Curt Brinkman, former world record-holder for the wheelchair marathon, has entered the wheelchair division of the Deseret News/Granite Furniture 10K.
Brinkman, 40, recently returned to racing after a nine-year retirement. He showed he can still compete with the best by winning the 1993 St. George Marathon in a world-class time of 1:23:30, less than 2 minutes off the current world standard of 1:27:41. He is using the Deseret News/Granite Furniture 10K to prepare him for upcoming marathons."I'm in pretty good shape right now, though not where I want to be. I hope for a good marathon in late November, shooting for the Boston Marathon in April," he said. He hopes he'll then make his second Olympic Team in 1996 in Atlanta.
It was at Boston in 1980 that he made history by being the first wheelchair athlete to finish ahead of the runners. At the same time he broke the magic 2 hour mark, finishing with a then world record time of 1 hour 55 minutes. He retired after the 1984 Boston Marathon. He won the Deseret News Marathon in 1980.
This year marks the 25th running of the Deseret News Marathon and the 11th running of the 10K.
Steeped in tradition, the marathon follows the old Mormon Pioneer Trail from the top of the mountains in the Salt Lake Valley. The runners begin in the chilly pre-dawn darkness of Parley's Canyon, climb the mis-named Little (it's not) Mountain, then make the long descent down Emigration Canyon and into the valley. The final three miles the runners follow the Days of '47 Parade route along Main Street, cheered on by 300,000 spectators.
The Deseret News/Granite Furniture 10,000 meter road race has earned a reputation as one of the fastest in the country. Ten men have run 28:15 or faster, led by Ed Eyestone's 27:39, and nine women have run under 32 minutes, led by Kellie Cathey's 31:37. Kellie Cathey, now Kellie Cathey Archuleta will compete in this year's event.
Eyestone, who had originally planned to compete, will not due to a conflict with the Goodwill Games.