TAMPA, Fla. / LAS VEGAS (Nov. 6, 2018) – The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series®, together with Brooks Running Company, will host a brand-new professional one-mile invitational race – the Brooks Beasts Desert Throwdown – which will take place on the Las Vegas Strip on Sunday, November 11, 2018 at 3:45 p.m. PST. As part of the Toyota Rock ‘n’ Roll® Las Vegas Marathon & ½ Marathon weekend, 22 professional male and female runners will race down the Las Vegas Strip with a $20,000 total prize purse on the line.
 
“At Brooks, we always look for new ways to engage runners and fans of our sport,” said Matthew Weiss, director of marketing, retail, events and sports marketing. “The inaugural Brooks Beasts Desert Throwdown will be a unique, high-energy race that we hope will captivate runners everywhere.”
 
The elite runners will take to the course starting on the east side of the strip and adjacent to the marathon and half marathon finish line. Runners will then turn to head back and finish under the Toyota Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon & ½ Marathon finish line arch. The champion in both the men and women’s races will take home a wrestling-style champions belt along with a cash prize.
 
“We are looking forward to introducing this new competitive element to the already fun filled Toyota Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas event weekend,” said Josh Furlow, Managing Director of North America for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series. “When you think Vegas, you think about ‘Going Big’ and ‘All In’ and we are excited to bring these elite athletes to the strip as they lay it all on the line.”
 
The women’s field will feature a stellar group of athletes, including Heather Kampf the 2006 NCAA Indoor 800m Champion and a four-time U.S. National Champion in the one-mile road race (2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016). Lining up beside her will be Katie Mackey from Fort Collins, Colo. who finished as the runner-up in the 2010 NCAA Indoor 1500m and eighth in the 3000m at the World Indoor Championship in early 2018. Adding some stiff competition will be Emily Lipari, the 2014 NCAA One Mile Champion. The women’s one-mile world record is 4:12.56 and was set by Svetlana Masterkova in 1996. See the full women’s start list below:
 

 

*Designates Road Mile time unless otherwise noted

 
The men’s group is equally stacked with titleholders and contenders. Headlining the race is 17-time NCAA champion and holder of this year’s fastest one-mile, Edward Cheserek. Josh Kerr, who recently broke the NCAA 1500m record with his 3:35.01 performance and hold the title of 2017 NCAA Mile Champion will provide stiff competition. They will be joined by the 2016 NCAA One Mile Champion, Henry Wynne and Garrett Heath who represented the U.S. National Team at the 2010 World Indoor Championships, finishing seventh in the 1500m. Will Leer also represented the U.S. National Team at the 2014 World Indoor Championships finishing in sixth in the 1500m. The men’s one-mile world record is 3:42.13 set by Hicham El Guerrouj in 1999. See full men’s start list below:
 

 

*Designates Road Mile time unless otherwise noted

 
Tune into coverage of the Brooks Beasts Desert Throwdown one-mile invitational Live on www.facebook.com/RunRocknRoll #BrooksBeasts #DesertThrowdown.
 
For more information on Toyota Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon & ½ Marathon event weekend, visit RunRocknRoll.com/Las-Vegas. For more information on the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series, visit www.runrocknroll.com. For media-related inquiries, please contact [email protected].
 
For more information on Brooks, go to www.brooksrunning.com.

 

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About Brooks Running
Brooks Running Company sells its performance footwear, apparel, sports bras and accessories in more than 50 countries worldwide. Brooks’ purpose is to inspire everyone to run and be active by creating innovative gear designed to keep runners running longer, farther and faster. This purpose is supported by Brooks’ Run Happy philosophy, a quest to celebrate and champion the sport of running and all runners everywhere. Founded in 1914, Brooks is a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and is headquartered in Seattle. Visit www.brooksrunning.com for more information or follow us on Twitter (@brooksrunning),Facebook (www.facebook.com/brooksrunning) and Instagram at (@brooksrunning).
 
About Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series® is the world’s largest running series with more than 600,000 runners taking part in over 30 destination events around the world every year. Established in 1998, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series simple idea of making running fun has transformed both the U.S. and global running landscape by infusing the course with live bands, cheer teams and entertaining water stations, creating a block-party atmosphere for participants and spectators alike. Focused on running, music and community, race weekend kicks off with a free Health & Fitness Expo showcasing the latest in running gear, sports apparel, health and nutritional information and much more. Events culminate with an entertaining finish-line festival featuring some of the biggest names in music, with past performances including Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, O.A.R. Aloe Blacc, Pitbull, Flo Rida, The Band Perry, Fitz and the Tantrums, the Goo Goo Dolls and Bret Michaels. Further information about the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series can be found online at www.RunRocknRoll.com and follow @RunRocknRoll on all social platforms.
 
About IRONMAN
As part of Wanda Sports Holdings, the IRONMAN Group operates a global portfolio of events that includes the IRONMAN® Triathlon Series, the IRONMAN® 70.3® Triathlon Series, 5150™ Triathlon Series, the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series®, Iron Girl®, IRONKIDS®, International Triathlon Union World Triathlon Series races, road cycling events including the UCI Velothon® Series, mountain bike races including the Absa Cape Epic®, premier marathons including the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon, trail running like Ultra-Trail Australia™, and other multisport races. IRONMAN’s events, together with all other Wanda Sports Holdings events, provide more than a million participants annually the benefits of endurance sports through the company’s vast offerings. The iconic IRONMAN®Series of events is the largest participation sports platform in the world. Since the inception of the IRONMAN® brand in 1978, athletes have proven that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE® by crossing finish lines at the world’s most challenging endurance races. Beginning as a single race, IRONMAN has grown to become a global sensation with more than 230 events across 53 countries. For more information, visit www.ironman.com