| Location: | Fort McNair |
| Purpose: | The President and First Lady will lead runners and
walkers in the President's Fitness challenge to help promote the President's fitness agenda. The President encourages
Americans to be physically active every day, to eat a nutritious diet, to get preventive screenings for disease,
and to make healthy choices, including avoiding tobacco and drugs and the abuse of alcohol. Extensive research has
shown that improving overall health and preventing disease and premature death is as easy as making small adjustments and improvements in the activities of daily life. |
| Distance: | The President will lead runners in a 3 mile run.
The First Lady will lead walkers in a 1.5 mile walk |
| Time: | The run and walk will start together at
8:30 a.m. |
| Participants: | 400 members of the President's White House staff and
members of the President's Cabinet, including HUD Secretary Mel Martinez and Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman. |
| Entrance Fee: | To participate in the race, participants must
commit to donate hours of service or resources to the community or faith organization of their choice. This entrance fee is
consistent with the President's call on Americans to help their communities and our most vulnerable citizens by
committing to serving significant time for others. Representatives of the USA Freedom Corps and six community-serving organizations will be at the race to help register participants for their service. |
| Race Starter: | Major General Jim Jackson (commanding General
at Fort McNair) will start the race. A cannon will serve as the starting signal. |
| Race Scoring: | ChampionChip will score the race with their
cutting edge chip system. All runners and walkers, including the President and First Lady, will have a small chip on their
shoes that will provide instant digital scoring and race split times. |
| Certification: | The course has been officially certified by
the race director for the Army 10-Miler.
|
| Refreshments: | There will be water stations at the starting line,
at the halfway point on the course, and at the finish line. Participants will also have fruit, juices and other healthy
refreshments available at the race. |
| Time Splits: | Time splits will be displayed on digital clocks to
all runners and walkers at the one and two mile markers. |
| Fitness Expo: | At the race, there will be stations that
highlight the pillars of the President's fitness agenda. The U.S. Army will also have a climbing wall on the infield. |
| Special Guests: | Special guests at the run today will
include four athletes who will represent the U.S. in the 2003 World Special Olympics Games -- Kevin Boyd (competing in the 100
and 200 meter wheelchair races and the softball throw); Lindsey Wilkes (she will compete in the 200 and 400 meter
dash and long jump); Kevin Gafford (shotput and 100 meter dash); and Daniel Bailey (400 and 800 meter and high jump).
These athletes will be at the USA Freedom Corps booth on the infield to help register participants for their service. |
| Presentation: | After the race, representatives from the U.S.
Army will present the President with the first artillery shell fired at his inauguration last year. |
