Posted: February 22, 2007

Athletics: 2004 Olympian, Carrie Tollefson, To Share Her Story And Tips For Success At This Year's 2007 Gearing Up For Grandma's

It may seem hard to believe, but Grandma's Marathon is less than four months away! Start getting ready by joining St. Mary's Duluth Clinic, the Duluth News Tribune and Grandma's Marathon for the annual Gearing Up for Grandma's Pre-race Seminar on Saturday, March 10, 2007 beginning at 9:00 a.m. The event is being held at the Hearthstone Café located in the Duluth Clinic’s new First Street Building (420 East 1st Street). It is free and open to the public. Gearing Up for Grandma’s will feature keynote speaker and 2004 Olympian, Carrie Tollefson. Tollefson grew up in Dawson, Minnesota, and won 13 Minnesota high school championships in cross country and track. While in college at Villanova, she was a 12-time All-American and five-time NCAA national champion. Tollefson joined Team USA Minnesota in 2001 and since that time has been a three-time national champion (1500 meters, 3000 meters and 4k cross country) and a member of three U.S. World teams. She specializes in the 1500 and 5000 meter distances, and earned a spot on the 2004 U.S. Olympic team for the 1500. In addition to being a professional runner, Tollefson is also a television broadcaster and has provided commentary for many racing events throughout the nation. In addition to Tollefson, Dr. Kenji Sudoh, a medical orthopedist from the Duluth Clinic Sports Medicine Department, will give advice on proper training techniques and injury prevention, and Jim Stukel, owner of Athlete's Foot in Duluth, will be on hand to offer tips on purchasing the correct running shoe for your foot type. Scott Keenan will kick-off the event by sharing a few updates with the audience about Grandma's Marathon weekend. Following the individual presentations, a “question and answer session” will be held with all of the featured speakers, and audience members are encouraged to ask questions. Door prizes will be given away, and guests will have the chance to register for the 18th annual Fitger’s 5K, scheduled for Saturday, April 21. If you're training to run during Grandma's Marathon Weekend–don't miss this event! For more information, please call Grandma’s Marathon headquarters at (218) 727-0947.