4 I FRIDAY, OCT. 15, 2010 Race to kick-start THON By Megan Rogers COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER Some students may don cos tumes a few weeks early this year not in an attempt to snag some free candy, but to celebrate the spirit of THON. A Nittany Lion and a robot may be present at Sunday's race and there's no real limit on what to expect at the 10th annual Interfraternity Council/Panhell enic Dance Marathon 5K THON Special Events Overall Chairwoman Mary Dowd said. She said she even heard a rumor some Blue Band members may run in full uniform. The THON 5K is the first big THON-sponsored event of the year, THON Public Relations Overall Chairwoman Jony Rommel said and a glimpse of what THON weekend is actually like. This is the first year the THON 5K will begin at the Bryce Jordan Center, the dance marathon's home during THON weekend. The starting line has moved from near the Intramural Building fields to the BJC. Because of how large the event Walk to benefit heart research By Danae Blasso FOR THE COLLEGIAN When beauty pageant winner Sophia Medairy walks this Saturday: she won't be walking down a runway in high heels. Instead. Medairy the 2010 Miss Teen Pennsylvania International will walk in the 2010 Centre County Heart Walk. The three-mile walk will take place Saturday afternoon, and its proceeds will go to health educa tion to prevent heart disease in future generations. The American Heart Association is holding the event at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The no-fee registration begins at noon, and the walk kicks off at 1 p.m. "This event raises funds to fight heart disease and stroke," said Rachel Zacharie, division director of the Central Susquehanna Valley/Centre Division of the American Heart Association. Zacharie said The association uses money from the walk to pro vide free public places, walking trails, better nutrition and better education in schools. Medairy said the disease hits close to home. If you go What -HON 5K When: 11:30 a.m. Sunday Where: The race starts at the Bryce Jordan Center. Details: Fun run is $l5; race with timing chip is $lB. Students may register at thon.org. has grown, a location move was needed, Dowd (senior-journal ism) said. People come out to the event decked out in all sorts of cos tumes, Rommel (senior-philoso phy) said. Overall, it's a colorful event. "You definitely feel the THON spirit around," she said. Rommel said some costumes are funny while others are just touching. Last year, she saw a THON child dressed up in a lion costume, which she said sums up to her what THON is all about. Eddy Barringer (freshman engineering) said he's excited to see what all of the hype is about. He's planning on running the If you go What: Centre County Heart Walk When: 1 p.m. Saturday Where: The walk starts at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park Details: The walk is open to the public. "My grandmother died in 2005 of congestive heart failure. I want to teach children how to prevent themselves from being prone to getting heart disease," she said. "It's a very preventable disease." Medairy isn't the only one impacted by heart disease and its effects. Jordyn Colao (junior-biobehav ioral health), the 2009 Miss Teen Pennsylvania International, also worked with the American Heart Association. "It's great to spread aware ness because people don't know the risks for heart disease," Colao said. "People don't know the symptoms and they need to know when to get help." Many survivors will also walk for the cause, Colao said. "There will be tons of survivors LOCAL race with THON special interest group Pillar. The largest 5K in Central Pennsylvania is hoping to contin ue to grow in size, Rommel said. "THON events grow so much from year to year," Rommel said. "We're definitely hoping to have a big turnout on Sunday." Registrations for the THON 5K are only 650 less than last year's record-breaking 5,150, Dowd said. About 4,500 runners have signed up for the race so far, she said but registration will be open up until the start of the race. By noon on Monday all of the runner bags had been claimed, Rommel said. That's the norm for the popular race, she said. But those who didn't get a THON runner bag with the THON 5K T-shirt aren't out of luck For the first time ever, t-shirts will be sold at the race for $lO, Dowd said. Even if it doesn't have more registrants than last year, the race's spirit will continue to climb in size, Dowd said. To e-mail reporter: mers2oo@psu.edu and a lot of them are little chil dren that were born with congen ital disease," Colao said. "Even though they struggle with it throughout their lives, they have a huge future ahead of them." Zacharie said the American Heart Association works with local health care providers to educate them regarding medical advances and new treatment guidelines. "We work with many of the businesses in the community to not only support the AHA, but also support awareness," Zacharie said. The top sponsors for the event Mount Nittany Medical Center and the Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union will have educational materials on heart disease and stroke avail able. "It's a day to promote aware ness of cardiovascular disease, - Zacharie said. "It's the No. 1 killer" The American Heart Association invests $132 million nationwide for research of heart disease and strokes. "You're walking for something you can't see, but still touches you in your life," Medairy said. Kelsey Morris /Collegian Leah Levine (freshman- biological anthropology) throws a ball past Tim Gonzalez (freshman -physics) during Quidditch practice. Students to swoop to Quidditch Cup There's still hope for Penn State students who have always dreamed of winning the Quidditch World Cup. Penn State's Three Broomsticks Quidditch team will travel to Philadelphia Saturday to compete against 10 other teams for the Philadelphia Brotherly Love Cup at Chestnut Hill College sponsored by the International Quidditch Association. Three Broomsticks President Megan Seidel (junior-telecommu nications) is such a diehard fan of the Harry Potter books that the club had an influence on her deci sion to attend Penn State. I found out about the club when I was researching colleges and instantly knew I was going to join," Seidel said. Bianca Bancroft's love for Harry Potter has even extended to her pets. ve been obsessed with Harry Potter forever, so when I heard about the club at my FTCAP I immediately knew I had to join." Bancroft (freshman-histo ry) said. "I even named my dog Luna." The International Quidditch Association began as an intramu ral league at Middlebury College, and the first Quidditch commis sioner altered the magical ele ments from J.K Howling's "Harry Potter" series to make the game playable on ground, Magical Games Committee head Mary Beth Henry said. gnrealty.com -119 S. Burrowes St.- (814)238-1878 By Jessica Tully FOR THE COLLEGIAN THE DAILY COLLEGIAN There are more than 400 colle giate and 300 high school teams in the International Quidditch Association. Henry (junior-theatre design and technology) said. But the Quidditch rules have been altered for Muggles. - Basically, the chasers play bas ketball, the beaters play dodge ball, and the seeker plays hide and-seek." she said. "It's three games in one which is what makes it so fub because we can change positions and play a new game within the same game." Quidditch features one cross country runner playing the role of the golden snitch. The runner has a sock attached to his body at all times, and he must keep away from the seeker, who is trying to end the game by "catching the snitch," Henry said. Staying true to the book, there are three chasers who try to shoot the quaffle through one of three hoops, and a keeper who tries to defend the hoops. There are also two beaters who throw dodgeballs at their opponents to help their team's chasers keep the quaffle, Henry said. Players must have a broom between their legs or their team does not receive any of the points they had.scored. Currently. the Penn State Quidditch team plays pick-up games on Mondays, Thursdays and Sundays on the lawn behind Old Main. Henry said she is hop ing to play inter-house games between the 80 members of Penn State's Quidditch chapters. Office Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30-5 Sat 11-4
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