Oct. 12, 2004
FORT WORTH, Texas - Championship Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway on Sunday, Oct. 17, will take its cue from a pair of 2004 Olympic champions who will give the command to start the Indy Racing League IndyCar Series Chevy 500k. Baylor junior gold medalist Jeremy Wariner and gold-medal swimmer Dana Vollmer will serve as the Grand Marshals for the season-ending IRL race at The Great American Speedway.
"Having Dana and Jeremy as our Grand Marshals for the Chevy 500k is a great tribute to the champions they are," speedway president Eddie Gossage said. "We are proud to have these two great Texas athletes be a part of Championship Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway."
Wariner turned in his personal best time of 44.00 seconds to win the 400 meters at the Olympic Games. He helped the USA to a 1-2-3 sweep of the medals in that event. Wariner, a junior at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, replaces track legend Michael Johnson as the schools 400m record holder. He also won a gold medal in Athens in the 1600 meter relay, teaming with Otis Harris, Derrick Brew, and Baylor teammate and NCAA champion relay anchor Darold Williamson to post a winning time of 2:55.91, just fractions off the Olympic record of 2:55.74.
Vollmer swam the third leg on the United States 800 meter relay team that set a world record in winning gold in Athens with a time of 7:53.42. The 16-year-old from Granbury, Texas, swam the second fastest time of the American quartet (1:58.12) in the race. The foursome of Natalie Coughlin, Carly Piper, Vollmer, and Kaitlin Sandeno broke a world record that had stood since 1987.
On Sunday, Vollmer and Wariner will tour the IRL garage, meet with media and drivers, sign autographs for fans, and then take part in pre-race events, including giving the command to start the Chevy 500k.
Tickets for the Chevy 500k and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Silverado 350k (Oct. 16) can be purchased by calling the speedway ticket hotline at (817) 215-8500, online at www.texasmotorspeedway.com, or through participating Ticketmaster outlets.
