Thank goodness none of us is Athletics Kenya. You have three spots for the team. Who do you pick?
1. Martin Lel: No brainer.
2. Samuel Wanjriu: Third fastest Kenyan ever, a prodigy at the shorter distances, young, based in Asia, has run very well and competitively in his only two attempts at the marathon.
I think those two are solid bets. Now, where do you go from there?
3. Mutai runs, a personal best, but finishes only fourth in this race--the deepest marathon of all-time.
4. William Kipsang wins the Rotterdam Marathon this morning in a course record time of 2:05:50, winning by like 90 seconds.
5. Robert Cheruiyot: Defending World Marathon Majors champion, though his last outing at Chicago was underwhelming. A lot depends on how he does in Boston.
6. Luke Kibet, the World Champion who--significantly--showed how well he could run in tough, humid, and hot conditions in Osaka last summer. But he was totally buried in today's marathon. Can he argue that the head injury he took in December interrupted his training enough to give him consideration?
7. Paul Tergat: The elder statesman who wants one last shot. Kenyan record holder. Ran sixth in last year's London marathon (the deepest marathon of all-time). I would think he has absolutely zero chance at selection though.
8. Felix Limo: Today's performance probably sinks him, but he has a very good competitive record.
9. There are four other Kenyans who have run 2:06 in the past six months alone!
In my opinion, the third spot goes to Cheruiyot only if he wins Boston. But given that the CR in Boston is only 2:07:14, what if Cheruiyot runs 2:07:30 to win? Does that outweigh Kipsang's dominating 2:05:50 in Rotterdam today? How the hell do you compare those?
I'm actually not in favor of the Trial system as it is structured in the U.S., but at least you avoid these problems.