The men's and women's Long Distance Running Committees have announced the 2005 U.S. team for the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships. This year's event will be hosted in Edmonton, Canada on October 1. The championships will offer a total of $192,500 in prize money.

Each team will consist of five athletes with the top three athletes scoring. The athletes were selected based on performances at the USA championships for the half marathon, 20 km and 25 km.

Men:

Ryan Shay, 26, East Jordan, Mich. - The three-time defending USA Running Circuit (USARC) Champion, Shay has won five USA road titles, including this year's USA 15 km Championships. Shay recently finished second at the USA 20 km Championships and third at the USA 5 km Championships. He was also the third American finisher at the 2005 B.A.A. Boston Marathon.

Jason Hartman, 24, Boulder, Colo. - The third-place finisher at the 2005 USA 20 km Championships, Hartman is a former high school team-mate of American standout Dathan Ritzenhein. Hartman moved to Boulder earlier this year to train with Ritzenhein under his coach Brad Hudson.

Matt Downin, 28, Norwood, N.J. - A two-time Big 10 Cross Country champion, Downin finished fourth at this year's USA 20 km Championships. He has also turned in top-ten finishes at the USA 15 km and 10 Mile Championships.

Jason Lehmkuhle, 27, Minneapolis, Minn. - This will be Lehmkuhle's third Team USA in 2005. He recently finished 40th at the IAAF World Championships marathon, running 2:22:46. Hr also competed at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, where he finished as the fifth man for the U.S. team.

Mike Morgan, 25, Rochester Hills, Mich. -The newest addition to the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project, Morgan has turned in top-ten 10 at three USA Championships in 2005, including eighth-place finishes at both the USA 20 km and Half Marathon Championships.

Women:

Jenny Spangler,42, Lake Villa, Ill. - The 1996 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon champion, Spangler also holds the U.S. Masters marathon record of 2:32:38, set at the 2004 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon. She was fourth at the USA 25 km Championships held in Grand Rapids, Mich. in May.

Laura Turner, 26, Tacoma, Wash. - A member of the 2005 Team USA Cross Country squad, Turner made her road racing debut this summer with a fourth-place finish at the USA 20 km Championships, earning her a spot on the U.S. team for Edmonton.

Michelle La Fleur, 33, Savannah, Ga. -A past member of two U.S. Ekiden relay teams, La Fleur finished tenth at the USA 20 km Championships. She is a two-time Olympic Trials Marathon qualifier and five-time NCAA Division III All-American.

Stephanie Bylander, 22, Alamosa, Colo. - A 10-time NCAA Div. II All- American at Adams State, Bylander was seventh at the USA 20 km Championships on Labor Day before coming back to place eighth at the USA 5 km Championships the following weekend.

Dot McMahan, 28, Rochester Hills, Mich. - A runner for 19 years, McMahan represented the U.S. at the 2004 Niigata Ekiden Relay. A former 800 meter and 1500 meter specialist, she recently finished ninth at the USA 20 km Championships.

Team Leaders: Allan Steinfeld and Joy Smith

For more information on the 14th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships visit www.usatf.org.