Morton, Team USA Women Win World 24 Hour Titles
Mike Morton
Gardner women’s silver medalist; U.S. records set by Morton, Garner in Katowice, Poland
INDIANAPOLIS – Mike Morton (Lithia, Fla.) and Connie Gardner (Medina, Ohio) both set U.S. records at the 9th IAU World 24 Hour Run Championships in Katowice, Poland, as Morton won the men’s title, while Gardner’s silver medal finish led the women to the world team title on September 9.
Over the 1550 meter course, Morton, 41, won by nearly ten miles after leading throughout the race. Morton covered 172.457 miles to better Scott Jurek’s national record from 2010 by nearly seven miles. Florian Reus of Germany and Ludovic Dilmi of France finished second and third respectively.
Gardner, 49, found herself running in second place for most of the race behind Great Britain’s Emily Gelder. With only four hours remaining, Gelder faded to third and Michaela Dimitridau of the Czech Republic moved into the lead, but Gardner maintained her position to finish as the runner-up. Gardner ran 149.368 miles to improve the pending U.S. record set earlier this year by Sabrina Moran by a mile and a half.
Team USA’s women won the team title when the marks of the top three women, Gardner, Suzanna Bon and Anne Lundblad, were combined. Team USA won with a margin of more than 17 miles ahead of France and Great Britain. The top three Team USA men, Morton, Harvey Lewis and Joe Fejes, finished third behind Germany and France.
9th IAU 24 Hour World Championships
Katowice, POL, September 8-9, 2012
MEN
1) Mike Morton, 41, USA / FL, 172.457 miles / 277,543.73 meters*, Gold
2) Florian Reus, 28, GER, 162.624 miles / 261,718.03m, Silver
3) Ludovic Dilmi, 41, FRA, 160.201 miles / 257,819.42m, Bronze
4) Ryo Abiko, 37, JPN, 158.752 miles / 255,487.55m
5) Piotr Sawicki, 38, POL, 157.886 miles / 254,093.68m
Other U.S.
22) Harvey Lewis, Cincinnati, OH, 148.958 miles / 239,724.66m
27) Joe Fejes, Hoschton, GA, 147.586 miles / 237,516.64m
84) Philip McCarthy, New York, NY, 128.780 miles / 207,251.32m
146) Serge Arbona, Parkerville, MD, 113.089 miles / 181,999.10m
166) Jonathan Savage, Charlotte, NC, 106.254 miles / 170,999.24m
*U.S. record (previous record, 165.705 miles / 266,677m, Scott Jurek, Brive, FRA, May 13, 2010)
MEN’S TEAM
1) Germany, 471.904 miles / 759,455.87m
2) France, 470.198 miles / 756,710.33m
3) USA, 469.002 miles / 754,785.55m (Morton, Lewis, Fejes)
WOMEN
1) Michaela Dimitriadu, 39, CZE, 151.759 miles / 244,232.46 meters, Gold
2) Connie Gardner, 49, USA / OH, 149.368 miles / 240,385.85m*, Silver
3) Emily Gelder, 37, GBR, 148.430 miles / 238,875.98m, Bronze
4) Cecile Nissen, 40, FRA, 145.726 miles / 234,524.37m
5) Suzanna Bon, 48, USA / CA, 143.583 miles / 231,074.63m
Other U.S.
9) Anne Lundblad, 46, Swannanoa / NC, 138.665 miles / 223,160.28m
22) Lana Hauberk, Brooklyn Park, MN, 129.846 miles / 208,966.88m
55) Deb Horn, Shaker Heights, OH, 111.225 miles / 178,999.29m
244) Carilyn Johnson, El Paso, TX, 33.591 miles / 54,059.47m
*U.S. record (previous ratified record, 145,286 miles / 233,816m, Sue Ellen Trapp, Sylvania, Ohio, September 18, 1993)
WOMEN’S TEAM
1) USA, 431.617 miles / 694,620.23m (Gardner, Bon, Lundblad)
2) France, 414.145 miles / 666,501.77m
3) Great Britain, 414.119 miles / 666,459.93m
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