The elite field is growing, just three weeks out from the Austin Marathon

There are going to be some new faces along with some familiar ones among the elites lined up for the Ascension Seton Austin Marathon presented by Under Armour on Sunday February 16, 2020. The elite line-up has continued to grow as the race date draws near. Runners in the elite program will be competing for a total prize purse of $26,000 (which includes the Manzano Mile). The prize purse breaks down to $15,000 for the marathon, $5,000 for the half marathon, and $6,000 for the Manzano Mile.

Austin’s Mark Pinales, a former University of Texas track and cross-country star and 2017 3M Half Marathon champ (1:06:51) is on the move, and looking forward to the full marathon distance after easing up in the final miles of the 2020 3M Half to come home in a training-run time of 1:13:46.

Eliud Mwangi, who won the 2017 Napoli City Half Marathon in 1:01:21—a course record—is a talented Kenyan runner who is bound to be at the front of the pack.

Pflugerville’s Ryan Normand is a former University of Arizona track and cross-country standout, who took second at the 3M Half Marathon a week ago. Normand is looking to improve on his 2:29:13 posted at the 2019 Grandma’s Marathon, so don’t count him out.

Bryan Morseman, who came in second at the 2018 Glass City Marathon (Toledo, Ohio) in personal best of 2:23:23, is definitely someone to watch. This guy has won 65 marathons! He also placed 9th overall in 3:06:33 at the 2016 IAU 50K World Championships in Doha, Qatar to help the USA win gold.

On the women’s side, Asia Shah joins the female elite field with a marathon best of 2:57:41, which she ran at the California International Marathon. Shah notably ran negative splits there, clocking 1:27:38 for the second half—a sign she knows how to navigate 26.2 miles.

San Antonio’s Elena Oslund is a former middle-distance runner who posted a 1:21:58 at the 2019 Eugene Half Marathon. As a collegiate runner competing for Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, she set school records in the 1500, 3,000 and 5,000-meter events.

As mentioned in an earlier Ready to Run blog, Keri McEntee, a 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifier is coming to Austin all the way from Alaska and boasts a 2:41:19, set at the 2019 Grandma’s Marathon. Valentyna Poltavska, ran 2:47:32 in the same race, and won the 2017 Detroit Free Press Marathon. Also joining the women’s elite field is Sarah Jackson, who posted a 2:58:41 to claim fourth place at last year’s Austin Marathon.

Upcoming Races: Saturday, February 1 at 8:00 a.m., the Raider Run 5K at Old Settlers Park, 2008 Harrell Parkway in Round Rock. Sunday, February 2 at 8:30 a.m. Game Day 5K at 1405 Gruene Road in New Braunfels.