USA 10 Mile: McGregor and Abdirahman Return

Six-time Medtronic TC 10 Mile champion Katie McGregor of Team USA Minnesota and men's course record holder Abdi Abdirahman of Tucson, Arizona return to the streets connecting downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul to vie for USA 10 Mile titles and, perhaps, battle each other on John Ireland Boulevard for a $10,000 "Equalizer Bonus" in a handicapped competition between the top men and woman.

McGregor returns to defend her USA 10 Mile title against as solid field of American challengers. McGregor has only lost once on her home course – in the 2008 USA 10 Mile to Duluth native Kara Goucher. One of the most decorated long distance runners in Minnesota history, McGregor has won seven USA titles in her distinguished running career.

Two-time Medtronic TC 10 Mile champion Abdirahman, returns hoping to add a third Medtronic TC 10 Mile and fifth USA 10 Mile title to his remarkable resume. A three-time Olympian at 10,000-meters on the track, the Somali-born American has twice topped a local favorite at the Medtronic TC 10 Mile. In 2007 he outran Team USA Minnesota’s Jason Lehmkuhle for the crown. In 2009 he narrowly beat Team USA Minnesota’s Josh Moen in his record-breaking win.

McGregor can expect challenges from 2003 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon champion Blake Russell of Pacific Grove, Calif., a 2008 Olympian in the marathon, USA 20K champion Janet Cherobon-Bawcom of Rome, Ga., and 2011 USA 25K champ Molly Pritz of Rochester, Mich. Serene Burla of Falls Church, Va., the runner-up in the last two USA Half Marathon Championships, and Stephanie Rothstein of Flagstaff, Ariz., a 2:29 marathoner, are also expected to contend along with McGregor’s Team USA Minnesota teammates Emily Brown, the 2009 USA Cross Country champion, and Meghan Peyton, who finished 4th in the USA 10 Mile last year.

Those expected to challenge Abdirahman this year include Mohamed Trafeh of Duarte, Calif, the 2011 USA Half Marathon and USA 15K champion, 2008 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon champion Fernando Cabada of Boulder, Colo., the 2011 USA 25K champ, Ben True of Hanover, N.H., the 2011 USA 5K champion, and 2010 USA 25K runner-up Brett Gotcher of Flagstaff, Ariz. Team USA Minnesota’s Moen returns to challenge Abdirahman again, as does teammate Matt Gabrielson, the 6th-place finisher at the this year’s Grandma’ Marathon.

The race begins shortly after 7:00 a.m. on Sunday with the elite women starting first, followed by the elite men a short time later. The men's and women's USA champions will earn $12,000 for their victories.

Find up-to-date USA 10 Mile startlists HERE. Find biographies of the top runners HERE.