BOSTON ‰ÛÓ The Boston Athletic Association
(B.A.A.) today announced an elite field of Olympians and returning
champions for the 2015 B.A.A. 5K, to be held on Saturday, April 18, two
days prior to the 2015 Boston Marathon®. Defending women’s
champion Molly Huddle will return to the streets of Boston, while
two-time winner Ben True comes back seeking to be the first athlete to
earn three B.A.A. 5K titles.

The 2015 B.A.A. 5K will have a field size of
10,000 entrants and will start and finish at Boston Common. A prize
purse of $39,900 (USD) will be awarded equally to the top male and
female finishers. In addition, professional runners are
eligible for a $5,000 (USD) bonus for event record times established at
the B.A.A. 5K. Bonus incentives will also be available for professional
runners for multiple top finishes at B.A.A. events in 2015.  

Defending champion Molly Huddle of Rhode Island
looks to build upon her race for the record books at last year’s B.A.A.
5K. In 2014, Huddle came from behind to break the finish tape first on
Charles Street, running a time of 15:12 which
tied the event record. Huddle, a 2012 Olympian and the American record
holder for 5,000 meters on the track, returns to Boston’s Back Bay with
hopes of becoming the first repeat women’s champion in race history.

Challenging Huddle will be last year’s B.A.A. 5K
runner-up and B.A.A. Distance Medley champion, Mamitu Daska of
Ethiopia. Daska had a season to remember in Boston a year ago, winning
the B.A.A. 10K and B.A.A. Half Marathon in event record
times of 31:04 and 1:08:20, respectively. Daska finished a mere two
seconds behind Huddle at the B.A.A. 5K in 2014.

Also entered in the women’s field are Kenya’s
Lineth Chepkurui, Mary Wacera, Cynthia Limo, and Valentine Kibet, as
well as Ethiopians Werknesh Kidane, Sentayehu Ejigu, and Buze Diriba.
Chepkurui won the 2011 B.A.A. 5K in 15:52, while Kidane
set the event record of 15:12 in 2012.

On the men’s side, American True and Kenyan road
racing ace Stephen Sambu lead a strong group eyeing the top spot on the
podium. True finished a very close second place at last year’s B.A.A.
5K, running the same time as winner Dejen Gebremeskel
(13:26, an event record). A native of Maine and graduate of Dartmouth
College, True won both the 2011 and 2012 B.A.A. 5K titles, and is
seeking to become the first athlete to win the race three times. Earlier
this year True won the USA 15K National Championships
in Jacksonville, Florida.

Sambu enters the B.A.A. 5K with a very strong
record at Boston Athletic Association events. A two-time B.A.A. Distance
Medley champion, Sambu knows what it takes to win on the roads of
Boston. The University of Arizona graduate won the
B.A.A. 10K in both 2013 and 2014, and finished a close third at the
B.A.A. 5K last year. He finished second at the NYC Half in March.

Joining True and Sambu on the starting line will
be Kenya’s Lawi Lalang, a track specialist who won multiple NCAA titles
while at the University of Arizona, and fellow countryman Sam Chelanga,
runner-up at the 2012 B.A.A. 5K. Lalang finished
first at the Carlsbad 5000m on March 29, timing 13:32. Also from Kenya
are Philip Langat, Daniel Salel, and Kevin Chelimo.

Reigning USA 20K National Champion Girma
Mecheso, former University of Wisconsin standout Maverick Darling, and
2:10:36 marathoner Brett Gotcher round out the top men entered from the
United States.

Seeking to enhance each participant’s race day
experience, the B.A.A. has slightly altered this year’s B.A.A. 5K course
from the race route used in 2014. The event will still start and finish
at Boston Common, taking runners on a scenic
tour through Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood and across the Boston
Marathon finish line.

The 2015 B.A.A. 5K will begin on Charles Street
in between Boston Common and the Boston Public Garden. Participants will
head south on Charles Street before taking a right onto Boylston
Street, then another right onto Arlington Street.
All athletes will proceed to take a left onto Commonwealth Avenue,
eventually passing the one mile mark.

