Today’s London Marathon featured another stellar field that was arguably the deepest race outside of the Olympics. According to press notes, the London Marathon was televised in 160 countries to well over a million viewers, none of which were in the United States.
To watch the race live in the U.S. fans had to get up at 4 a.m. and get on the Internets to check it out. Or, watch the tape delay here where *SPOILER ALERT* Kenyan Martin Lel outlasted American Khalid Khannouchi, world-record holder Paul Tergat, all-time great Haile Gebrselassie, Olympic gold medalist Stefano Baldini, two-time world champion Jaouad Gharib, and NYC champs Hendrick Ramaala and Marilson Gomes dos Santos. Lel won in 2:07:41 over Abderrahim Goumri of Morocco in his marathon debut in 2:07:44, and last year's champion, Felix Limo of Kenya, was third in 2:07:47. Lel lost to Limo in a sprint finish last year.
Afterwards, Lel said the marathon was one of the most tactical he had ever raced.
But for fans of American marathoning, the 2007 London Marathon could be a watershed moment. Why? Two words:
Hall, just 24, ran the fastest debut marathon for an American ever by clocking a 2:08:24 for seventh place. He was 18 seconds behind Tergat and 30 seconds behind two-time world champion Jaouad Gharib.
It was the fastest marathon ever run by a someone born in the United States.
Most impressively, Hall (a 2006 Stanford grad who trains in Big Bear, Calif. with Deena Kastor and Meb Keflezighi as well as former local elite runner Terrance Mahon) not only ran in the lead pack until the final mile and a half of the race, but he also actually took the lead at the 35-kilometer mark. To do that against those runners takes more than guts – that takes brass ones. Big and brassy.
“I dreamed about being with those guys for 23 miles and I did that today and I took my swing,” Hall said after the race. “Hopefully I’ll be a bit stronger next time and run a bit smarter.”
In the end, though, the more experienced runners surged away from Hall though he said he thought he had a chance to catch up until he started tightening up. Nevertheless, for Hall, who smashed the American half-marathon record (59:43) in Houston last January, the next big race is on Nov. 3 at the Olympic Marathon Trials in New York City. If he finishes in the top three in that race, it’s off to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
For Hall, who threw down with the all-time greats in the sport, that seems like a foregone conclusion.
“With the Olympics coming up so quick, I really want to take a swing at a medal,” Hall said today. “If I’m going to do that, my best shot is going to be in the marathon.”
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Hardly a big-time, Ryan Hall-type effort, but I’m getting there. I’m starting to feel more comfortable with the daily distance and I’m bouncing back from day-to-day fairly well. The one thing, though, is that I’ve needed a lot of sleep – eight hours at the minimum. I’m also going to have to get back in to some ART treatments, but that’s a different story. The bottom line was that I was after some consistency and I think I’m getting there. Now all I need are some weekly long runs and some quality workouts.
It’s that simple.
Anyway:
Monday - 13 miles in 1:29:06
More crazy, wacky weather. The Nor'easter is still tearing through and making a mess, but I was able to get out even though the wind was howling around 30 mph. It didn't really bother me until I got into some exposed areas and I was surprised that I didn't see more downed tree limbs, etc. Anyway, the conditions were not ideal, but I enjoyed the easy run. In fact, when I finished and went into the house I thought, “Was that it? That was easy.”
Tuesday - 13 miles in 1:27:55
A lot like yesterday except that I felt much stronger early. I kept good form, which helped my speed though I didn't really try to do anything other than run strong. The weather is still goofy, though I enjoyed today's temps. I'll take high 40s-low 50s any time.
Wednesday - 13 miles in 1:28:55
Pretty much the same thing as every other day... I'm running and running strong. I actually feel like I've been pulling back as far as the distance goes, which very well may be the case.
Thursday - no run
I got home at 3 a.m. after going to Washington for a baseball game. I also got up early with very little sleep because I had Michael all day. By the time I was able to get away for a run, I was too tired. I ended up going to bed at 8:15 p.m.
Friday - 14.5 miles in 1:38:25
The weather finally broke. It was 70 degrees and maybe that is what made me tire around 8 or 9 miles. Either way, I felt decent running but a little slow at the end.
Saturday - 15 miles in 1:41:43
When I started I felt a little heavy and tight. Fortunately, I stuck it out. I guess this was a grinder.
Sunday - 7.5 miles in 51:04
That's why I'm easy... I'm easy like Sunday morning. This was the perfect, easy Sunday run. I ran until it seemed like a good time to stop and that was it. I didn't exert myself, but I didn't walk either.
Second straight week of 76 miles. I’m going to do 83 to 85 next week.