Following tradition, a world-class men’s and women’s field will toe the line at the start of the 44th running of the AJC Peachtree Road Race July 4.
For the first time, the AJC Peachtree Road Race will host the USA Women’s 10 km Championship as it welcomes back the USA Men’s 10 km Championship for the fifth time in seven years.
The event will also serve as the 2013 Professional Road Running Organization’s (PRRO) Race of Champions.
Athletes in the 2013 AJC Peachtree Road Race will be competing for a share of the $139,500 overall prize purse, which includes $30,000 each for the USA Men’s and Women’s 10 km Championships.
This year, both the men’s and women’s 2012 AJC Peachtree Road Race champions will return to defend their titles.
The men’s field is stacked with nearly 40 runners, including Kenya’s Peter Kirui who finished first (27:37) last year.
Top contenders for the USA Men’s 10 km Championship title include Mo Trafeh and Meb Keflezighi.
Both athletes are coming off of stellar performances at the USA Men’s Half Marathon Championships on June 22 in Duluth, Minn. where Trafeh out kicked Keflezighi by just four seconds with a time of 1:01:17.
On the women’s side, Ethiopia’s Mamitu Daska and countryman Buzunesh Deba are competing for the PRRO bonus.
Local runner and Atlanta Track Club member Janet Cherobon-Bawcom is one to watch in the USA Women’s 10 km Championship.
Cherobon-Bawcom earned her third consecutive USA Women’s 10 Mile Championship title at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run this past April, where she set a new USA 10 Mile record (53:28).
The 44th running of the AJC Peachtree Road Race will take place July 4.
The professional women’s field will take off at 7:17 a.m. followed by the men’s division at 7:30 a.m.
The event begins on Peachtree Road by Lenox Square Mall and finishes on 10th Street near Piedmont Park.
