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The Gate River Run (GRR), formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual 15 kilometer road running event in Jacksonville, Florida that attracts both competitive and recreational runners. It has been the US National Championship 15K since 1994 and in 2007 became the largest 15K race in the country. It "was voted () one of the top US Road Races for last 20 years by Runner's World Magazine."〔("Gate River Run" ) Active.com, Events〕 Local news media describe it as "one of Jacksonville's premiere annual events."〔Kouvaris, Sam:("10,000 Participate; Keflezighi Wins Gate River Run" ) News4Jax sports, March 11, 2006〕 ==History== The race was first held in 1978 when it was known as the Jacksonville River Run. The initial sponsor of the race was the Florida Publishing Co., which published the Florida Times-Union and Jacksonville Journal. An inspiration for the race was the Peachtree Road Race, a 10,000 meter road race sponsored for several years by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. An initial planning meeting was held at the Jacksonville YMCA, with representatives of the Y, the newspaper and members of the Jacksonville Track Club. The 15,000-meter distance was proposed, to distinguish the race from the Atlanta race and the plethora of 10K road races then spreading across the country as a result of the running boom. The course crosses two major bridges spanning the St. Johns River, giving the race its name.〔Personal reminiscences of first race director John F. Fannin and Florida Publishing Co. editor/reporter Christopher Hosford〕 Running legend Bill Rodgers, who is a four-time winner of both the New York City and Boston Marathons, won the first River Run. He was invited by the organizers, pending an appearance fee of $1,000, which was an under-the-table payment because of the amateur status of so many world-class athletes at that time. There was no other appearance or prize money offered. Rodgers' powerful victory helped catapult the event into the national running consciousness. On the women's side, Kim Merritt, a national-class runner in a period when women were first beginning to be taken seriously at longer distances, took home the distaff honors.〔Ibid.〕 Gate Petroleum became the underwriting sponsor in 1994.〔("Race Winners" ) Association of Road Racing Statisticians, River Run 15 km〕 Todd Williams holds the American 15K record with a time of 42:22 at the 1995 GRR, which he won five times. Deena Drossin, who has won the GRR six times, holds the women's record with 47:15 at the GRR in 2003. An equalizer was added in 2004. The difference in time between the women's and men's 15K national records was 4:53,〔 so the elite women runners got a five-minute head start on the elite men. The first finisher, man or woman, receives a $5,000 bonus.〔 Even so, the women had only won the prize once (in 2007). In 2012, the equilizer was increased to 6:35, and Janet Cherobon won the $5,000 bonus that year and in 2013. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gate River Run」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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