PROVIDENCE -- Spectators lining the streets of Providence to watch the CVS/pharmacy Downtown 5K on Sept. 17 will want to pay close attention to the women's race.

There will be a number of interesting subplots within that event, and two of the women who should be at the center of the action are former Providence College All-Americans Amy Rudolph and Marie Davenport, who both began their Olympic running careers here and continue to develop their talents on the streets of Providence.

"I can't believe it's been a year already," said Rudolph, who will be seeking her first overall crown here, while also attempting to defend her American title at the race, which once again will serve as the USA Women's 5K Championship. "I'm really looking forward to the race and all that the race has to offer. The list goes on and on, and I'm just really excited to be a part of it. . . . I've been coming to this race since I graduated from Providence [in 1995], and it just gets bigger and better every year."

Rudolph -- who turns 33 the day after the Downtown 5K, which this year will feature a series of wave starts beginning at 11:15 a.m. -- is coming off an extremely successful summer. A two-time U.S. Olympian (1996 and 2000) in the 5,000 meters, she let coach Ray Treacy and her training partners convince her that it was time to try her luck at a longer distance, and it turned out to be a wise decision.

After finishing as the first American at the Circle of Friends New York Mini 10K (32:34), Rudolph captured her first U.S. Outdoor title, winning the 10,000 meters in 32:25.56 at the USATF Outdoor Championships in Indianapolis later that month.

She was the top American in her debut at the 34th annual Falmouth Road Race last month, finishing fifth overall in the 7-miler with a time of 37:02.

"Right now, I'm really just trying to have fun," said Rudolph, who expects to receive her stiffest competition for the U.S. 5K title from 2004 Olympian Carrie Tollefson, but should also be challenged by Sara Hall and Jenelle Deatherage, among others. "We're still training, but we're trying not to stress and really enjoy it because this is the time of year where we can really sort of let our hair down and relax and enjoy the running and not be worried about making teams and times and things like that. So that's kind of where we are right now. Marie is really fit and I'm just trying to hang onto her right now."

Davenport followed up last year's third-place finish (15:45.3) at the Downtown 5K with a second attempt at the ING New York City Marathon in November.

The two-time Irish Olympian -- who drives from her home in Chester, Conn., twice a week to train with Rudolph -- then spent the winter dealing with issues of low iron levels, as well as a series of nagging injuries, and never quite got her racing off the ground this year.

The 31-year-old says she's been on a bit of an upswing in recent weeks, though, which she hopes will translate into a successful outing at the Providence race and perhaps even a third crown.

Russian Olga Kravtsova spoiled Davenport's chance at a three-peat last September, going out hard and never letting up, en route to a winning time of 15:42.2.

The 25-year-old runner from Belarus will be back to try to successfully defend her title, but Davenport hopes to prevent a repeat of that scenario now that Kravtsova no longer will have the element of surprise on her side.

"She's definitely in phenomenal shape, so she's definitely the one to watch," said Davenport, who also will be keeping her eye on Meskerem Legesse, who represented Ethiopia at the 2004 Summer Games. "But last year we really didn't know who she was, Amy and I, and we thought she was going to come back to us. We didn't realize that she was such a great runner, so I think this year we'll be more wary and not give her a big gap. Hopefully, we can give her a good race and not let her run away with it."

For information about registering for the CVS/pharmacy Downtown 5K or the series of children's races, which will be held prior to the 5K beginning at 8 a.m., log on to http://www.cvsdowntown5k.com, e-mail help@cvsdowntown5k.com or call the race hotline at (401) 751-7287.

cthorn@projo.com / (401) 277-7340