EURO SILVER MEDALLIST CHRIS THOMPSON ON HIS MARKS FOR BUPA GREAT YORKSHIRE RUN

Chris Thompson, winner of the 10000 metres silver medal at the recent European Championships will again compete at the Bupa Great Yorkshire Run on 5 September.

Thompson will return to the Sheffield venue in a much better frame of mind having finally overcome the injuries which hindered his career since winning the European Under 23 5000m gold medal in 2003. The 29 year old Aldershot athlete’s performance in Barcelona, where he finished runner-up behind Aviva GB teammate Mo Farah, has enabled him to set his sights on more success in the future - in particular the 2012 London Olympic Games. Thompson, who will be making his third successive appearance in the Bupa Great Yorkshire Run, will find it no easy task on his return to road racing despite his world class track form. Another late addition, Spain's Chema Martinez, runner-up in Sheffield two years ago when Thompson finished sixth, is adamant he will be fully recovered after claiming the European marathon silver medal in Barcelona in blistering weather conditions. "It's great news to include the pair in what is already a high quality field," said Andy Caine, elite athlete’s manager for the meeting. "I'm expecting much more from Thompson who finished fifth a year ago but who has now stepped up a few notches. Martinez is always someone for the big occasion." The two new signings will face a field which includes former Olympic marathon champion Stefano Baldini, past World Championships 5000m bronze medallist Craig Mottram and the British pair of Andrew Lemoncello and Lee Merrien. Lemoncello was the first domestic runner at this year's Virgin London Marathon whilst Merrien exceeded expectations when taking eighth position in the European Marathon. The Bupa Great Yorkshire Run will start on Arundel Gate, before heading along Penistone Road to Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough stadium, before returning to the city centre. The race will be televised on Channel 5. Online entries are being accepted until 0900 Tuesday 31 August at www.greatrun.org ENDS Notes to editors: Bupa Great Yorkshire Run The Bupa Great Yorkshire Run is brought to you by a partnership between Yorkshire Forward, Sheffield City Council and Nova International, event organisers, and is sponsored by leading international healthcare group, Bupa. Nova International, headed by Olympic Medallist Brendan Foster is one of the UK’s leading event management and sports marketing agencies. The company’s current brand portfolio also includes some of the biggest running events in the world all based on the Bupa Great North Run, the world’s largest half marathon with over 54,000 entries. Nova International was established in 1988 and has a strong sporting pedigree. Based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Nova has established themselves as a market leader in the world of sports marketing and event management. For more information please visit www.greatrun.org. Bupa Bupa’s purpose is to help people lead longer, healthier, happier lives. A leading international healthcare group, we offer personal and company health insurance, run care homes for older people and hospitals, and provide workplace health services, health assessments and chronic disease management services, including health coaching, and home healthcare. With no shareholders, we invest our profits to provide more and better healthcare. We are committed to making quality, patient-centred, affordable healthcare more accessible in the areas of wellness, chronic disease management and ageing. Employing over 50,000 people, Bupa has operations around the world, principally in the UK, Australia, Spain, New Zealand and the USA, as well as Hong Kong, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, India, China and across Latin America. For more information, visit www.bupa.com Alzheimer’s Society Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer Scotland are calling for runners to support them in one of the 2010 Bupa Great Runs across the country. For further details visit www.alzheimers.org.uk/greatrun or telephone 0870 417 0192. Runners in Scotland can visit www.alzscot.org or telephone 0845 260 0789.

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