LITTLE ROCK – Little Rock's 2018 season continues Saturday with the yearly trip to northwest Arkansas for the 30th Annual Chile Pepper Festival, held at Agri Park in Fayetteville.
30th Annual Chile Pepper Festival Information
Hosted by the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, the annual event has become one of the premier running events in the United States with over 80 collegiate teams expected to participate. The race begins with the men's 8K at 9:30 a.m., followed by the women's 5K at 10:20 a.m.
In last year's event, the Trojan men placed 20th overall and 10th among Division I schools, led by
Isaac Lalang placing 25th and
Emilio Medina finishing 109th in the individual standings. On the women's side, Little Rock placed 17th overall and ninth among Division I participants with Shanieke Watson finishing 20th and
Vianney Sanchez placing 74th.
Little Rock is coming off a strong showing at the Central Arkansas Cross Country Challenge two weeks ago in Conway as both the Trojan men and women placed second. Watson was the women's individual champion, en route to being named the Sun Belt Conference Runner of the Week, with
Ricardo Banks II leading the men with a 10th-place finish.
Beginning in 1988, the Chili Pepper Festival brings runners of all ages together for a celebration of running each year. In addition to the collegiate races, there are races at the high school, youth and open levels as in 2017, the event drew approximately 6,500 runners and over 6,000 spectators.
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