CHICAGO (March 21, 2010) -- Kenyan John Kemboi, 19, and American Tera Moody, 29, outran the largest field in Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K history today posting wins in the 31st edition of the iconic Chicago road race. An event-record field of 25,561 runners followed the champions across the finish line to officially welcome the arrival of spring to Chicago amid 35-degree weather.
Kemboi broke the finish line tape in 23:39 in his first race on U.S. soil. Following his finish, Kemboi reflected on his first American race by saying, "I feel pretty good after this race. It is very nice here, although very cold this morning. It was a good experience for me and I will definitely be coming back to America to compete in more races."
Moody's 27:21 victory marked her second Shamrock Shuffle win. A native of St. Charles, Ill., now living in Colorado Springs, Colo., Moody won the 2007 event in 27:09. Following the race, she said, "I have been battling some injuries so I didn't know until this morning if I was going to run. It wasn't extremely cold, but it was windy and that slowed me up in the last few miles. I had such a blast though and just wanted to soak up and enjoy every moment."
In the second annual Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle Elite Club Competition, a division for USA Track and Field member runners, Wisconsin Runner Racing Team A placed first for the men and Runablaze Iowa ranked first among the women. Tyler Sigl, Eugene Dennis, Aaron Nodolf and Ryan Meissen posted a joint time of 1:37:11 to edge the second-place team by 13 seconds. Erin Moeller, Marie Schofer and Jen Van Otterloo posted a combined 1:25:45 finish time to place first for the women.
The day concluded with the traditional Post-Race Party in Grant Park where Bank of America officially presented checks to the event's benefitting charities. Girls on the Run and MGR Foundation, two local youth fitness organizations, each received $72,000 to continue fitness programming for local youth throughout the year.
"It is fitting on the first day of spring and the opening of the outdoor running season that Bank of America presents Girls on the Run and MGR Foundation with funding for their 2010 youth running programs," said Bank of America Chicago and Illinois Market President Tim Maloney. "This is only the first step in what we expect to be a year-long partnership based on financial support and volunteerism that will expand the reach of these valuable fitness programs to hundreds of local children."
Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K
The Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8K officially ushered in the Chicago running season on Sunday, March 21, 2010 with an event-record field of 25,561 runners. Beginning and ending in historic Grant Park, the 8K provided an abbreviated preview of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon course as it circled the city's stunning downtown architecture. Two dollars from each entry fee was matched by Bank of America and donated to support youth fitness in Chicago as part of the bank's local commitment to after school programming. As a result, $144,000 was split equally between MGR Foundation and Girls on the Run to support their 2010 youth running programs. Online registration for the event opened on Friday, January 1 and closed on February 16 when the 36,000 participant capacity was reached. For more information including race day results, visit www.shamrockshuffle.com.
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