In the end, the 28th Quad-City Times Bix 7, the USA Men's and Women's 7 Mile Championships, followed the pre-race predictions as Meb Keflezighi and Colleen De Reuck dominated their fields to claim national titles and 2002 Pontiac Sunfires.

Keflezighi, 27, from San Diego, won his second U.S. road title on the 2002 USA Running Circuit (USARC) in commanding fashion over Team USA California teammate Abdi Abdirahman. De Reuck, 38, from Boulder, Colo., went unchallenged on the women's side to win her fourth Bix 7 title over Katie McGregor and joined Joan Samuelson as the only four-time winners of the event. The entire weekend drew 19,658 participants to the Bix 7, Alcoa Jr. Bix and the Brady Street Sprint.

The men's race began with a threesome of Keflezighi, Abdirahman and Jared Cordes setting the early pace. Suddenly, at about a mile and three quarters, Keflezighi, also the 2002 national champion at 12K (cross country), 15K (roads) and 10,000 meter (track), flipped the switch and pulled away.

Keflezighi's victory in a time of 32:36 proved to be the third largest margin of victory in Bix history as he finished 52 seconds ahead of Abdirahman at 33:28. Kyle Baker was a strong third in 33:33. In 1980, Bill Rodgers was 74 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor and in 1979, the late Gregg Newell was 53 seconds ahead of the second place finisher.

"This is a national championship and you always do the best you can," said Keflezighi, a 2000 Olympian. "It's nice to be in the (history) books, but I'm running for the spot, not records. I'm a front runner and that was my plan all along. The front is where I am most comfortable."

"At the beginning of the race, I knew it was going to be tough," said Abdirahman, also a 2000 Olympian. "I felt like I strained my Achilles in the first mile and when Meb left I just felt I couldn't go. With a runner like Meb, you can't be at 50% or 80%, you have to be ready. You have to get beat to learn, and I know that Meb and I have many years to go together.

"I actually felt like giving up, but the crowd kept yelling for me," Abdirahman added. "There were crowds at every mile and that helped. They say that Eugene and Palo Alto are great running cities, but this was the best I have ever seen."

The women's race was a march to victory for De Reuck who also won a U.S. road title at 8K in 2001. Not only is she tied with Samuelson in the Bix record books, it is also the most elite titles for either gender overall.

She was never challenged seriously, breaking the tape in 37:44. Team USA Minnesota's and rising star Katie McGregor was second at 38:25 while Libbie Hickman was third at 38:43.

"Standing next to Joan is an honor and a privilege because she has meant so much to the sport," said De Reuck. "I felt in control, but I didn't finish as strongly as I usually do. It was a tough race today."

In the master's race, Eddy Hellebuyck also followed form by winning the men's side in 35:39. Honors for the first master in the women's field went to Noreen Shea who had a clocking of 45:51.

The race was held in typical mid-summer conditions. Race time temperature was 74 degrees with 85% humidity. The early morning included a small breeze that kept the humidity light. Once the sun came out from behind cloud cover at race time, the heat was apparent and times were slower all around.

The Bix 7 marked the mid-point of 2002 USA Running Circuit - a USA Track & Field road running series featuring national championships from 5K to the marathon and thus, valuable Circuit points were earned.

With his second place performance (worth 12 points) at Bix, Abdirahman moved into first place with 31 points while Keflezighi sits second - a mere point behind. In the women's standings, De Reuck increased her lead over Jeanne Hennessy who was 5th at Bix (34 points to 23) and 1999-2000 USARC Grand Prix champion Libbie Hickman vaulted into third place (17 points). The next USARC race is the New Haven 20K on Labor Day, September 2.

Per USARC race, the first ten U.S. runners earn points (15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1). The 2002 USARC offers over $340,000 in championship prize money plus a $25,000 grand prix purse ($6000, $4000 and $2500) for the top three men and women point scorers overall.

Since its inception in 1995, the USA Running Circuit and its races have provided over $3.3 million dollars to U.S. distance runners. The USARC mission is to showcase, support and promote U.S. runners. Past USARC Grand Prix champions include Olympians Keith Brantly ('95), Mark Coogan ('96), Rod DeHaven ('98/'00), Libbie Hickman ('99-'00), Anne Marie Lauck ('96), Shelly Steely ('98) and Todd Williams ('99).

