Last modified: Tuesday, February 19, 2008
2008 Circle of Life Mini Marathon teams up with IU football coach Bill Lynch
April 5th races raise scholarship money for cancer survivors
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Feb. 19, 2008
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- While the IU Circle of Life Mini Marathon and 5K races at Indiana University Bloomington have been moved from September to April, they will feature a familar face from the fall collegiate sports scene.
IU head football coach Bill Lynch will be a part of the IU Circle of Life Mini Marathon and 5K races on Saturday, April 5. Lynch will present awards to the top finishers in the races prior to the football team's spring scrimmage at Memorial Stadium that afternoon.
The races, organized by a not-for-profit student philanthropy, raise money to endow a scholarship for a cancer survivor. Old National Bank is the event's title sponsor.
Previously, the races have been held in September, but due to challenges presented by other large events in the fall, Circle of Life decided to move the 13.1-mile race to the end of the school year. The races have raised more than $80,000 since their inception in 2006.
"It is truly a privilege to be involved with this great event," Lynch said. "IU Circle of Life does a great job raising money for such a worthy cause, and I look forward to working with the organization."
Pre-race ceremonies will begin at 7:30 a.m. on April 5 in the parking lot of the IU Athletics complex at 17th Street and Fee Lane, with the mini marathon starting at 8 a.m. and the 5K at 8:10 a.m. Participants can register, pick up packets and visit an expo in the Harry Gladstein Fieldhouse from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on April 4 and from 6:15 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. on race day.
"We want to thank everyone who has competed in the past and assisted us with planning our event, and we hope they'll enjoy a run with us this spring, which is a very special time here on campus," said Sean Keegan MacCauley, president of IU Circle of Life and a sophomore from Evansville, Ind. "Having the support of Coach Lynch and his team means a lot. We hope that many people will take advantage of this opportunity to get fit, help raise money for a good cause and support the Hoosiers."
Competing as a team is a new option in this year's event. Participants can enter as teams consisting of five runners who will be charged at a discounted rate. There will be five categories: Greek Fraternity, Greek Sororities, Open Male, Open Female and Open Co-ed. The four fastest people on each team will have their finish times added together for a total team time. The fastest teams in each category will win prizes. Circle of Life organizers hope this concept will present participants with opportunities to raise money for their own charitable causes as well.
To register or for more information, go online to www.iumini.com.
The student group is raising money for the Bill Z. Littlefield Scholarship for Survivors which will enable a cancer survivor to attend one of IU's eight campuses once it is endowed. Littlefield was a Kelley School of Business faculty member who died in 2005 from cancer, and many students in Circle of Life are studying business in the Kelley School.
The 13.1-mile run is one of the largest running events in southern Indiana and the state's first collegiate-hosted mini marathon. Runners will compete on a road route taking them through the IU Bloomington campus and surrounding areas. The route has been officially certified and sanctioned by the USA Track and Field Association.
IU Circle of Life organizers will work with authorities, as they have in the past, to notify local residents along the race route about road closures and traffic delays on race day. Course maps will be provided to outline when and where runners will be during the race.
"We appreciate the inconvenience that the race may impose on some of our neighbors," MacCauley said. "As we continue to build this campus tradition, we hope the community will help us to make it bigger and better each year."
A scholarship account has been established at the IU Foundation. Event planners hope that once the scholarship is endowed, annual proceeds of the event will be able to support other charitable causes. Contributions can be sent to the IU Foundation at P.O. Box 500, Bloomington, IN, 47402; made by phone at 812-855-5776; or made online at https://iufoundation.iu.edu (specify the name of the account: Circle of Life/Bill Littlefield Scholarship).
Tuxedo Brothers provides events management. Sponsors are Bloomington Shuttle, Bruner Landscaping, Chipotle, B97, Pita Pit, Royal on the Eastside, Markey's Rental and Staging, Kroger, Brightroom and The ClassWatch.
