CAPE ELIZABETH – The TD Bank Beach to Beacon is coming to Cape Elizabeth next week, and the field of elite runners has just added some of the running world’s most recognizable names.

Ethiopia’s Catherine Ndereba and Khalid Khannouchi, two of the hottest road racers in the world have entered the field for the Aug. 7 race.

However, Ndereba and Khannouchi, who are a couple when they are not racing, are not the only late additions to an already-packed field of elite runners coming to Cape Elizabeth.

The other additions include: Gebre Gebremariam, 25, of Ethiopia. Well-known for his sprinter’s kick, in May he ran the fastest-ever 10K in Central Park (27:42) at the UAE Healthy Kidney 10K. The 2009 IAAF world cross country champ, also finished fourth at 5,000 meters in the 2004 Athens Olympics, Gebremariam is currently ranked 14th in the world by Running Times.

In keeping with the theme of elite couples running in Cape this year, Gebremariam will be joined at the race by his wife, Worknesh Kidane, 28, a former world Cross Country champion and world championship track. She took third at the NYRR New York Mini 10K in June and won the Great Manchester Run (31:19) in England in May.

Ndereba and Khannouchi, household names in the running world, are making their return to the TD Bank Beach to Beacon after long absences.

Ndereba, 38, a Kenyan running legend and two-time Olympic marathon silver medalist known as “Catherine the Great”, is a five-time Beach to Beacon champ and former course record holder. She last competed in the race in 2004, ending a remarkable run that included winning five of the first six, including the first four races from 1998-2001.

A four-time BAA Boston Marathon champ, two-time World Champ and former world-record holder, Ndereba won silver medals in the marathon at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics.

“It’s going to be really special to see Catherine back in the TD Bank Beach to Beacon,” said Larry Barthlow, the race’s elite athlete coordinator in a release. “She started winning our race right at the point that her running career really skyrocketed. I know she enjoys coming to Maine, and she is extremely popular here.”

The TD Bank Beach to Beacon also holds special meaning for Khannouchi, also 38, who won the 1999 race in 27:48 as a Moroccan, then returned to Maine a year later to compete in his very first race after gaining U.S. citizenship. Like Ndereba, he last took part in the TD Bank Beach to Beacon in 2004.

A former world record holder in the marathon and four-time Chicago Marathon champ who still holds the American marathon record (2:05:38), Khannouchi is on the comeback trail after a series of injuries, including foot surgeries, derailed his career. He hasn’t run competitively since 2008.

“We know our race holds a special place in Khalid’s heart as he ran here first as an American citizen, and we’re really happy to have him back as he continues his climb back into competitive racing,” Barthlow said. “He is a true legend in this sport.”