From Walt Murphy. Shared with permission. Walt produces an info-rich daily ”This Day in T&F” newsletter.
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In 2009, 34-year old Meb Keflezighi, the 2004 Olympic silver medalist, beat a strong field to win the NY City Marathon with a personal best time of 2:09:15. Keflezighi became the first American to win the race since Alberto Salazar finished first in 1982. Other Americans finishing in the top-10 in the race, which also served as the U.S. Championships, were Ryan Hall (4th-2:10:36, Jorge Torres (7th-2:13:00/debut), Nick Arciniaga (8th-2:13:46), Abdi Abdirahman (9th-2:14:00), and Jason Lehmkuhle (10th-2:14:39).
As Keflezighi neared the finish line in Central Park, he made the sign of the cross when he reached the point where his friend Ryan Shay had collapsed and died while running in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trial, which was held in the fall of 2007.
In his book 26 Marathons, Meb said of the event, “To have my dream finally become a reality, to hear the crowd cheering, ‘USA! USA!’ and my name, to be on the verge of winning my personal Olympics, it was all just overwhelming. I tapped my USA jersey and motioned to the crowd while thinking, ‘Pinch me, pinch me.'”
The win marked a triumphant comeback for Keflezighi, who had been written off by many people after he finished 8th in that Trials race. Showing he still had plenty more to give, he would finish 4th at the 2012 Olympics in London, win the 2014 Boston Marathon, and make his 3rd Olympic team in 2016 (33rd in the marathon in Rio).
Meb, who finished 11th in the 2017 New York City Marathon, his 26th and final competitive race at the distance, was presented with the Abebe Bikila Award 3 days prior to the race. The award has been presented by the New York Road Runners since 1978 to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the sport of distance running. He received another honor in 2019 when he was named to the NY Road Runners Hall of Fame.
Derartu Tulu (2:28:52), the 2-time Olympic gold medalist at 10,000-Meters (1992, 2000), pulled away in the final stretch to win the Women’s division over Russia’s Lyudmila Petrova (2:29:00), who was the runnerup for the 2nd year in a row. Great Britain’s Paula Radcliffe (2:29:27), the defending champion, faded to 4th after being among the leaders with less than 5-miles to go.
Meb’s talent in running has spanned the distances through his career. Before earning spots on the USA Olympic Team for the marathon (2004, 2012, and 2016), he first represented the US at the Sydney Games in 2000 in the 10,000 meters. Keflezighi was also masterful off the roads, earning three USA titles in cross country, a discipline which he credits with being, “a way to assimilate myself into a new culture,” from his days running in high school in San Diego.
Now retired from professional running, Meb stays connected to the sport in numerous ways. Whether joining the broadcast booth for the latest Boston Marathon or championing youth health, education, and fitness through the MEB Foundation, Marathon Meb continues to pour his all into each of his endeavors.
