Over the past 40 years the TD Bank Reedy River Run has hosted some of the top road racers in the south. The list of winners is impressive (see http://www.tdbankreedyriverrun.com/past-10k-winners.html). Although recent two-time champion Elkanah Kibet will not be in Greenville due to running the Boston Marathon on the previous Monday, 2017 winner Austin Steagall will toe the line. The ASICS Greenville Track Club-ELITE runner will have plenty of competition, including 2017 South Carolina Road Runner of the Year Ricky Flynn. Flynn has finished in the top ten at this race three times (4th in 2014, 3rd in 2016 and was 6th last year). Flynn is also a two-time qualifier for the USA Olympic Trials in the marathon, with the second one as a member of ASICS GTC-ELITE in 2016.
Another local runner with a top resume is Cole Atkins, who formerly ran for ZAP Fitness Elite out of Blowing Rock, NC. Cole recently placed second to Steagall in the Greenville News Run Downtown 5K. and also qualified for the 2016 USA Olympic Marathon Trials. Other runners to watch include another 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier Cory Keehn from Boone, NC and Pardon Ndhlovu, a 2016 Olympic marathoner for the country of Zimbabwe. Pardon currently trains with the ZAP Fitness group in Blowing Rock, NC, and may be the overall favorite. Another contender from Blowing Rock is Will Norris, who has a sub-30:00 minute 10K on his resume and recently won the GHS Half Marathon in Greenville. The last two women's winners, ASICS GTC-ELITE's Dylan Hassett (2016) and Kimberly Ruck (2017) have both moved away from Greenville and will not be returning for our 2018 event. However, Greenville resident Esther Atkins will be running this year. Esther was the 2014 USATF Marathon champion. She is a three-time USA Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier and has run under 2:40 for the marathon on 12 occasions. These runners will be competing for a portion of the $10,000 prize purse available for USA citizens with a USATF membership. This year's event features some new course changes, including an exciting finish along downtown Greenville's S. Main Street. Over 3,000 runners have already registered for the event, which is produced by the 46-year-old Greenville Track Club.
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