After going underneath the Massachusetts Avenue
underpass, participants will then turn left on Charlesgate West, making
their way onto the inbound side of Commonwealth Avenue. From there
runners will follow the Boston Marathon race course,
going underneath the Massachusetts Avenue underpass and taking a right
onto Hereford Street (2-mile mark), then a left onto Boylston Street.

Participants will pass by the newly-opened
Boston Marathon® RunBase and across the Boston Marathon finish line,
continuing on Boylston Street before taking a left on Charles Street for
the finish.

In 2015, professional runners are eligible for
bonus incentives for multiple top finishes at the B.A.A. 5K, B.A.A. 10K,
B.A.A. Half Marathon, and Boston Marathon. A runner who wins three of
those four events in 2015 will be awarded $50,000
(USD) in prize money. In addition, the B.A.A. will award bonuses for
event record times established at the B.A.A. 5K.  

A total of $39,900 (USD) in prize money will be
distributed to the top 10 runners overall, the top three masters
competitors, and the top three push rim wheelchair competitors. Prize
money awards are equal for men and women. The B.A.A.
5K male and female champions will each receive $7,500 (USD) in prize
money. The prize money and bonus structure is listed below.  

The 2015 B.A.A. 5K has a field size limit of
10,000 entrants. Registration opened on Wednesday, February 4 at 10:00
a.m. ET and closed on Friday, February 13 at 3:00 p.m. ET. The start and
finish line for the B.A.A. 5K is located on Charles
Street between the Boston Public Garden and Boston Common. The 2015
B.A.A. 5K course will be a scenic tour through Boston’s Back Bay
neighborhood, with athletes crossing the Boston Marathon finish line on
Boylston Street before returning to Charles Street
for the finish.

B.A.A. 5K Elite Field                                       

MEN                                     

NAME                                   COUNTRY            AGE       PERSONAL BEST

Ben True                              USA                       26           13:26

Stephen Sambu                                Kenya                   26           13:21

Lawi Lalang                         Kenya                   23           13:30

Philip Langat                       Kenya                   24           N/A

Daniel Salel                         Kenya                   24           13:31

Sam Chelanga                    Kenya                   30           13:43

Kevin Chelimo                   Kenya                   32           13:42

Maverick Darling              USA                       25           13:58

Brett Gotcher                    USA                       30           14:00

Girma Mecheso                                USA                       27           14:08

WOMEN                                             

NAME                                   COUNTRY            AGE       PERSONAL BEST

Molly Huddle                     USA                       30           15:10

Mamitu Daska                   Ethiopia                31           15:14

Werknesh Kidane            Ethiopia                33           15:12

Sentayehu Ejigu                               Ethiopia                29           15:16

Lineth Chepkurui             Kenya                   27           15:23

Cynthia Limo                      Kenya                   25           15:47

Buze Diriba                         Ethiopia                21           15:14

Mary Wacera                     Kenya                   26           15:20.30 (track)

Valentine Kibet                 Kenya                   26           N/A

2015 B.A.A. 5K Prize Structure

PLACE   OPEN                    MASTERS             PUSH RIM WHEELCHAIR

1              $7,500                   $300                       $300

2              $4,000                   $200                       $200

3              $2,500                   $100

4              $1,500                  

5              $1,000                  

6              $750                      

7              $600                      

8              $400                      

9              $300                      

10           $200                      

GRAND TOTAL= $39,000

About the Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.)

Established in 1887, the Boston Athletic
Association is a non-profit organization with a mission of promoting a
healthy lifestyle through sports, especially running. The B.A.A.’s
Boston Marathon is the world’s oldest annual marathon, and
the organization manages other local events and supports comprehensive
charity, youth, and year-round running programs. Since 1986, the
principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon has been John Hancock
Financial. The Boston Marathon is part of the Abbott World
Marathon Majors, along with the international marathons in Tokyo,
London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York City. More than 60,000 runners
will participate in B.A.A. events in 2015. The 119th Boston Marathon
will be held on Monday, April 20, 2015. For more information
on the B.A.A., please visit www.baa.org.