NATIONAL DISTANCE RUNNING HALL OF FAME UNVEILS COMMEMORATIVE
POSTER BY ACCLAIMED SPORTS ARTIST, ANDREW YELENAK

July 11, 2002 (Utica, New York) – The National Distance Running Hall of Fame
unveils the 2002 Induction Commemorative poster, created by artist, Andrew Yelenak.
The first 2,000 people in the door at the induction ceremony on Saturday, July 13 at 5 p.m.
at the Stanley Performing Arts will receive the poster, which honors this year’s inductees.
The ceremony is free and open to the public, and people are encouraged to come early to receive
their poster, which can be autographed by inductees after the ceremony.

Painted and illustrated by nationally renowned freelance artist Andrew Joseph Yelenak,
of North Haven, Connecticut, the print features the portraits of 2002 inductees Bill Bowerman,
Doris Brown Heritage, John J. Kelley and Browning Ross, as well as depictions of Heritage,
Kelley and Ross in action. The poster took the entire month of May to complete, and Yelenak
used mainly black and white photographs as a basis for the portraits.

Though he claimed some of the portraits were easier to complete than others, portraiture nevertheless
is his favorite kind of art to do, and he gave this project a special touch. "I always like doing portraits,"
Yelenak said, "And I’ve become good friends with Johnny Kelley, so it was rewarding to play a
role in his induction."

For more than two decades, Yelenak’s work has appeared in a number of national publications,
including Digest Magazine and Spalding Sports Worldwide, and has been exhibited at the Society
of Illustrators in New York and Dallas. The 45-year-old Yelenak was the designer of the 2001 and
2002 25th Anniversary Boilermaker 15K Road Race posters as well. His "A Boston Legacy" print
was exhibited at the Boston Association’s "The Race Through History" showcase for the Boston
Marathon’s 100th anniversary. His work has been highly acclaimed, and a painting he created of
Michael Jordan won the 1997 Beckett Sports Art Gallery National Contest.

In addition to the artwork he has done for a multitude of organizations, Yelenak has been a devoted
runner himself since 1974, and will be running his second Boilermaker this year.

The National Distance Running Hall of Fame, located in Utica, New York, was established in 1998
to honor the sport of distance running and the athletes who have made contributions to the sport.
From top runners and the most decorated athletes, to those who pushed the sport’s barriers and
eventually broke them, the Hall of Fame honors their talents, initiative and drive through the pictures,
memorabilia and awards that decorate the exhibit rooms and pull the visitor into the runner’s
world, a place often inhabited by the runner who alone, challenges and pushes the human spirit.
The Hall of Fame celebrates the sport’s greatest moments and bestows the highest honor of
outstanding athletes – induction into the Hall of Fame – during an annual ceremony held in
conjunction with the Boilermaker Road Race during Hall of Fame Weekend in Utica, New York.