New Haven: As host of the USA Men's and Women's 20K Championship, the 29th annual NewAlliance New Haven Road Race will feature many of the Country's top runners. Tennessee's Fernando Cabada, who recently set an American record winning the 25K National Championship (Grand Rapids, MI), heads the men's field. Marla Runyan and Turena Johnson-Lane head a deep women's field. Runyan set an American 20K record winning the 2003 race. Johnson-Lane won the 2004 race and won this year's 25K National Championship (Grand Rapids, MI).

Ryan Shay, '04 NewAlliance New Haven 20K Champion, should challenge Cabada. Also expected to challenge for the top spot are New Mexico's Mbarak Hussein and California's Fasil Bizuneh. Hussein and Bizuneh finished 2nd and 3rd respectively in the recent 25K National Championship behind Cabada.

New Mexico's Elva Dryer, the top US 10K finisher in the 2004 Olympics, should challenge Runyan and Johnson-Lane for the women's crown. Wisconsin's Jenny Crain, Ohio's Rachel Kinsman and Oregon's Liz Wilson are also expected to finish near the top. Crain, Kinsman and Wilson all have finished in the top 5 in the race.

"We're very excited about having the country's top runners compete in New Haven," said John Courtmanche, Board President. "We have very deep Men's and Women's race fields,'' he said. "With a cool day the men's and women's 20K American records could be in jeopardy."

This year's race features nearly $40,000 in prize money and will be held on Labor Day, September 4, on the New Haven Green. This year's event begins with the Kids' Run at 8:15 a.m. and is followed by the 20K and 5K at 8:40 a.m. Nearly 5,000 runners are expected to participate in the event. For race information call (203) 481-5933 or visit newhavenroadrace.org.

The Labor Day Road Race major sponsors include: NewAlliance Foundation, Trailblazer and the City of New Haven. Also supporting the event are Anthem, Southern Connecticut State University, Children's Dental Group, News Channel 8 and WPLR. Over the last 28 years, the non-profit event has given over $100,000 to local charities.