NEW YORK - Ryan Hall (Woodside Calif.), surprised defending champion Dathan Ritzenhein (Boulder, Colo.), in the open men's 12 km, while Carrie Tollefson (Minneapolis, Minn.), took the open women's 4 km and Kiel Uhl (Ames, Iowa), captured the Junior men's 8 km to win U.S. titles at the 2006 USA Cross Country Championships presented by Gleukos held at Van Cortlandt Park on Sunday.
The championships served as the selection event for the U.S. team that will compete at the 2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships. The top six finishers in the Open and Junior races are eligible to compete for the U.S. team on April 1-2 in Fukuoka, Japan. The USA Championships and World Cross Country Team Trials follow the same format as the upcoming World Championships, with six races over a two-day span.
Under clear skies with temperatures in the low 20s during Sunday's competition, the began with the Junior men's 8 km that saw a large group pass the first loop with Michael Eaton (Bowling Green, Ky.), and Landon Peacock (Morely, Mich.) in front and Uhl and Jordan McDougal (Peru, N.Y.) staying close.
Several lead changes