Also, Russian Liliya Shobukhova, two-time World Marathon Majors series champion and an early favorite for the Olympic Marathon in London has withdrawn from the Half after a hamstring injury.
Curtis, former NCAA champion, is from Ardmore, PA, and is now the seventh-fastest American ever in the 10,000 meter after running 27:24.67, finishing second in the Stanford Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational, April 2011. His best time in the half-marathon is 1:01:52 was set in September 2011.
Thompson was the silver medalist for the 10,000 meter at the 2010 European Athletics Championships in Barcelona. He ran the third-fastest time in British history, 27:27.36 for 10,000 meters at the 2011 Stanford Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational. The NYC Half will be Thompson's debut at this distance.
The NYC Half will begin at 7:00 a.m. March 18, and will be broadcast live on WABC-TV and the New York Road Runners website:
LINK: tv.nyrr.org
