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Participants Beat the Heat at the 2016 AJC Peachtree Road Race
Gabriel Geay, Edna Kiplagat win the second annual Peachtree Cup
ATLANTA ÛÒ July 4, 2016 ÛÒ Sun,
heat and humidity ruled the 2016 AJC Peachtree Road Race. Participants
and spectators of the worldÛªs largest 10K welcomed the summer conditions
on Independence Day after last yearÛªs rainy skies.
The
second annual Peachtree Cup was awarded to the top overall male and
female. The menÛªs elite race ended with an exciting finish between three
competitors. Gabriel Geay (Tanzania) narrowly beat out Daniel Salel
(Kenya), who crossed the finish line first in the 2015 Peachtree Cup
team competition. Geay finished in 28:48.50 ahead of SalelÛªs 28:48.65.
KenyaÛªs Philip Langat was not far behind with a time of 28:51.40.
ÛÏIÛªm
very happy to win this race,Û said Geay. ÛÏI didnÛªt know when I won,
because those two Kenyans are very strong. But I knew I had good speed.Û
For
the women, two runners pulled away from the pack early in the race and
dominated for the entire course. Edna Kiplagat (Kenya) controlled the
pace with EthiopiaÛªs Buze Diriba right behind, until Kiplagat made her
move just before mile five. Kiplagat added to her lead before finishing
in 32:24; Diriba crossed the line at 32:28.
ÛÏI am happy today because I have tried three times to win this race and I didnÛªt make it, but today I made it,Û said Kiplagat.
For
the second year in a row, the Kilometer Kids Charity Chase matched up
our nationÛªs military branches in a two-part competition. In partnership
with United Military Care, Team Air Force, Team Army, Team Coast Guard,
Team Marine Corps and Team Navy competed for bragging rights in two
areas: The fastest military branch and the team that receives the most
donations for Atlanta Track ClubÛªs Kilometer Kids youth running program
through an online fundraiser.
Team
Air Force crossed the line first with a commanding lead to win the
footrace portion of the Kilometer Kids Charity Chase. Captain Richard
Elmore finished first for his team in 37:15. Team Air ForceÛªs cumulative
time was 5:09:11.
At
last check, Team Marine Corps was in the lead for the online
fundraising portion of the Kilometer Kids Charity Chase with 33% of the
donations. All proceeds will go towards expanding the reach and
accessibility of the Kilometer Kids program in Metro Atlanta as part of a
continued effort to encourage young people to achieve health and
fitness through running. A portion of the funds raised through the 2015
Kilometer Kids Charity Chase were used to establish a Kilometer Kids
program at Fort Benning, the first to be established on a military base.
The Fort Benning program launched last fall and more than doubled in
size for its spring season. Donations will be accepted through July 31,
2016 at charitychaseforkids.org.
Tatyana
McFaddenÛªs victory in the Shepherd Center Wheelchair Division of the
AJC Peachtree Road Race earned her the title of the winningest women in
the division. The Clarksville, Maryland resident finished first at
Peachtree for the sixth time in 23:14.
“It
was definitely a busy weekend. There’s not much time between
[Paralympic] Trials and this race, but I wouldn’t miss it for the
world,Û said McFadden, who was named to the Paralympic Team yesterday
after winning six events. ÛÏI’m really glad to come down and it’s a great
way to celebrate the Fourth.”
Josh George (Champaign, IL) claimed his first wheelchair division win at Peachtree in what was his 10th time competing in the race (20:19).
“It
feels great. The past few years I finished second or third, so to
finally get the win, it’s a pretty big one for me,Û said George.
The
2016 AJC Peachtree Road Race finisherÛªs T-shirt was a blue cotton-poly
blend courtesy of Mizuno. A public vote chose Shay HarbaughÛªs ÛÏHeart
& SoleÛ as this yearÛªs T-shirt design, which was inspired by three
words: pride, heart and soul.
ÛÏWith
every step the runners take in the race, they are putting their heart
and soul into getting closer to the finish line,Û Harbaugh explained.
For full results and more information on the 2016 AJC Peachtree Road Race, visit peachtreeroadrace.org.
About Atlanta Track Club
Atlanta
Track Club is a nonprofit committed to creating an active and healthy
Atlanta. Through running and walking, Atlanta Track Club motivates,
inspires and engages the community to enjoy a healthier lifestyle. With
more than 24,000 members, Atlanta Track Club is the second largest
running organization in the United States. In addition to the AJC
Peachtree Road Race (peachtreeroadrace.org)
ÛÒ the largest 10K running event in the world, the Publix Georgia
Marathon, Atlanta 10 Miler and Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon, Atlanta
Track Club directs more than 30 events per year. Through the support of
its members and volunteers, Atlanta Track Club also maintains a number
of community initiatives including organizing and promoting the
Kilometer Kids youth running program to metro Atlanta youth, honoring
high school cross country and track and field athletes through Atlanta
Track ClubÛªs All-Metro Banquets and supporting the Grady Bicycle EMT
program. For more information on Atlanta Track Club, visit atlantatrackclub.org.
About the AJC Peachtree Road Race
The
AJC Peachtree Road Race is a 10K event that takes place every Fourth of
July in Atlanta, Georgia. The first Peachtree was held in 1970 and
featured 110 finishers. The AJC Peachtree Road Race is now the largest
10K running event in the world with 60,000 participants. The AJC
Peachtree Road Race is perhaps most famous for the coveted AJC Peachtree
Road Race T-shirt, which is handed out to all the event finishers. For
more information on the AJC Peachtree Road Race visit peachtreeroadrace.org or AJC.com/peachtree.
About The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The
Atlanta Journal-Constitution is the leading source ÛÒ both in print and
online ÛÒ of news, information and advertising for metropolitan Atlanta,
reaching a total print and online audience of 1.7 million people each
week. Every month, nearly 6.4 million unique visitors access the
newspaper’s websites, including AJC.com, myAJC.com and accessAtlanta.com.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is part of Cox Media Group, a
publishing, digital media and broadcasting subsidiary of Atlanta-based
Cox Enterprises.
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