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‘Las Vegas Great Santa Run’ Announces Race Day Fun in Downtown Las Vegas Dec. 7

Santa Claus is coming downtown Saturday, December 7, as the ninth annual Las Vegas Great Santa Run raises funds and awareness for Opportunity Village and its unparalleled programs. 

Las Vegans can still register to be a part of history as Grand Marshal Shania Twain leads thousands of red-suited racers to the streets for a 5K run and one-mile Kris Kringle Jingle walk to support the beloved non-profit.

Register today at LasVegasSantaRun.org; individual racers: $40, adult teams: $35/runner, children: $25.

Now an official Nevada 150 event, the race course will begin under the glowing overhead screens of Fremont Street Experience and continue throughout downtown, passing a number of landmarks and some of Las Vegas’ most captivating architecture. The 2013 race will be bigger and better than ever as local businesses join Opportunity Village to spread the spirit of giving:

• TEAM SHANIA: As Grand Marshal, country superstar Shania Twain will welcome participants and announce the start of the race. The headliner of SHANIA: STILL THE ONE at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace also is captain of Team Shania, which fans are encouraged to join and raise funds to reach the following incentives:
  • $50 – Official Team Shania T-Shirt
  • $250 – Access to Team Shania VIP Tent with complimentary breakfast; Team Shania T-Shirt
  • $500 – Two tickets to SHANIA:STILL THE ONE; access to Team Shania VIP Tent with complimentary breakfast; Team Shania T-Shirt
  • $1,000 – Two VIP tickets to SHANIA:STILL THE ONE; Meet-and-Greet with Shania after the show; access to Team Shania VIP Tent with complimentary breakfast on day of run; Team Shania T-Shirt
• MUSIC: JERSEY BOYS star Jeff Leibow will lend his vocal talents to commence the race with a rendition of the national anthem. Additionally, creator of the Great Santa Run theme song, George Dare, will lead the crowd in belting out the catchy chorus, “Run, Santa, Run!” DJ Mikey P will get racers pumped up spinning a variety of top hits and Christmas classics.
• DANCE: Participants of the Great Santa Run will be treated to an exciting appearance by the world-famous dance crew, Jabbawockeez, who will perform pulse-pounding numbers from their captivating show PRiSM at Luxor Hotel and Casino. Opportunity Village’s own OV Elvi, the world’s only all Elvis dance troupe, will bring the house down with their interpretation of The King’s greatest hits.
• FOOD TRUCKS: A collection of Las Vegas’ favorite food trucks will satisfy the cravings of hungry racers, including Chi-Town Hustler, Lobster ME and several others.
• SPONSORS: The Great Santa Run’s sponsors will ensure that the fun never stops throughout race day. Zappos will warm cold hands with free pairs of gloves for the thousands of St. Nick lookalikes. To ease aching post-race muscles, Massage Envy will offer complimentary massages. For a quick caffeine boost, runners can grab a cup of coffee from Circle K Convenience Stores, which makes for a perfect pairing with the 75 dozen donuts to be donated by Krispy Kreme. Racers will also find smoothie samples from Jamba Juice, protein shakes from Core Power, hot cocoa from Team NSTech and free swag from Yelp LV and iDocUSA/Dr. Amel Youssef Optometry.
• REGISTRATION: Pre-register for the Great Santa Run at LasVegasSantaRun.org. Participants can register online as an individual racer for $40 or sign up as an adult team for $35 a runner, or sign up day-of for $50. Children can join the festivities for $25; $35 on race day.

The Las Vegas Great Santa Run continues to fight for the reigning title of “World Santa Challenge” champion. This friendly competition takes place between various “Santa Runs” across the globe, in cities including Liverpool, Tasmania and Osaka, to see which race can accrue the most participants. During its nine years in existence, Las Vegas has won the coveted award eight times. In preparation, Opportunity Village’s Associate Executive Director, Linda Smith, will travel across the Atlantic to challenge Las Vegas’ Liverpool rivals, this weekend.