This is the first round of athletes accepted into the program

High Five Events is excited to announce the first round of accepted athletes for the 2017 Austin Marathon® presented by NXP Elite Athlete Program. The Elite Athlete Program’s focus is to provide a clean and competitive environment, discover emerging marathon talent, and help the existing talent pool reach Olympic standards. The Program’s Year One prize purse totals $10,000.

The first round of 2017 Elite Athlete Program runners include:

• David Fuentes (2016 Olympic Trials Qualifier – marathon, 3x Austin Half Marathon Champion (2010, ‘11, ‘15), 2011 Rock ‘n’ Roll San Antonio Marathon Champion)
• Sean Brown (2016 Olympic Trials Qualifier – marathon)
• Mark Pinales (2016 Olympic Trials Qualifier – marathon)
• Rory Tunningley (2016 Olympic Trials Qualifier – marathon)
• Desiree Ficker Berry (2011 Austin Marathon Champion, 10th place – 2009 ING New York City Marathon, 2008 Olympic Trials Qualifier – marathon)
• Anita Perez (2016 Olympic Trials Qualifier – marathon)

“I am coming off a successful Trail and Mountain racing season and my current training is going well,” said David Fuentes, gold medalist at the 2016 World Mountain Running Association Championships. “My recent races in the mountain and trail circuit have been great additions to my overall aerobic and strength development. I will start my transition to the Austin Marathon build soon and really start to focus on putting in quality workouts for February.”

Applications are still being accepted and elite marathoners can apply on the Austin Marathon’s website. Athletes that meet the program’s standards and are accepted will be given one comp entry to the 2017 Austin Marathon, a complimentary ride from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport to downtown and back to the airport, and the option of a hotel room or home stay for two nights at no cost.

“The way the Elite Athlete Program has taken off is exciting,” said Jack Murray, co-owner of High Five Events. “We’ve taken measures to ensure we have a clean and competitive race on February 19th. Our research and vetting process has been and will continue to be extremely thorough. We’re also asking accepted athletes to take the Clean Sport pledge if they haven’t already..”