"There is no better person to inspire the kids and runners across the nation on National Running Day than Haile," said Mary Wittenberg, president and CEO of New York Road Runners. "We are excited to have arguably the greatest ambassador of running with us today."
Gebrselassie is just one many professional stars who will be taking part in a variety of running activities and events on National Running Day. Eight members of Team USA Minnesota, including Katie McGregor and Matt Gabrielson, will attend events around the Twin Cities. Civic leaders are also joining in by writing proclamations for National Running Day in Little Rock, AR and Indianapolis, IN.
Also on National Running Day, New York Road Runners will proudly unveil the online trailer for A Running Start: The Video Resource for Coaching Youth Runners. This free online coaching resource, available at www.nyrr.org/arunningstart, is composed of more than 80 videos that help coaches teach kids the fundamentals of running.
The NYRR Young Professionals will host a fun-run and happy hour to benefit NYRR's Youth Programs. Runners will meet inside Central Park near 81st Street and Central Park West. After a run, they'll head to Gin Mill for food, drinks and raffles.
NYRR will also be supplying refreshments to those out running on National Running Day from 4:00 to 7:00pm in both Central Park and Brooklyn's Prospect Park. A water station will be set up inside Central Park at Engineer's Gate, near East 90th Street and Fifth Avenue. In Prospect Park, runners will be able to hydrate at Grand Army Plaza.
Runners can post their events and search for others at www.runningday.org (click on Participate to create an event and view listings). If there isn't an event scheduled in a specific area, all runners are invited to create their own. No event is too big or too small to be part of National Running Day. Set up a National Running Day Meetup group at: www.meetup.com/National-Running-Day