| JACKSONVILLE - Olympian Amy Yoder Begley won a close race for her respective women's title Saturday at the USA 15 km Championships in Jacksonville, Fla.
Yoder Begley kicked past Katie McGregor (Saint Louis Park, Minn.) in the final 400 meters to win the women's race by six seconds in 49:51. This marks the 16th year that the championships have been hosted by the Gate River Run. The elite women's race started the day under cool, cloudy conditions as Yoder Begley, McGregor, Emily Brown (Minneapolis Minn.), Elva Dryer (Gunnison, Colo.) led more than 50 of the top U.S. women through the opening miles. By six miles, the race was down to three contenders with Yoder Begley, McGregor and Brown running stride for stride through eight miles when McGregor attempted to break her competitors as they started across the challenging Hart Bridge towards the finish. However, Yoder Begley remained close, waiting until the finish was in sight to move to the front and claim her first USA 15 km title. Brown easily held on for third in 50:03 as Dryer and Melissa White (Rochester Hills, Mich.) completed the top-five, running 50:40 and 50:45 respectively. A total prize purse of $58,000 was on the line with Yoder Begley earning $12,000 for her U.S. title.
Video highlights For the second time in 2009, video highlights of the USA 15 km Championships and pre- and post-race video interviews with top athletes will be made available throughout race weekend in cooperation with Flotrack.com. About the USARC The USA 15 km Championship was the second stop on the 2009 USA Running Circuit (USARC), and featured a total championship prize purse of $53,500 plus potential bonuses. The 2009 USARC is a USA Track & Field road series, featuring USA Championships from one mile to the marathon and attracts the best U.S. distance runners. The 2009 USARC has ten events each for men and women. The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USARC race (15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1), with a final $12,500 grand prix purse ($6,000, $4,000, and $2,500) for the top three men and women point scorers overall. The USARC points at the USA Marathon Championships will be doubled. The mission of the USA Running Circuit is to showcase, support, and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USARC and its races have provided over $6 million dollars to U.S. distance runners. For more information and video highlights from the 2009 USA 15 km Championships visit www.usatf.org. | 
