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Lead Stories: Sunday, September 7, 2008

Short of Conditioning, Keflezeghi Withdraws from London Marathon

Posted March 18th, 2008 at 11:45 AM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics

Short of conditioning, reigning Olympic Marathon silver medalist Meb Keflezighi of San Diego, Calif., has withdrawn from next month’s Flora London Marathon. In a statement released by his brother and manager, Merhawi, the man who has twice made the podium of the ING New York City Marathon confirmed what had been rumored for several weeks.

“Meb Keflezighi has decided to pass up on the 2008 Flora London Marathon,” read the statement. “Meb is short of the conditioning he and Coach Bob Larsen would like before racing in one of the finest and competitive marathons in the world. Meb and Coach Larsen feel it would be too risky to rush the workouts in preparation for London, during an Olympic year. While Meb is disappointed he will not have a chance to set a significant personal best in London, he realizes it is better to be cautious during the Olympic year. Meb will now give his complete focus on preparing for the USATF Olympic Trials.”
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Podcast 108: ANNA WILLARD Olympic Steeplechase Hopeful

Posted December 10th, 2007 at 12:32 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics, Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts

Episode 108 of The Final Sprint Podcast,
the most listened to running podcast in North America, features my interview with ANNA WILLARD; a standout at Brown and then the University of Michigan as well as one of the U.S. favorites for the first ever women’s Olympic steeplechase.

In the interview Anna talks about her exceptional year, record-setting performances at the Penn Relays, her first IAAF World Championships and the fatigue caused by the spring track season at Michigan.

Download the podcast to hear Anna discuss these topics, as well as, why she believes winning the steeplechase at the U.S. Trials may require an American record, how special it would be to compete in the first ever Olympic women’s steeplechase, waiting until to March to begin her 2008 season, and much more!

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Host: Adam Jacobs | Guest: Anna Willard
Producers: Greg Cherniet, Adam Jacobs
Musicians: Ryan Ahlwardt, Darnell Perkins
File Size: 13.7 MB | Length: 20:02 MIN

Episode Sponsored By: Nike +

Long Live Running!
Nike Plus will improve the way you run. Get feedback from your iPod on pace, time, distance and calories burned.

Log into Nikeplus.com to track your progress,
set goals and challenge friends.

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Possible Papal Visit Could Conflict With Marathon Trials

Posted September 25th, 2007 at 7:15 PM by Jamal Walker

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics

A visit by Pope Benedict XVI would thrill millions of Boston-area Catholics but could raise havoc with ongoing plans for the 2008 U.S. Women’s Olympic Marathon Trials, scheduled the day before the 112th Boston Marathon.

If he comes to Boston after speaking at the United Nations, the pope’s visit would coincide with the marathon trials on April 20.

The trials include a lap around Boston Common, the likely site for a Papal Mass similar to one offered by Pope John Paul II when he visited Boston in 1979.

For more information: Click Here
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New ‘Chasing Glory’ Pre-Marathon Trials Video

Posted September 20th, 2007 at 5:07 AM by Martin Kennedy

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics

As part of the New York Road Runners’ unprecedented promotional and media build-up to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Men’s Marathon race on Saturday, November 3, “Chasing Glory,” a seven-week series of web videos offering exclusive athlete and coach interviews and insight will premiere today on the NYRR website, it was announced by NYRR president and CEO Mary Wittenberg.

Leading Olympic Trials contenders Dathan Ritzenhein, Abdi Abdirahman, Alan Culpepper, Meb Keflezighi, Brian Sell, and Ryan Hall, along with top coaches Brad Hudson, Keith and Kevin Hanson, and Terrence Mahon will be among those featured in the weekly videos. Other segments will highlight behind-the-scenes footage of the challenging Olympic Trials course in Central Park, facts and figures about the race, and a glimpse of how the USA’s runners compare with those of the rest of the world.

The five- to seven-minute videos will be launched every Tuesday and Thursday from September 17 to October 26. The videos are produced by videographer Matt Taylor, whose other credits include “Chasing Kimbia” and “Chasing Tradition.” The videos will be supplemented by three text-based commentaries each week, written in conjunction with television analyst Toni Reavis.
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Note on the News:
“Chasing Glory” Series Debuts

Posted September 18th, 2007 at 2:12 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics

The New York Road Runners, who are hosting the USA Olympic Team Trials - Men’s Marathon on Saturday, Nov. 3, have co-produced a web documentary series entitled “Chasing Glory” about the men who hope to place in the top-3 of that race and make the USA Olympic Team.

A trailer for the series is now posted at www.nyrr.com and regular updates will begin tomorrow, posted every Tuesday and Thursday.

The series, which is narrated by Toni Reavis and shot and edited by Matt Taylor and Tessa Olson, features both top athletes and their coaches and was shot on-site where the athletes train.

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Note on the News: U.S. Men’s Olympic Men’s Marathon Trials Course Measured

Posted August 9th, 2007 at 10:00 AM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics

Two of my favorite people in the sport, David Katz and Hugh Jones, are featured in an article in today’s New York Times.

This pair of internationally recognized course measurers spent two hot and sticky nights this week measuring the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Men’s Marathon course in New York City. It’s a rare look at the painstaking work of course measurement, so critical to ensuring that competion results in road races are meaningful.

You can read the story at this link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/sports/othersports/09measure.html

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Podcast 68: PETER GILMORE NYC Half-Marathon preview interview

Posted August 4th, 2007 at 4:48 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts

Episode 68 of TheFinalSprint.com Podcast features my interview with American marathoner PETER GILMORE as he prepares for tomorrows NYC Half-Marathon presented by Nike.

(Note: TFS’s LIVE coverage of the race will begin at 7am EST!)

Tomorrow’s race, which will be Peters first since the Boston Marathon, will feature one of the most competitive professional fields in recent distance running history, including: Haile Gebrselassie (who has never been defeated at this distance), World Marathon Majors leader Robert K. Cheruiyot, Hendrick Ramaala, Abdi Abdirahman and Alan Culpepper.

In the interview Peter talks about his battle with the plantar fasciitis that he developed in Boston, what it will take to race against this field of legends, shaking off the rust from his nearly four-month abstention from racing, getting to know and learning from Hendrick Ramaala, and jokes about his streak as the “Top American Finisher”.

Download the podcast to hear Peter discuss these topics, as well as, his special relationship with and love for NYC, his summer and fall training regimens, preparing and strategizing for this fall’s U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, and much more!

Listen In
[PLAY] (To Download: Right click and 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: Peter Gilmore
Producer: Greg Cherniet
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 13.6 MB
Length: 14:55

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

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Fast times take Webb, Robinson & Johnson to
U.S. Outdoor T&F Titles

Posted June 24th, 2007 at 7:00 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

The air was warm and definitely sticky, but that didn’t prevent Alysia Johnson, Khadevis Robinson and Alan Webb from posting fast times as they each won their respective events on the final day of the AT&T USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships at the Michael A. Carroll Stadium at Indiana University-Purdue University.

Johnson, the University of California star who won the NCAA 800m title on June 9, needed to run nearly the same fast time here to beat back the challenges of Hazel Clark, three-time USA 800m champion, and Alice Schmidt, the 2006 USA indoor champion.
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