This Week, McGregor Eyes USA 8K Title

Next weekend, on the streets of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Team USA Minnesota's Katie McGregor will battle Kara Goucher for the USA 10 Mile Championship held in conjunction with the Medtronic TC 10 Mile.

This weekend, however, McGregor has an 8K title in mind.

The Team USA Minnesota star headlines the invited field at the USA Women's 8K Championship to be held in Akron, Ohio on Saturday. The championship, held in conjunction with the Akron Marathon, features a prize purse of $23,500 with $7,500 going to the winner. The race begins at 7:30 a.m.

An Ohio native, McGregor (pictured) will face a field that includes 2008 USA 20K champion Jill Steffens of Athens, Georgia; two-time Olympian and 2008 20K runner-up Elva Dryer of Gunnison, Colorado; and two-time USA 8K champion Amy Rudolph of Providence, Rhode Island.

The runner-up at last weekend's USA 5K Championships, Renee Metivier-Baille of Flagstaff, Arizona is also scheduled to compete along with Molly Huddle of Providence, Rhode Island, Carrie Messner-Vickers of Vail, Colorado; and Rebecca Donaghue of State College, Pennsylvania who finished third, fourth and fifth at the USA 5K last weekend. 2008 Olympic steeplechaser Lindsey Anderson of Ogden, Utah and Sara Slattery of Boulder, Colorado, will also toe the Akron starting line.

McGregor is a four-time national champion in distances ranging from the 10,000 meters on the track, 10K road (where she's won a pair of titles) and the 25K. She has a best in the 8K of 25:36.

Later this fall McGregor will run the ING New York City Marathon on November 2.

Photo by Victor Sailer, courtesy of Team USA Minnesota.