Heartland NXN Regional

LOCAL CLUBS COMPETE IN REGIONAL QUALIFIER FOR NIKE CROSS NATIONALS Heartland Regional Championship Held in Sioux Falls, SD

WHAT: This weekend, high-school-aged cross country athletes from across the Heartland will come together in Sioux Falls to toe the line in the Nike Cross Nationals (NXN) Heartland regional qualifier for the chance to compete in the NXN national championship. NXN is the only club team and individual national championship in high school cross country, giving high-school-aged cross-country athletes the opportunity to vie for a national club and individual title.

The regional championships will be completed November 14-28, with the 2009 Nike Cross Nationals held on Saturday, December 5, at the Portland Meadows race track in Portland, Ore. Nine regions--Midwest, Northwest, Heartland, Southwest, South, Northeast, Southeast, California and New York--will each send the top two teams and top five individuals to the national meet.

New to the NXN events this year is a one-of-a-kind prediction contest. For each of the three weeks of regional competition, participants will be able to log their predictions for which teams will automatically qualify for the National meet in Portland, as well as the individual winner of the boys and girls championship race at each Regional. The contestant who most accurately predicts the automatic qualifiers and individual regional champions will win an all-expenses-paid trip for two to watch the National Meet in Portland on December 5th. For more details and official rules, please visit http://www.runnerspace.com/NXNcontest.

WHEN: November 14, 2009 11:00 a.m.: Open Girls 11:45 a.m.: Open Boys 12:30 p.m.: Open Boys and Girls awards 12:30 p.m.: Community Race 1:30 p.m.: Championship Girls 2:15 p.m.: Championship Boys 2:45 p.m.: Championship Race Awards

WHERE: Yankton Trails Park

Sioux Falls, SD

WHO: Top local high school boys’ and girls’ cross-country club teams from across the Heartland(Athletes from Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin)

Nike Athlete Chris Solinsky There wasn’t a high-caliber race that Chris Solinsky didn’t win over his last year and a half of high school. With a 2-mile PR of 8:43, he headed to the University of Wisconsin with lofty goals and the work ethic to match. Over the next four years in Madison, Solinsky racked up five individual NCAA titles and one team cross-country championship. Within months of graduation, Solinsky made his first trip to Europe to race against the world’s best: he set personal bests in the 1500 (3:37.27), 3000 (7:36.90), and 5000 (13:12.24). Early in 2009 Solinsky moved to Portland, Ore., to train with the Oregon Track Club. In June Solinsky qualified for his first world championship team by virtue of his second place finish at the US Championships. At the World Championships he qualified for the final and hung with the leaders into the final lap and went on to finish 12th. Chris will be on hand at the NXN Heartland Regional Qualifier to offer his support of the athletes.

WHY: As the only club team and individual national championship in high school cross country, Nike Cross Nationals brings together the top high-school-aged, cross-country club teams and athletes in America to celebrate the sport, the spirit of teamwork, and the individual commitment and perseverance of young athletes. The NXN is part of the larger Nike Nationals championship series established in 2004 to help strengthen the national circuit for high school cross country and celebrate the sport. For more information, including results and photos from the NXN regional championships, visit www.nikecrossnationals.com.

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