CHICAGO, IL -- Joining The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon's elite women's field are three leading Romanian competitors, it was announced Monday. Olympian Lidia Simon, sub-2:20 threat Constantina Tomescu-Dita and 2002 top10 finisher Nuta Olaru will race in Chicago on Sunday, Oct. 12.

"With the confirmation of our women's elite athlete field this week, we've seen a group of extremely talented athletes come together," said Carey Pinkowski, executive race director for The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon.

"These three runners are the female running stars of Romania. They've shown so well in the international marathon community that I have no doubt they'll shine here in Chicago as well."

Romanian Olympic runner-up and World Champion Lidia Simon, 30, captured three consecutive Osaka International Women's Marathon titles (1998, 1999 and 2000), but she has competed in a range of races -- from 10Ks to half-marathons to marathons -- since the late 1990s. She earned a silver medal in the 2000 Olympic Marathon with a time of 2:23:22. Back racing after the birth of her first child, this year's race will mark her Chicago Marathon debut.

In 2002, Constantina Tomescu-Dita was as hot as anybody on the roads. At the Peachtree 10K, she posted a Romanian record of 31:14 with her second place victory. The following weekend, in Utica, NY, she set another Romanian record of 48:28 for the 15K. Her third Romanian record came at the end of her U.S. road tour with a half-marathon record of 1:08:10. Showing no lapse, she kicked off 2003 with yet another personal best, running 2:23:43 at the London Marathon.

Nuta Olaru, 32, broke through to world-class marathon level with a 2:25:18 personal record in the 2001 London Marathon. Until that race, Olaru's most notable achievements had come at 13.1 miles, with top-five finishes at the 1996 and 1997 World Half-Marathon Championships. Looking to break the 2:30 standard set by the Romanian Federation to qualify for the 2001 World Championships, Olaru ran the London Marathon, where her personal best effort of 2:25:18 secured her a spot on the Romanian team. Olaru closed her 2002 season at The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon with 2:31:37.

Elite athletes will compete this fall for the highest Marathon purse ever, $550,000. The male and female winners each will earn $100,000, the largest first place payout in the sport. The 2003 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon begins Sunday, Oct. 12 at 8 a.m., starting and finishing in Chicago's Grant Park. The Marathon has drawn its registration cap of 40,000 participants. CBS 2 CHICAGO is the official broadcast partner of The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon and will cover the race live from 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. race day.