Sports in brief: Several events for runners

Cross country: Dathan Ritzenhein, the American record holder at 5,000 meters and 2008 Olympian in the marathon, headlines a running symposium tonight at 7 at the Lewis and Clark High School auditorium in conjunction with the USA Cross Country Championships this weekend at Plantes Ferry Park.

The free event will be hosted by Gonzaga University track and cross country coach Pat Tyson and will include other runners competing in Saturday’s races.

Another free event open to the public on Friday is a 7 p.m. talk at the Mirabeau Park Hotel by Billy Mills (pictured), the 1964 gold medalist at 10,000 meters.

Saturday’s races begin at 9 a.m. with the Erik Anderson Community 4K honoring the late Community Colleges of Spokane coach, followed by masters, junior and open championship races.

Golf: The 2010 Spokane Golf Show, featuring the Bridgestone Golf Ball Fitting Challenge and expert advice from local pros, is Feb. 20-21 at the Spokane Convention Center.

Professionals from Bridgestone will be on hand to custom fit the ball that fits your game using the same technology that they use with PGA Tour professionals to optimize ball speed, launch angle and spin rates.

The golf seminar stage returns with Bob Heck from The Creek at Qualchan and teaching pro Kathy Jensen from Deer Park.

Every adult paid admission will receive three free rounds of golf from a variety of courses.

There will be golf seminars, retailers, area and regional golf courses and new equipment on display.

Children younger than 12 receive a free golf club from the PGA Clubs for Kids Program while supplies last (first 1,000).

The show runs from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Feb. 20 and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Feb. 21.

Tickets are available at TicketsWest outlets or online at spokanegolfshow.com.

Women’s basketball: “Pink Zone,” an annual effort by the Women’s Basketball Association to raise breast cancer awareness, takes place Friday through Feb. 21 with area teams also taking part.

More than 1,250 college teams participate by having a game in which the primary color is pink – uniforms, shoe laces, T-shirts for players and fans or pink whistles for referees.

Last year’s Pink Zone games raised more than $1.3 million.

Local Pink Zone games include Hawaii at Idaho on Saturday at 2 p.m.; Stanford at Washington State on Sunday at noon; Loyola Marymount at Gonzaga on Feb. 18 at 7 p.m.; and Northern Arizona at Eastern Washington on Feb. 19 at 7 p.m.