On May 31, New York City Sports Commissioner Kenneth J. Podziba and New York City Department of Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe will welcome the Reebok Grand Prix to Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island. Many of the world's premier track & field athletes will showcase their talents as two dozen Olympic and World Championship gold medalists are scheduled to compete. Headlining the field will be 2004 110-meter hurdles Olympic gold medalist Liu Xiang (CHN), reigning Reebok Grand Prix 100-meter champion Tyson Gay (USA), 2004 Olympic gold medalist Veronica Campbell-Brown (JAM), 2004 Olympic silver medalist Lauryn Williams (USA) as well as 2007 World Championship silver medalist Usain Bolt (JAM). The day's races are scheduled to begin at 5:00pm.

"The buzz surrounding the 2008 Reebok Grand Prix is truly astounding," said Commissioner Podziba. "Mark Wetmore and the Global Athletics staff have outdone themselves this year as they have assembled a competitive field featuring two dozen Olympic and World Championship gold medalists. The demand for tickets is so high that 1,500 additional seats were installed on the back-stretch! Everyone in attendance will surely be glad they came out to get a sneak preview of many of the athletes that will be competing in the Olympic Games later this summer."

"Our state-of-the-art facilities at Icahn Stadium will again host some of the world's greatest athletes during the Reebok Grand Prix," said Parks & Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe. "Only on Randall's Island can New Yorkers see Olympic competitors from around the world challenge records as they jump, vault and race toward the finish line. The Reebok Grand Prix continues a strong tradition of thrilling track & field competition in New York City."

Jamaican sprinter Veronica Campbell-Brown returns to New York as the 100-meter World Champion and the reigning Olympic gold medalist in the 200-meters. Last year, Campbell-Brown ran four of the five fastest 100-meter times in the world, including her victory in the Reebok Grand Prix in 10.93 seconds. American sprinter Lauryn Williams brought home silver from the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan after a photo finish with Campbell-Brown in the 100-meters. Williams is also the 2005 100-meter world champion, 2004 Olympic silver medalist and is a two-time 4x100-meter World Champion. Her rematch with Campbell-Brown in the 100-meter event in New York will be closely watched as a preview of the Olympic final later this summer.

Allyson Felix (USA) will also join Campbell-Brown and Williams in the 100-meter dash, which will likely be the most competitive race of the day. Felix won three gold medals in the 2007 World Championships (200-meter, 4x100-meter relay, 4x400-meter relay), becoming only the second woman to accomplish such a feat. In addition, she is currently ranked #1 in the world in the 200-meters.

"We are proud to be in New York with the Reebok Grand Prix for the fourth year," said meet director Mark Wetmore, president of Global Athletics & Marketing, Inc. "Each year has been more exciting than the last, and with the likes of Tyson Gay, Usain Bolt, Liu Xiang, Veronica Campbell-Brown, Lauryn Williams, Sanya Richards and Jenn Stuczynski, this year will be no exception."

"At this year's Rebook Grand Prix we will see some of the worlds most exciting track and field athletes compete at Icahn Stadium and hopefully break another world record," said Aimee Boden, Executive Director of Randall's Island Sports Foundation. "In addition to the top Olympic competitors that we will host, we are very excited for the Fastest Kid Race where New York Boys and Girls 7-8 years old compete in a 100-meter dash. These young athletes stole the show last year and we are proud to be able to pave the way for the next generations of Olympic stars."

In the 2007 Reebok Grand Prix, American pole vault record-holder Jenn Stuczynski became the first American woman to jump 16 feet. She recently broke her own American record at the adidas Track Classic when she thrilled the crowd with a vault of 16' ¾" inches for the win. The 2008 World Indoor Championships silver medalist also took three tries at the world record (16' 5 ½"), but was unable to clear the bar.

Other female stars scheduled to compete include Montclair, NJ native Lisa Barber, Maryam Yusuf Jamal (Bahrain) and Sanya Richards (USA). Barber, the 2006 60-meter World Indoor Champion, will challenge in the 100-meter dash. Richards, the 2004 Olympic gold medalist in the 4x400-meter relay and three-time US Champion, leads the 400-meter field and Jamal, the reigning 1500-meter world champion, highlights the 1500-meter run.

In 2007, American Tyson Gay became only the second man in history to win World Championship gold medals at 100-meters, 200-meters and the 4x100-meter relay. Last year Gay scorched the Icahn Stadium track winning the 100-meter in 9.76 seconds, which would have broken the world record at the time had it not been for a tailwind (2.2) barely over the legal limit. 21-year-old Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt, who took the 200-meter and 4x100-meter World Championship silver medals behind Gay in the 2007 World Championships, is the 2002 World Junior Champion at 200-meters. He also holds the world junior record of 19.93 seconds in the 200-meters.

Liu Xiang (CHN) is the reigning Olympic gold medalist, world champion and world record-holder in the 110-meter hurdles and will return to Icahn Stadium to defend his hurdles title. Last year, Liu won in a scorching 12.92 seconds which was the fastest time in the world in 2007 and tied for the fourth-fastest time in history. In his only race this year, Liu added the title of World Indoor Champion.

Also among the highlights for this year's race will be several exciting high-school relays including a boys 4x800-meter, a boys 4x100-meter, a girls 4x400-meter and a boys 4x400-meter featuring teams from New York and Jamaica.

The new bleacher seats, along the backstretch with clear views of the finish line, will be available for $15. Grandstand tickets range from $50-$24. Tickets are on sale now by phone at 1-877-TIX-TRAC and at www.reebokgrandprix.com.

For directions to Icahn Stadium, please visit www.reebokgrandprix.com.

Parks & Recreation is the steward of almost 29,000 acres of land--14 percent of New York City--including more than 4,000 individual properties ranging from Yankee Stadium and Central Park to community gardens and Greenstreets. We operate more than 800 athletic fields and nearly 1,000 playgrounds; we manage four major stadiums, 550 tennis courts, 51 public pools, 34 recreation centers, 12 nature centers, 13 golf courses, and 14 miles of beaches; we care for 1,200 monuments and 22 historic house museums; we look after 500,000 street trees, and two million more in parks. We are New York City's principal provider of athletic facilities. We are home to free concerts, world-class sports events, and cultural festivals. For more information about Parks, visit our website: www.nyc.gov/parks.

The New York City Sports Commission is the mayoral agency charged with attracting, facilitating and promoting professional, amateur and scholastic sports events in New York City. The Sports Commission has played an integral role in creating or developing many new sporting events, including the NFL Kickoff Live from Times Square, NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series™ Champions Week, the BMC Software NYC Cycling Championship, the AVP Brooklyn Open, the NAUTICA NYC Triathlon, the NYC Half-Marathon, the Union Square Street Sessions presented by Jeep®, the Wild Onion Urban Adventure Race, and the Men's Health Urbanathlon.