Steelers safety Ryan Clark and former wide receiver Louis Lipps will chair the 25th Annual Gatorade/Steelers 5K Race, Fitness Walk and Kids' Kickoff Run on Saturday, August 31, at 9 a.m. at Heinz Field. The race benefits the Art Rooney Scholarship Fund.
Online registration, presented by Dick's Sporting Goods, is available by clicking on steelers.com/5k. Paper applications can be requested by calling (412) 697-7713 or by emailing 5K@steelers.nfl.com.
Clark, the Steelers' 2012 Walter Payton Man of the Year, is entering his 12th NFL season, and his eighth in Pittsburgh. Undrafted in 2002, Clark played two years for the New York Giants and two years for the Washington Redskins, before joining the Steelers in 2006. Clark was a member of the Steelers' Super Bowl XLIII squad and has started 94 of the 95 games he has played in Pittsburgh. He finished third on the team with 106 tackles in 2012 and has 13 career interceptions.
Lipps, the 23rd overall pick in the 1984 NFL Draft, played nine years in the NFL, the first eight coming with Pittsburgh. Despite playing his last season with the Steelers in 1991, Lipps still ranks as one of the most prolific receivers in franchise history. Lipps ranks fourth in team history with 358 career receptions and third on the Steelers' all-time receiving yards list with 6,018. His 12 touchdown receptions in the 1985 season are tied for the most in a single season in team history.
Participants will gather in front of the Heinz Field Press Gate entrance on North Shore Drive. The course will follow North Shore to General Robinson Street to River Avenue, heading back to Heinz Field along General Robinson to Reedsdale Street. Runners and walkers will enter the stadium at Gate 5 to cross the finish line at midfield on the warning track. To accommodate the anticipated large crowd, the race will employ a wave start.
Gatorade is the title sponsor of the race. Major sponsors include Giant Eagle, Dick's Sporting Goods, Fuel Up to Play 60, Nike, KDKA-TV 2, WDVE-FM, ESPN Radio 970 and UPMC Centers for Rehab Services.
The Art Rooney Scholarship Fund was established in memory of the late founder of the Steelers, who died in August of 1988 after living most of his life on the North Side. A $12,000 scholarship in Art Rooney's name is presented annually to a graduating senior from the high schools on the North Side — Perry (two scholarships) and North Catholic. Since its beginning, the scholarship has awarded grants to more than 70 local students.
