FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEW YORK CITY (May 26) – Two more gold medalists from the 2004 Olympic Games and one of the brightest young stars in all of track and field are set for the Reebok Grand Prix. Shawn Crawford, the 2004 Olympic gold medalist at 200m; Meseret Defar, the reigning Olympic champion at 5000m; and Usain Bolt, who last year smashed the 200m World Junior Record, have been added to the lineup, organizers announced today.
The Reebok Grand Prix will be the first international competition ever held in the new Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island. Tickets, at $30 and $20, are now on sale.
In addition to leading a US sweep of the 200m medals in Athens, Crawford brought home a silver medal in the 4x100m relay and narrowly missed the 100m podium, his time of 9.89 by far the fastest fourth place in Olympic history. He will compete at that distance in the Reebok Grand Prix. Defar, the 21-year-old 5000m Olympic gold medalist from Ethiopia, is also the reigning World Indoor champion at 3000m, which she will run in New York City.
Bolt, from Jamaica, was just 17 when he put his stamp on the international scene in April 2004 by shattering the World Junior Record for 200m. His scorching time of 19.93 ranked him as the second-fastest 200m runner in the world last year, behind only Crawford. Bolt is also the 2002 World Junior champion at the distance.
“New York City is delighted to host the Reebok Grand Prix and welcome many of the world’s finest athletes,” said New York City Sports Commissioner Kenneth J. Podziba today. “New Yorkers have always shown their love and support for track and field, and now have the opportunity to see Olympic champions such as Crawford,
Defar, Maurice Greene, Liu Xiang and Veronica Campbell in their own backyard at one of the world’s premier track-and field-venues. The Reebok Grand Prix promises to add another chapter to New York City’s rich track-and-field heritage, highlighted by being home to the National Track & Field Hall of Fame.”
The Reebok Grand Prix on June 11 at Icahn Stadium is the fifth stop of USA Track & Field’s Visa Championship Series, and will be televised live on NBC from 4-5:30 p.m. ET. Tickets and more information for the Reebok
Grand Prix are available at www.ReebokGrandPrix.com or by calling 1-877-RBK-GP05.