Dick’s Sporting Goods
National Runners Month named legendary running spokespersons Dean
Karnazes and Bart Yasso as ambassadors to promote the company’s major running
initiative scheduled for May.

As ambassadors for Dick’s Sporting Goods National Runners
Month, these two icons of the running world will play an active role in the
event’s promotion and encourage people across the country to get out and go for
a run. The pair will appear at select races on the official Dick’s Sporting
Goods National Runners Month Event Calendar and lead group runs in various
markets from now through June. Karnazes and Yasso will also contribute weekly
training, nutrition, and fitness tips on the Dick’s Sporting Goods National
Runners Month website and help promote Dick’s Sporting Goods National Runners
Month events and activities on Facebook and Twitter.

Dean Karnazes is the “Ultramarathon Man” and
bestselling author recently ranked by a Time magazine poll as one of the
“Top 100 Most Influential People in the World.” Karnazes is an
accomplished ultramarathon competitor and endurance athlete known for pushing
his body to inconceivable limits. Karnazes epic feats include running 50
marathons, in all 50 states, in 50 consecutive days, finishing with the New
York City Marathon, which he completed in three hours and thirty seconds.
Thousands of other runners joined him at points along the way, and collectively
they helped to issue a wake-up call to this country that it is time to get off
the couch and reclaim our health. A frequent speaker to schools and youth
groups, Karnazes travels the country, meeting and running with people of all
ages to promote the importance of physical exercise and a good diet.

“Im thrilled to advocate healthy and active living as
an ambassador for Dick’s Sporting Goods National Runners Month and inspire
others to be the best that they can be,” said Karnazes. “Let’s
get out there and celebrate running this May!” said Karnazes.

Dubbed the “Mayor of Running,” Bart Yasso is one
of the best-known figures in the sport. Yasso is the Chief Running Officer at
Runner’s World magazine. He joined Runner’s World in 1987 to develop the
groundbreaking Runner’s World Race Sponsorship Program, creating a vehicle for
Runner’s World to work with over 7,000 races representing four million runners
per year. Inducted into the Running USA Hall of Champions, Yasso also invented
the “Yasso 800s,” a marathon-training schedule used by thousands
around the world. Yasso has competed in more than 1,000 races and is one of the
few people to have completed races on all seven continents from the Antarctica
marathon to the Mt. Kilimanjaro marathon. His recent book “My Life on the
Run: The Wit, Wisdom, and Insights of a Road Racing Icon” shares the
wisdom of a seasoned insider and Yasso’s enduring message: Never limit where
running can take you.

“It’s a shame not to lace up your shoes in May when the
weather is so perfect!” said Bart Yasso. “As an ambassador for Dick’s
Sporting Goods National Runners Month, I look forward to meeting and
motivating runners of all ages and abilities and sharing how running is not
only healthy, but a gateway for adventure,” said Yasso.

“Were delighted to introduce Dean and Bart as Dick’s
Sporting Goods National Runners Month ambassadors to help us celebrate and
promote running,” said Jeff Hennion, executive vice president and chief
marketing officer, Dick’s Sporting Goods. “Dean and Bart are true icons in
their sport,” said Hennion. “They are supremely accomplished athletes
with a special ability to inspire runners wherever they go,” said Hennion.

Dick’s Sporting Goods National Runners Month

May is Dick’s Sporting Goods National Runners Month, an
initiative to promote running and highlight the retailer’s deep commitment to
serving runners. Dick’s Sporting Goods National Runners Month includes major event
sponsorship, Web, social media, mobile marketing, store promotions, and other
activities aimed at helping runners enjoy their sport. The official Dick’s
Sporting Goods National Runners Month Event Calendar includes the following
ten races:

 

                *             Alexandria Running Festival,
Washington, D.C., May 2

                *             Dick’s Sporting Goods Pittsburgh
Marathon, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, May 2

                *             Chuy’s Hot to Trot, Austin, Texas,
May 8

                *             Palos Verdes Marathon, Los Angeles,
California, May 15

                *             Strawberry Festival, San Diego,
California, May 30

                *             Brentwood 10K, Los Angeles,
California, May 30

                *             Stillwater Marathon, Stillwater,
Minnesota, May 30

                *             Ridge Run 10K, Chicago, Illinois,
May 31

                *             Dick’s Sporting Goods Bolder
Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, May 31

                *             Starlight Run, Portland, Oregon,
June 5

Dick’s Sporting Goods National Runners Month benefits Team
Fox to raise funds and awareness for Parkinson’s disease research.

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