INDIANAPOLIS --- Breaking her second record in less than a month, Olympic bronze medalist Deena Kastor wins USATF Athlete of the Week after setting an American Masters record at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon on Sunday, Oct. 11.
 
A three-time Olympian, Kastor (Mammoth Lakes, California) completed the 26.2 miles as the top American woman in 2:27:47, defeating Colleen De Reuck’s previous record (2:28:40) from the 2005 Chicago Marathon.
 
Kastor also holds the American record for the marathon of 2:19:36, which she set in London in 2006.
 
On Sept. 27, Kastor won the women’s title at the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose 5K, finishing in 15:48, to tie both the U.S. and World Masters 5 km record. Kastor tied De Reuck’s finish set at the 2004 Freihofer’s Run for Women 5K in Albany, New York. For her performance, Kastor received her first USATF Athlete of the Week nod of the 2015 season.
 
Other notable performances:
 

• Molly Huddle (Providence, Rhode Island) won the USATF 10 km title in 31:21 for her fourth straight USATF Running Circuit victory, as she moved into first place in USARC standings. Huddle reached 5 km in 15:37 and already had a 20 second lead at the halfway point.
• Luke Puskedra (Salt Lake City, Utah), who gave up running near the end of 2014, was the top American finisher at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon after turning in a five-minute personal best to finish fifth overall in 2:10:24 
• Robert Allen (Providence, Rhode Island) won the NEICAAA New England Championships by six seconds as he covered the 8 km course in 24:23.7 to become the first UMass Lowell athlete to win the title.

 
Now in its 14th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on www.usatf.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.
 
2015 Winners: January 15, Chris Derrick; January 21, Demi Payne; January 28, Casimir Loxsom; February 4, Anselm LeBourne; February 11, Jenny Simpson; February 18, Brycen Spratling; February 25, Maksim Korolev; March 4, Shannon Rowbury; March 11, Mary Norckauer; March 18, Daloria Boone; March 25, Irene Obera; April 2, Michael Stigler; April 8, Allen Woodard; April 15, Joe Kovacs; April 22, Vashti Cunningham; April 29, Jasmin Stowers; May 6, Sanya Richards-Ross; May 13, Bernard Lagat; May 20, Christian Taylor; May 27, David Oliver; June 3, Joe Kovacs; June 10, Grant Fisher; June 17, Ben True; June 24, Candace Hill; July 1, Justin Gatlin; July 8, Evan Jager; July 15, Christian Taylor; July 22, Shannon Rowbury; July 29, Anthony Bailey; August 5, Harrison Williams; August 12, Flo Meiler; Sept. 2, Ashton Eaton; Sept. 18, Camille Herron; Sept. 24, Don Pellmann; Sept. 30, Deena Kastor; Oct. 7, Molly Huddle; Oct. 14, Deena Kastor.
 
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About USATF
USA Track & Field is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the country’s No. 1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States. For more information on USATF, visit http://www.usatf.org/.
 
We welcome your nominations!
To nominate an athlete for Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about their performance to Communications@usatf.org.