This year’s Amgen 5k Race (part of the Ronald McDonald House of Providence Women’s Classic) is the official 5k race of the USATF New England circuit called the Grand Prix. This means that the best women runners and teams from New England will be coming to compete. If this is your thing, it should be a pretty exciting race at the front.
This is the first year USATF New England has selected a women only race for one of the Grand Prix events and we are honored to have been selected. A women only race really shines a spotlight on the competitors who would normally get lost in the shuffle of a mixed gender race.
Some of the top New England clubs have already committed to bringing a team. Tom Derderian, coach for the Greater Boston Track Club threw down the gauntlet, “…we did win the Grand Prix last year and our team is leading this year. We will have a team. We have not picked the individuals yet. But we will have a good team.”
Central Mass Striders is bringing some serious contenders in the Masters (40+) division. Team captain Barbara McManus has already collected hardware this year winning 1st Masters at USATF New England Grand Prix events the DH Jones 10 Miler, Groton 10k, and the Stowe 8 Miler. Rounding out her team are other formidable athletes including Pat Clark (who is also the mother of 8 children) and former Brown track and Cross-country star Karen McGahie.
As more clubs commit to the race, we will do our best to update you with the field. Clubs, please send any info about your athletes to nich@rmhprovidenceclassic.org.
