The Lilac Bloomsday Run in Spokane, Washington has been contested on the first Sunday of every May since 1977. Founded by Olympian Don Kardong, this 12K race has had at least 40,000 participants in every edition since 1986.
While the race certainly has quantity, the quality is impressive as well. On the men's side, the last three Bloomsday champions return in 2013 (Allan Kiprono, Simon Ndirangu and Peter Kirui) as well as 26:51 10K runner Emmanuel Bett. The top American is four-time Olympian Abdi Abdirahman.
The top seeds for the women include Kenyans Alice Kimutai and Ogla Kimayo, along with the 2011 Bloomsday champion, Ethiopian Misiker Mekonnin. The top seeded American is Kellyn Johnson.
Team USA Minnesota will send two athletes to Washington for the race: Ladia Albertson-Junkans and the newest member of the squad, Ben Sathre. Let us know how fast the St. Thomas grad will run this weekend...
Sathre has started the 2013 campaign with some fast 8Ks. He finished second at the Irish Run in 23:35 and bettered that with a 23:19 run at the Shamrock Shuffle in Chicago in early April. Prior to the 8K races, Sathre ran the 15K USA Championships in Jacksonville Florida. He finished in 24th place, running 45:12.
For reference on how fast some familiar names have run at Bloomsday, we can look at the last few years. In 2012, a pair of former NCAA DIII Individual Cross Country Champions competed. Ryan Bak (2002 DIII XC Champ) finished in 35:58, while Josh Moen (2003 and 2004 DIII XC Champ) ran 36:03. (Sathre was the 2011 DIII Cross Country Champion.) Another recognizable name in Minnesota, Michael Reneau, also ran Bloomsday in 2012 and ran 36:29.
In 2011, Josh Moen ran 35:21 at Bloomsday, Andrew Carlson finished in 36:20, and Michael Reneau ran 36:28. In 2010, Chris Erichsen ran 36:57, and in 2009, Jason Lehmkuhle ran 36:02.
To play our game, simply type "yes" or "no" into the subject line of an e-mail and send it to us at DtBFantasy [AT] gmail [DOT] com before 11:00 A.M. CDT, Sunday, May 5th. Please put your answers in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail. We will offer a bonus for participants making their 2013 debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for anyone who has not played yet this year.
My Answer: No
Last week's question was: Yes/No: Will ten or more meet records be tied or broken at the Hamline Elite Meet on Friday? The answer was no—there were eight new records set. Twenty contestants answered correctly and there is now a tie for first place in the overall standings. Lori Anne Schwiesow and Dimitri Drekonja lead with nine points. There is a group of six right behind with eight points.
For all the results, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner, HERE.
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