Colleen De Reuck and Jen Rhines enter Circle of Friends New York Mini 10K

Colleen De Reuck wins the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon. (Both photos: Alison Wade/New York Road Runners)

Jen Rhines finishes third at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon.

New York, April 28, 2004 - Saluting the country's top female distance runners as they prepare for the Olympics this year, New York Road Runners and the American Legacy Foundation have joined to stage the 2004 Circle of Friends New York Mini 10K. The race will be held on Saturday, June 12, in Central Park.

With an all-American field of professional athletes, an American-only prize purse of $31,000 plus bonuses, and entrants that include 2004 United States Olympic marathon team members Colleen De Reuck and Jen Rhines, the 2004 Circle of Friends New York Mini 10K brings a new focus to the world's original women-only road race.

"The 2004 Circle of Friends New York Mini 10K continues its tradition of recognizing the finest women in distance running," said New York Road Runners president and CEO Allan Steinfeld. "In this Olympic year we are thrilled to welcome our new title sponsor and to honor American women as we send them off to Athens."

New York Road Runners welcomes Circle of Friends as the race's title sponsor. Circle of Friends is a national initiative of the American Legacy Foundation dedicated to raising awareness that support can make a difference to people who are trying to quit smoking.

De Reuck, 40, of Boulder, CO, a veteran marathoner who won the U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon in St. Louis on April 3 in an event-record 2:28:25, brings a wealth of experience, speed, and stamina to the Mini. The reigning USA 8K Cross Country (26:16), 15K (49:02), and Half-Marathon (1:10:00) champion, De Reuck competed in three Olympic Games for her native South Africa, with a ninth-place marathon finish (2:39:03) in Barcelona in 1992.

Rhines, 29, of Ardmore, PA, placed third at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials-Women's Marathon behind Deena Kastor. Her time of 2:29:57 bettered her previous personal best by 11 minutes, 19 seconds. Rhines, the first American finisher at the 2003 Mini, has become a top-ranked road racer after years of success on the track. She was the 2002 USA 10,000-meter champion (31:57.38), and represented the United States at that distance in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

About the American Legacy Foundation and Circle of Friends:
The American Legacy Foundation is the national, independent public health foundation established as a result of the 1998 tobacco settlement. The foundation is dedicated to reducing tobacco use in the United States with major initiatives reaching youth, women, and priority populations through grants, research, marketing and communications programs, training, and strategic partnerships. Circle of Friends: Uniting to Be Smoke-Free is a national grassroots movement from the American Legacy Foundation to show support for women struggling to quit smoking, and to highlight the toll of tobacco-related disease on American women, their families and communities. Visit www.join-the-circle.org or www.americanlegacy.org for more information.

About New York Road Runners:
Founded in 1958 with a membership of 47, New York Road Runners (NYRR) is one of the world's foremost running organizations. NYRR is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting the sport of running and walking for health, recreation, and competition, and provides full professional services related to all aspects of racing. The organization has a full-time staff of more than 60 employees, supplemented by a network of thousands of volunteers, serving 40,000 members from every U.S. state and more than 100 countries.