TheFinalSprint.com | Premier Running Destination for Marathons, Track and Field, Race News, Podcasts, Training Advice and More!

Lead Stories: Saturday, July 19, 2008

Josh Cox: Carpe Diem
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #2)

Posted February 6th, 2008 at 3:15 PM by Josh Cox

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Motivation, Olympics, Elite Athlete Blogs, Josh Cox

TFS Elite Athlete Blog Series JOSH COX 425x75 copy Check back every other Wednesday for his latest entry and for more information about Cox, also please visit: www.joshcox.com

In ‘97 Cox ran and won a 50-mile ultra, in ’99 he ran his first marathon making him the youngest Trials qualifier. The following year he clocked 2:13, which opened the door for him to train with the world’s best in Kenya. Cox has tried his hand at Reality TV, been all over magazine covers and is a fixture in the sport.

CARPE DIEM

“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven played music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Baptist minister and civil rights leader

“It is a sad fate for a man to die too well known to everybody else, and still unknown to himself.”
- Francis Bacon, English philosopher and statesman

“Never, never, never quit.”
- Winston Churchill, Author, soldier and Prime Minister

October 1980, Paul David Hewson and his band - formally known as “Feedback” and “The Hype” - had just released their first full-length album, Boy. Their single “I Will Follow” climbed the UK charts and their star was born. Around that time, the band joined a religious group in Dublin, the Shalom Fellowship. Time passed and some of Shalom’s leaders began criticizing the bands “involvement in the world.” The leaders told the band that in order to please God they would have to give up rock ‘n’ roll.
Read the rest of this entry »

10 comments, add yours | Permalink

Ryan Hall: Perseverance
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #1)

Posted January 18th, 2008 at 5:00 PM by Ryan Hall

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics, Elite Athlete Blogs, Ryan Hall

TFS Elite Athlete Blog Series RYAN HALL 425x75 copy Welcome to the official blog of top U.S. distance runner Ryan Hall as he begins his quest for Olympic gold! Check back every other Friday for Ryan’s latest entry.

ryan hall winning 2007 olympic trials men's marathon in central park These past three weeks I have been shown what it means to persevere in the face of hard times. Sara and I arrived in Flagstaff on December 30th to stay with our friend, Alicia Shay, with the goal of helping her in whatever way we could through the recent loss of her husband. However, as is the case so often when we try and help others, we are the ones who get blessed from the experience. I guess this is why Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive.

Alicia showed me what it means to get up every day and face her troubles with courage and strength. I am sure a lot of people are proud of how Alicia has endured this hard time. I am certainly very proud and inspired by her ability to just plain get up everyday and choose to live a life of joy, even though she certainly has the right to be bitter, angry and frustrated.

Perseverance is a trait that I have had to learn a lot about during my running career.
Read the rest of this entry »

20 comments, add yours | Permalink

Podcast 4: Interview w/ Dr. Ruth Heidrich, vegan marathoner & cancer-survivor

Posted January 23rd, 2007 at 12:00 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: Motivation, Books, Success Stories, Nutrition, Columns, Success Stories, Vegetarianism, Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts, Health & Fitness

This week I had the privilege of interviewing Dr. Ruth E. Heidrich; the subject of TFS’s January 2007 “Success Stories” column.

In her mid-forties Dr. Heidrich was diagnosed with breast cancer; a shock to anyone – especially a marathon runner who had been in nearly perfect health. In order to stay cancer-free she set two incredibly challenging goals: becoming a vegan and completing an IRONMAN triathlon. Dr. Heidrich has achieved both goals and gone on to become an elite athlete. She has now run six IRONMAN triathlons, is approaching 100 marathons and has collected over 700 medals.

Download the podcast to learn about her fight with cancer, marathon running, being a vegan and the exceptional advice she offers in her new book: “A Race for Life” (published by Lantern Books)!

Listen In
[MP3] Direct Download (Right click, select save as).
[RSS] Add The Final Sprint Podcast RSS feed to your RSS reader to have the show delivered to you

Host: Adam Jacobs
Guest: Dr. Ruth Heidrich
Producer: Greg Cherniet
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 23.1MB
Length: 00:18:50

Interested in featuring The Final Sprint Podcast on your site, blog or My Space page? Click here to learn how!

Read the rest of this entry »

2 comments, add yours | Permalink

Podcast 3: Interview with Paralympic gold medalist Rudy Garcia-Tolson

Posted January 19th, 2007 at 2:00 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: Motivation, Success Stories, Columns, Success Stories, Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts

I was honored to have the opportunity to interview Rudy Garcia-Tolson, The Final Sprint’s Success Story selection for December 2006.

Rudy, a Paralympic gold medalist, lives by the motto “A Brave Heart is a Powerful Weapon”. He was born with several, rare birth defects, including the crippling Pterygium Syndrome. At five years old, after 15 operations, Rudy chose to have both of his legs amputated above the knee to avoid spending the rest of his life in a wheelchair. Rudy didn’t allow the loss of his legs to stop him and has persevered to become one of the world’s premier athletes. He won a gold medal in the 400m IM at the 2004 Athens Paralympics and has completed a half IRONMAN triathlon.

Download the podcast to learn how Rudy has overcome such tremendous obstacles, defied the odds and become a true testament to the strength of the human spirit.

Listen In
[MP3] Direct Download (Right click, select save as).
[RSS] Add The Final Sprint Podcast RSS feed to your RSS reader to have the show delivered to you

Host: Adam Jacobs
Guest: Rudy Garcia-Tolson
Producer: Greg Cherniet
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 12.9MB
Length: 00:18:50