see a field as talented as this illustrates how bright the future of the sport is," said Paul Tergat, Marathon world-record holder. "Nike has assembled an amazing event to showcase the talent of these young runners. Not only the race itself, but the entire weekend inspired and motivated the future generation of great distance runners."
Following the two teams into the finish chute were:
BOYS RANKINGS
1. Saratoga XC Club 1:25:58.20
2. Elmhurst XC Club 1:26:18.30
3. Manlius XC Club 1:26:14.30
4. Mead XC Club 1:26:48.30
5. Mountain View XC Club 1:27:05.11
6. Simi West XC Club 1:27:07.90
7. Carmichael XC Club 1:27:15.30
8. Brothers XC Club 1:27:16.90
9. Fort Collins XC Club 1:26:54.50
10. Spokane XC Club 1:27:22.90
11. Central Catholic XC Club 1:28:06.60
12. Chapel Hill XC Club 1:28:45.90
13. Hills XC Club 1:29:03.30
14. Willmar XC Club 1:29:07.20
15. Warren XC Club 1:28:55.90
16. Corpus Christi XC Club 1:29:35.80
17. Louisville XC Club 1:30:06.20
18. Yankton 3-D Running XC Club 1:29:52.80
19. Rock Springs XC Club 1:30:30.90
20. Flower Mound XC Club 1:30:52.80
GIRLS RANKINGS
1. Hilton XC Club 1:43:39.40
2. Saratoga Streaks XC Club 1:43:39.16
3. Carroll XC Club 1:43:11.42
4. Naperville XC Club 1:44:48.03
5. Yankton 3-D Running Club 1:45:09.05
6. Newport XC Club 1:45:40.85
7. Gig XC Club 1:46:53.65
8. Rocky Mountain XC Club 1:46:52.43
9. Succasunna XC Club 1:46:53.84
10. Fremont XC Club 1:47:34.61
11. Greenbelt XC Club 1:48:32.10
12. Oak Park Station 36 XC Club 1:48:34.29
13. Westfield XC Club 1:48:54.94
14. Jacksonville XC Club 1:49:08.34
15. Fairbanks XC Club 1:49:15.00
16. Kingwood XC Club 1:50:40.16
17. Colorado Lady Knights XC 1:51:15.47
18. Portland Harriers XC Club 1:51:17.59
19. North Lakeville XC Club 1:52:00.31
20. Boise Striders XC Club 1:53:03.71
Nike Team Nationals stands as the only national XC team championship with
USA Track and Field-registered clubs composed of the best high-school-age
athletes, and younger, competing in a team setting. The top two boys teams and
the top two girls teams from each region (Northeast, Southeast, South,
Midwest, Heartland, Southwest, Northwest and California), plus four at-large
selections each for boys and girls made up the 20-team fields.
In addition to competing for the national title, runners had the
opportunity to experience a weekend of events related to the sport both on and
off the course including educational seminars and activities. Athletes were
given the opportunity to learn about career options, speak with NCAA
representatives about college opportunities and rules, interact with other
runners from around the country and learn from world renowned coaches and
athletes including Paul Tergat.
Created to celebrate cross country as a team sport, the Nike Team National
is a non-for-profit event and collaborative venture between USA Track & Field,
Nike, Foot Locker and the National Scholastic Sports Foundation. In 2004, the
Nike Team Nationals hosted a crowd of more than 5,000 to the Portland Meadows
thoroughbred racetrack to see the Kroy XC Club of Elmhurst, Illinois win the
boys race and Kinetic XC Club of Saratoga Springs, NY win the girls race.
"The original idea for the Nike Team Nationals grew out of Nike's long
passion for running and our commitment to provide the highest platform for
team cross country competition," said Joaque Hidalgo, VP of US Marketing. "As
with last year's event, our goal for the invitational is to celebrate cross
country as a team sport while recognizing the country's top youth runners."
Following in the tradition of European cross country meets, the event
featured a multiple loop race course with man-made obstacles built on the
inside of the horse race track. Spectators enjoyed a continuous live view of
the race from the venue's enclosed 3,000-seat grandstand. This year the Nike
Team National event provided spectators and coaches handheld computer devices,
utilizing FinishLynx tracking technology, to see team scores posted to a live
leader board every kilometer. The technology was first introduced in the
races' inaugural year and provides instant feedback on a teams' position in
the race allowing coaches to adjust strategy in the midst of the event. The
entire race was also broadcast live at http://www.niketeamnationals.com with
real-time race tracking and event data posted to the site. After the race,
spectators, participants and coaches can replay the race of select teams
and/or individuals.
For those that couldn't attend the race, but wanted all the play-by-play
action, Nike partnered with Wiggle Wireless
(http://nikentn.wigglewireless.com/) to provide real-time text alerts ranging
from raceday weather, kilometer updates, team points, scoops, insider info,
gossip, buzz, and the top stories all sent directly to your mobile phone.
Teams were invited to the Nike Team Nationals based on regional rankings,
which were derived from a combination of competition performances at USATF
events, affiliate high school competitions, and other non-sanctioned events.
The Nike Team Nationals is a part of the larger Nike Nationals championship
series which includes the Nike Outdoor Nationals and Nike Indoor Nationals.
The series of events was established in 2004 to help strengthen the national
circuit for high school cross country and track and field competition. Twenty
girls and twenty boys clubs, comprising 320 runners will be invited to this
year's event.
Nike partnered with Foot Locker to accommodate runners who wanted to
compete in both the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships (FLCCC) West and
the Nike Team Nationals taking place on the same days. Foot Locker expanded
the playing field from each of its four regions to 10 individuals from the
historic 8, for a total field of 40 men and 40 women. The series consisted of
four regional 5K races across the country in which the Northeast (Bronx,
N.Y.), Midwest (Kenosha, Wis.) and the South (Charlotte, N.C.) regional races
were held on Saturday Nov. 26. The top 10 finishers from the FLCCC Northeast,
South and Midwest regional races automatically qualified for the national
finals. Since the Nike Team Nationals took place on the same day as FLCCC West
regional race (Walnut, Calif.) Saturday, Dec. 3, the top 8 boys and top 8
girls from the FLCCC West regional qualified for the national finals with the
remaining two spots reserved for the top finishers from the Foot Locker West
region at the Nike Team Nationals race.
NIKE, Inc based in Beaverton, Oregon is the world's leading designer,
marketer and distributor of authentic athletic footwear, apparel, equipment
and accessories for a wide varied of sports and fitness activities. Wholly
owned Nike subsidiaries include Converse, Inc., which designs, markets and
distributes athletic footwear, apparel and accessories; Bauer NIKE Hockey
Inc., a leading designer and distributor of hockey equipment; Cole Haan(R),
which designs, markets and distributes fine dress and casual shoes and
accessories; and Hurley International LLC, which designs, markets and
distributes action sports and youth lifestyle footwear, apparel and
accessories.
For more information, go online to http://www.niketeamnationals.com
or http://www.dyestat.com
SOURCE Nike, Inc. Web Site: http://www.niketeamnationals.com
http://nikentn.wigglewireless.com, http://www.dyestat.com
Photo Notes: NewsCom:
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http://photoarchive.ap.org AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN1 PRN
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