FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, from Scott Bush
Cain Set to Run 5,000m at Portland Track Festival
Prep sensation commits to run PTF on June 8
PORTLAND, ORE., May 21, 2013 – No U.S. track and field athlete has captured attention and inspired fans quite like 17-year old New Yorker Mary Cain. The prep star has not only propelled herself into the very elite ranks of U.S. middle distance running, but has shown up time and again to prove she’s a legitimate contender to make the U.S. roster for this year’s IAAF World Track and Field Championships in Moscow.
With the Portland Track Festival less than three weeks away, the staff of the Portland Track Festival has a firm commitment from Cain, who is scheduled to run the Team Athena 5,000m on June 8.
After her record setting performance at the Oxy High Performance Invitational, where she finished second in a World Championship ‘A’ standard qualifying time of 4:04.62, along with her 2:01.68 800m fourth place finish at Re:RUN San Diego, Cain now sets her sights on running against the best in the world at the Pre Classic on June 1. After Pre, the focus turns to Portland, where she’ll take on the 5,000m distance for the first time on the track.
“The question of who could be the most exciting athlete addition to the Portland Track Festival came up at a recent planning meeting. Mary Cain was definitely a pick in this fantasy track draft. Starting back during indoor, discussion of Cain's most recent race often served as an opening to actual planning at these meetings. It only seemed fitting that word of Cain's plan to compete in the Team Athena 5k came just days after her 4:04 Oxy 1500. As a race organizer I am honored to have Mary Cain compete. As a track fan, I really can't wait to be trackside while she does,” says Team Athena President Laura Devine.
The sixth annual Portland Track Festival is set to take place on Friday, June 7 and Saturday, June 8 at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon. The distance-only event hosts a collection of races, giving America's best distance runners the opportunity to run fast and compete towards the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
For more information on the Portland Track Festival, please visit: www.portlandtrackfestival.com.
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