Big Names Sign On For Midwest Distance Gala

Haile, Thode & Brown Top Latest Registrants for Midwest Distance Gala

With just under two weeks to go until the fifth annual Midwest Distance Gala, athletes from around the country are starting to register for the event. Some of the marquee athletes that registered over the weekend were Solomon Haile (Sr., Sherwood, MD), Jeff Thode (Sr., Conant, IL) and Stephanie Brown (Sr., Tri-Valley, IL).

Solomon Haile is the defending Foot Locker National Champion in cross country, as well as multi-time indoor and outdoor national champion, winning races at Nike Indoor Nationals, Nike Outdoor Nationals and the National Scholastic Indoor Championships. Haile is registered in the boys two-mile at the Midwest Distance Gala, where he'll look to break the meet record of 9:03.04, set by Colorado's Bobby Nicolls last year.

Entered in the boys mile, Jeff Thode is the defending Illinois State cross country champion, as well as the 1,600m state champion. Last weekend, Thode broke a 20+ year old state meet record in the 1,600m run, crossing the line in a U.S. top time of 4:05.17. Thode has been a consistent force on the Illinois scene since last season, and will look to challenge Rob Finnerty's meet record of 4:01.09..

On the girls side, Stephanie Brown is entered in the girls mile. Brown, who's been ranked in the U.S. top five multiple times this season at 800m, looks to improve her mile best. A sub-2:10 800m runner, Brown has shown impressive speed, while winning the state title in both events two weeks ago. The University of Arkansas-bound senior will have plenty of competition at the Gala and should challenge the meet record of 4:52.94, set back in 2005 by Michigan's Jenny Morgan.

Nine days remain to register for the Gala. With fields growing day by day, the 2009 edition will certainly be exciting and action packed. If you have any questions please feel free to visit the website at www.midwestdistancegala.com