28th Quad-City Times Bix 7: USA Men's and Women's Championship Davenport, IA, Saturday, July 20, 2002

MEN 1. Meb Keflezighi, CA 32:36 2002 Pontiac Sunfire 2. Abdi Abdirahman, AZ 33:28 $4000 3. Kyle Baker, MI 33:33 $2500 4. Brian Sell, MI 33:49 $1500 5. Jeff Campbell, MI 34:00 $1000 6. Ryan Kirkpatrick, CO 34:09 $900 7. Phillimon Hanneck, OR 34:10 $800 8. Rod DeHaven, WI 34:15 $700 9. Scott Strand, AL 34:19 $600 10. Keith Dowling, VA 34:24 $500

WOMEN 1. Colleen De Reuck, CO 37:44 2002 Pontiac Sunfire 2. Katie McGregor, MN 38:25 $4000 3. Libbie Hickman, CO 38:43 $2500 4. Cheri Kenah, VA 38:50 $1500 5. Jeanne Hennessy, NY 38:55 $1000 6. Rosa Gutierrez, OR 39:39 $900 7. Monica Hostetler, IN 39:43 $800 8. Nicole Kulikov, CO 39:47 $700 9. Kim Pawelek, FL 40:10 $600 10. Faith Byrum, CO 40:27 $500

For more results, photos and other race stories, go to the Bix 7 website: http://www.bix7.com

2002 USARC Standings

MEN after five races 1) Abdi Abdirahman, 25, Tucson, AZ 31 2) Meb Keflezighi, 27, San Diego, CA 30 3) Jim Jurcevich, 25, Columbus, OH 22 4) Peter De La Cerda, 30, Alamosa, CO 21 5) Kyle Baker, 26, Mason, MI 17 6) Tim Broe, 24, Ann Arbor, MI 15 David Morris, 31, Albuquerque, NM 15 8) Dan Browne, 27, Portland, OR 12 Todd Williams, 33, Knoxville, TN 12 10) Clint Wells, 27, Boulder, CO 11

WOMEN after four races 1) Colleen De Reuck, 38, Boulder, CO 34 2) Jeanne Hennessy, 24, Mahopac, NY 23 3) Libbie Hickman, 37, Ft. Collins, CO 17 4) Deena Drossin, 29, Mammoth Lakes, CA 15 Marla Runyan, 33, Eugene, OR 15 6) Sylvia Mosqueda, 36, Los Angeles, CA 14 7) Elva Dryer, 30, Albuquerque, NM 12 Katie McGregor, 24, Minneapolis, MN 12 Beth Old, 27, Douglasville, GA 12 10) Jen Rhines, 28, St. Davids, PA 10 Lori Zimmerman, 32, Cedar Creek, TX 10 Nicole Kulikov, 26, Ft. Collins, CO 10 Cheri Kenah, 31, Reston, VA 10

2002 USA Road Champions MEN Meb Keflezighi 42:28 Gate River Run 15K, Jacksonville, FL, March 9 Tim Broe 22:26 NYRR 8000, New York, NY, April 6 David Morris 1:17:15 Fifth Third River Bank 25K, Grand Rapids, MI, May 11 Peter DeLaCerda 1:05:57 UMKC Hospital Hill HM, Kansas City, MO, June 1 Meb Keflezighi 32:36 Quad-City Times Bix 7, Davenport, IA, July 20

WOMEN Deena Drossin 48:12* Gate River Run 15K, Jacksonville, FL, March 9 Jeanne Hennessy 1:27:18 Fifth Third River Bank 25K, Grand Rapids, MI, May 11 Marla Runyan 15:27 Freihofer's Run for Women 5K, Albany, NY, June 1 Colleen De Reuck 37:44 Quad-City Times Bix 7, Davenport, IA, July 20 *U.S. record

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Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Services USATF Road Running Information Center 5522 Camino Cerralvo Santa Barbara, CA 93111 (805) 696-6232, fax (805) 696-6252 http://www.runningusa.org http://www.usaldr.org