Peter Gilmore courtesy New York Road Runners
For America’s best distance runners, the road to Beijing loops through Central Park on Saturday with the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in the men’s marathon. The top three finishers will qualify for the Summer Olympics next August in China. The 26.2-mile race begins in Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center – shown live on the Today show (Nov. 3, 7:35 am/ET on NBC) – and after a brief trip through midtown (right past the TV Guide offices!), the runners will enter Central Park for five five-mile loops. The race will stream live at nbcolympics.com and a televised highlight show airs later Saturday at 2 pm/ET, on NBC.
Though marathons can be unpredictable, the pre-race favorite is Meb Keflezighi, who won the silver medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004. Others to watch include:
• Abdi Abdirahman, who earlier this year won U.S. 10,000-meter titles on both the track and the roads.
• Defending Olympic Trials champion Alan Culpepper won his third national cross-country title in February.
• Ryan Hall is the reigning national half-marathon champion. He ran 2:08:24 at the London marathon in the spring, the fastest debut ever by an American.
• Moroccan-born Khalid Khannouchi is a former world-record holder in the event (2:05:38). A U.S. citizen since 2000, injuries have kept him from top form.
• Dark horse Peter Gilmore is the least flashy of the main contenders, but he’s certainly consistent, having finished in the top 10 at the Boston marathon the past three years.
On Sunday NBC will also air highlights from the New York City Marathon, which follows a different course (Nov. 4, 3 pm/ET).
UPDATE: A spectacular display of distance running was overshadowed Saturday by the tragic news that one of the athletes, 28-year-old Ryan Shay, collapsed and died after running just over 5 miles of the race. The cause is still unknown.
I was in the post-race press conference when New York Road Runners president Mary Wittenberg tearfully announced the news, and it truly heartbreaking and surreal. This is not something you expect to happen to a world-class athlete. Shay was the 2001 NCAA champion at 10,000 meters for Notre Dame, and had won five national titles in road racing.
Ryan Hall, a close friend of Shay's, looked invincible in winning the race. He made a powerful surge just before the 17-mile mark, and went on to win in 2 hours, 9 minutes and 2 seconds. It wasn't until after the race that Hall learned of Shay's death. "I've trained with him, he inspired me," Hall said. "I will dedicate my race in Beijing to him and [his wife] Alicia and his family."
Finishing second and third were Dathan Ritzenhein (2:11:07) and Brian Sell (2:11:40), who will join Hall on the Olympic team.
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Edited by Rich Sands at 11/04/2007 4:33 PM
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