khou.com
Posted on January 12, 2012 at 2:13 PM
Updated today at 2:20 PM
HOUSTONâ€"Houston will host the men’s and women’s Olympic Trials Marathon this weekend for the first time ever.
The event will determine the three men and three women who will represent our country in the marathon at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
“For two years, the Houston Marathon Committee has looked forward to Saturday almost as much as the athletes,†said Houston Marathon Committee President Brant Kotch. “Our goal from the start has been to treat them like rock stars, and as they begin to arrive in the next few days both they and the city of Houston will quickly discover that we meant it. Hosting the Trials is a huge honor, and along with the 40th anniversary of the Houston Marathon on Sunday â€" as well as cheering for our Houston Texans in the playoffs â€" it will be a momentous sports weekend for the city.â€
The marathon course will start and finish in downtown Houston in front of the George R. Brown Convention Center, the hub of Houston Marathon race weekend activities. The men and women will start at 8:00 a.m. and 8:15 a.m., respectively, and complete a 2.2-mile inner loop through the heart of downtown Houston.
Participants will then run an outer eight-mile loop three times to complete the 26.2-mile marathon.
Returning to compete in the 2012 trials are five of the six reigning U.S. Olympians in the marathon: Ryan Hall, Dathan Ritzenhein, Deena Kastor, Magdalena Lewy Boulet and Blake Russell. They will be joined by 2004 marathon team members Meb Keflezighi, Colleen De Reuck, and Jen Rhines and 1996 Olympic marathoner Linda Somers Smith. Keflezighi and Kastor are both 2004 Olympic medalists, with Keflezighi winning silver and Kastor bringing home the bronze.
On the men’s side, Hall leads the field with the three fastest qualifying times, topped by his 2:04:58 â€" the fastest qualifying time in Trials history â€" from the 2011 Boston Marathon. The next four fastest times, headed by his 2:09:13 from the 2011 ING New York City Marathon, were posted by Keflezighi Ritzenhein is third with a 2:10:00 from the Flora London Marathon in 2009.
For the women, Desiree Davila sets the pace with her 2011 Boston Marathon time of 2:22:38. Second is Kara Goucher in 2:24:52 from Boston 2011, followed by Lewy Boulet in 2:26:22 from the 2010 Fortis Rotterdam Marathon.
In addition to a spot on the U.S. Olympic team, the men’s and women’s champion will each take home $50,000.
Houston is the first city to host three U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials. Houston also hosted the women’s U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in 1992. It’s also the first city to host both the men’s and women’s races at the same Olympic Trials Marathon.
Click the links to the right for more information on this historic event.
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