April 12, 2005
Cheyenne, Wyo.
As aging athletes continue to race and compete in a variety of
sports, Wyoming ultrarunner Katy Cotton believed that they should
have a resource to make their dreams to compete internationally come
true. Cotton established the International Masters Athletics
Foundation to recognize the commitment, talent, and effort of
masters athletes by assisting those who demonstrate a financial need
to participate in their sport in significant ways such as competing
at championship events.
IMAF, a charitable corporation with its
headquarters in Cotton’s hometown of Cheyenne, Wyo was formed to
support and promote masters athletics, athletes, and teams to help
fund the expense of entering and traveling to national and
international championships or other significant forms of
competition. IMAF accepts tax exempt donations from contributors who
want to support masters teams and athletes and then distributes 100%
of those contributions to masters athletes who request support from
IMAF.
Ultrarunners aspiring to run on USA Track & Field Masters 100K
Team competing at the 2005 World Masters Athletics 100K may be the
first request for financial support from the newly established IMAF.
Explaining her motivation for establishing the IMAF, Cotton says,
“Running for the US at the WMA 100K world championship in 2003
proved the need for a foundation supporting masters athletics.”
Thirty-nine year old Cotton is in her “in-between” years. When she
races in the US she competes with ultrarunners in the 39-year old
and under category known as the open division and has one more year
before she is eligible to run in the masters category with runners
who are 40 years old and better. In international ultra racing, the
masters age division begins at 35 years old.
IMAF Board
of Directors, Wyoming based:
Kathryn E. Cotton,
President
imaf_inc@yahoo.com
Shannyn Adkins, Secretary
sadkins@uwyo.edu
Dana Lowe, Treasurer
dlowe@wyaudit.state.wy.us
David Pope
davidpope@qwest.net
Leslie O'Hashi
oglass@aol.com
Sandy Dearinger
sandear36@aol.com
