NEW YORK -- As the clock strikes midnight on December 31, New York Road Runners is kicking off the new year in Central Park with fireworks, a costume contest, and a four-mile fun run for thousands of runners at the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run.

Olympians Ian Dobson and Erin Donohue are among the top athletes expected to race for a prize purse of $2,000, including $500 apiece to the male and female winners. The field also includes Dobson's wife, Julia Lucas, and Team USA Minnesota's Patrick Smyth and Alisa McKaig, in addition to top local runners Abiyot Endale and Genna Tufa on the men's side, and Aziza Aliyu and Lesley Higgins on the women's side.

The men's event record is 18:12, set by Andrew Carlson in 2007. Carmen Douma-Hussar holds the women's event record of 20:54, also set in 2007.

The Emerald Nuts Midnight Run, a Central Park tradition since 1978, offers runners and spectators a fun and healthy way to celebrate the New Year, just blocks north of the crowds in Times Square. The Emerald Nuts Midnight Run promises to be one of the most distinctive, cost-effective parties in all of Manhattan.

"The Emerald Nuts Midnight Run has become a New Year's Eve destination for thousands of runners and spectators," said Mary Wittenberg, president and CEO of New York Road Runners. "It has a dedicated crowd that gathers each year for one of the most active New Year's Eve parties in New York City."

"We're proud to be the title sponsor of the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run," said Jeff Ngo, Director of Marketing at Diamond Foods. "We're excited to help people start the year off right with a source of natural energy. This is part of our commitment to promoting active and healthy lifestyles."