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Community Corner

BTN Big 10K Race

CHICAGO –Registration opens at 10 a.m. today for

the BTN Big 10K, the summer race that turns the Chicago lakefront into a Big

Ten tailgate party. The nationally televised 10K and 5K races return to Soldier
Field on Saturday, July 26. Special Olympics Chicago is the race’s charity
partner for the second straight year.

New this year, Chicago’s World Famous Garrett Popcorn Shops® is offering a

certificate for a
One Gallon Tin of the Chicago Mix to each of the
first 1,500 runners who sign up for the race.

Last year, a record-breaking 13,000 runners participated from 43 states and five different countries. This year’s race is expected to sell out, so runners are encouraged to sign up early.Fleet Feet Sports is producing the race for the third straight year.

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Those who register before July 1 are guaranteed an official race shirt in their favorite school’s colors.
The race shirts are available in each of the 14

Big Ten school colors, including the University of Maryland and Rutgers

University, which officially join the Big Ten on July 1.

“Big Ten fans
have so much pride in their schools that they will travel from far and wide to kick
off the football season,” said Erin Harvego,
BTN vice president of marketing. “The
BTN Big 10K really captures and magnifies that spirit, and brings Big Ten fans
together in a way that no other event does. 

That’s the reason the race has become the fastest growing in the
region.”

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The course begins on the Soldier Field campus and
takes runners down Chicago’s lakefront. In a departure from previous years, the
planned finish line will actually be integrated into the Tailgate Party, so
runners will be greeted by cheering spectators as they cross it. Runners will
also be accompanied by BTN talent, former Big Ten greats, school cheerleaders

and mascots, and the popular BTN2Go “mini-mascots” also will make an

appearance. The waterslide, also a fan favorite, returns as well. 

The 10K will include participation by top area runners as well as many former varsity student-athletes
from Big Ten schools.  Awards
and cash prizes will be presented to the top five male and female 10K finishers
overall. This year there will be an additional cash prize for the top male and
female runners who are also alumni of a Big Ten University. Prizes also will be
awarded to runners who show the most school spirit through festive costumes and
school-inspired accessories. Every finisher of the 10K or 5K will receive an

official BTN Big10K commemorative medal, which this year will feature a new

design.

The event will be followed by a Tailgate party,
which will include music, football-themed games and activities, such as corn
hole, field goal kicking and the 50-yard dash, as well as appearances by BTN
talent and former Big Ten athletes. Also, the Tailgate party will include tents
hosted by the Chicago Big Ten Alumni Associations and food and beverage
concessions. Each race finisher 21 and older will also receive a free beer.



Registration for adults is $48 for the 10K and $38 for the 5K. For children 12

and under, registration is $25 for the 5K. For all information on the BTN Big

10K, go to: www.BTNBig10K.com. Like the BTN Big 10K on Facebook

for event details and race updates.

About
BTN
:

A joint venture between the Big Ten Conference and Fox Networks, BTN is the
first internationally distributed network dedicated to covering one of the premier
collegiate conferences in the country. With more than 800 events, all in HD,
the 24/7 network is the ultimate destination for Big Ten fans and alumni across
the country, allowing them to see their favorite teams, regardless of where
they live. BTN2Go is the 24/7 simulcast of BTN that delivers live and on-demand
programming via the internet, smartphones and tablets to customers of
participating video providers. Events include football, men’s and women’s
basketball games; dozens of Big Ten Olympic sports and championship events;
studio shows; and classic games. The network televises and streams more Olympic
sporting events and women’s sports than has ever been aired on any other
network. Original programming highlights activities and accomplishments of some
of the nation’s finest universities. The groundbreaking Student U initiative
provides real-world experience for students interested in careers in sports
television. The network is in more than 52 million homes across the United
States and Canada, including carriage by all the major video distributors, such

as DIRECTV, DISH, Verizon FiOS, AT&T U-Verse, Charter Communications,

Comcast Xfinity, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, Cox Communications, Mediacom,
RCN, WOW!, Rogers Cable, Shaw and Shaw Direct (Canada) and approximately 300
additional video providers across North America. For

additional information, go to www.BTN.com

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