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Running Thu Oct 09 2008
On Your Marks...
Participants in this Sunday's Chicago Marathon are no doubt getting their final tune-up runs before the big day. So why not make that final run while trotting alongside a real Olympian?
Top U.S. runners include Joan Benoit Samuelson, LaShawn Merritt, Sanya Richards and Alan Webb will offers words of inspiration and motivation at a free 2008 Niketown Marathon Pep Rally and Training Run today, 6:30 p.m. at Niketown, 669 N. Michigan Ave.
Samuelson (the first woman to win a marathon gold medal), Merritt (Olympic gold medalist in the 3400 m and 4x400m relay in Beijing), Richards (bronze medalist in the 400m in Beijing and gold medalist in the 4x400m in Athens) and Webb (U.S. 2007 1,500m champion) will address the runners before joining them in the last three-mile training run.
Marathon participants can also turn those 26 miles run into charitable contributions by signing up for the Nike+ Marathon Charity Challenge, where the company will donate money for miles run, up to $100,000 for Chidlren's Memorial Hospital and Inerman Angeles.
Runners can also create their own personalized shirts for the race, check out the free Nike Runner's Lab and see their name on the Runners Recognition Wal;, featuring all 45,000 participants.