April 17, 2015 | LetsRun.com

Boston Marathon Women (More in our special section)

Friday Good News/Bad News for Desi and Shalane’s American Chances We break down the women’s press day in terms of good news/bad news for the American women. Mare Dibaba is ready to go, so is Buzenesh Deba and nearly everyone we spoke too. And some words of wisdom, “Life is today. Tomorrow is a dream.”

LRC 2016 Olympic Trials 2015 Boston Marathon American Women’s Preview: Can Flanagan, Linden Or Cragg End The American Drought? It’s been 30 years since an American woman won Boston. Can Shalane Flanagan, Desiree Linden or Amy (Hastings) Cragg follow in Meb’s footsteps and take the laurel wreath? We break down this preview of the Olympic Trials.

LRC 2015 Boston Marathon International Women’s Preview 2014 Chicago champ Mare Dibaba leads the field, though she’ll be challenged by fellow sub-2:20 woman Buzunesh Deba, who would have set a course record last year if not for drug cheat Rita Jeptoo. World junior record holder Shure Demise Ware and former champs Caroline Kilel and Sharon Cherop will also be on the start line.

2015 Boston Marathon Is Monday

LRC 2015 Boston Marathon American Men’s Preview: Can Meb Keflezighi Shock The World Again? For the first time in 31 years, an American enters Boston as the defending champion. If Meb can’t repeat, can Ritz, Teg, Eggleston, Arciniaga, Cabada or anyone else from the US of A shock the world?

LRC 2015 Boston Marathon International Men’s Preview: Which Of These Men Will Snap The American Win Streak At One? 2013 champ Lelisa Desisa and former world record holder Patrick Makau (2:03:38 PR) are the headliners, but there’s depth behind them with five sub-2:05 men overall and five more sub-2:07 + HM world record holder Zersenay Tadese (58:23).

More Men’s News On Chebet: “I have polished what it needed to be done.” … Ritz “I have under-prepared just to stay healthy.” … Meb “… is the frosting on the cake.” And Cabada In Our Boston Special Section

Let’s Put This Guy In Charge Of The Sport’s Marketing

World Indoor Champ Richard Kilty Challenges Arsenal’s Theo Walcott And Hector Bellerin To £30,000 Race “(The media claims Hector Belleri) can run 4.42 over 40m. Absolutely no way. Are these journalists complete morons?”
*MB: Soccer player faster than Usain Bolt at 40m??

Words Of Wisdom From Shot Silver Medalist Christina Schwanitz

We Knew It’d Been Too Many Days Without A Doping Ban

MB: Spanish XC Champ Mohamed Marhoum Tests Positive For EPO The Moroccan born runner pulled out of World XC Champs last month saying he was “sick,” but in reality had failed an out-of-competition test. *Google Translated Article
South African Sprinter Simon Magakwe Gets 2-Year Ban For Failing To Provide A Urine Sample

Olympic Spots Will Be On The Line At World Relays The top 8 finishers in the men’s and women’s 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 will qualify for the 2016 Games.

Upcoming Action

Kenyan Patrick Terer Will Return To Defend His Title At The Prague Marathon On May 3rd The 2:08:07 man will face Peter Kirui (2:06:31) and three other sub-2:08 men. The women are led by Ethiopians Yebrqual Melese (2:23:23), Tadelech Bekele (2:22:51) and Ashete Bekere (2:23:46).
Tyson Gay Will Compete In The 100 At The May 9th Jamaica Invitational Gay took the place of Justin Gatlin who recently withdrew. Other confirmed athletes are Walter Dix, Ryan Bailey, Nesta Carter and Nickel Ashmeade.
Mutaz Essa Barshim Will Face Stacked HJ Field At 2015 Pre Classic Includes Olympic champ Ivan Ukhov, Olympic medalists Derek Drouin and Erik Kynard and 2011 World champ Jesse Williams.
France’s 2-Time European Heptathlon Champ Antoinette Nana Djimou And Russian Euro Indoor Champ lya Shkurenev Added To Fields For Hypo Meeting In Gotzis On May 30-31 Previously announced include Ashton Eaton for the men and a stacked women’s field of Jessica Ennis, Brianne Theisen-Eaton, Dafne Schippers, Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Morgan Lake.
Jessica Ennis Will Return To The Olympic Stadium For Sainsbury Anniversary Games In July She hasn’t decided which event(s) she’ll compete in, but could end up facing fellow Brit Katarina Johnson-Thompson.

Boston Is In Less Than A Week

Stacked Fields Set For BAA 5K: Molly Huddle Is Defending Champ And Ben True Goes For His Third Win True faces Sam Chelanga, Stephen Sambu and Lawi Lalang while Huddle is up against BAAA Distance Medley champ Mamitu Daska.
*Past Boston Champs – Morio Shigematsu (JPN, 1965), Jaqueline Gareau (CAN, 1980), Geoff Smith (GBR, 1984/85), Greg Meyer (USA, 1983), Lorraine Moller (NZL, 1984), And Lisa Rainsberger (1985) – Will Also Run BAA 5k Joan Samuelson, Gelindo Bordin and Amby Burfoot will run the full 26.2.
Morgan Uceny, Heather Kampf, Gabe Grunewald Lead Field For BAA Invitational Mile Uceny is a three-time champ. Chris O’Hare leads the men’s field.
2:16 Marathoner Tyler Andrews Attempting Treadmill Half Marathon WR On April 19th At Boston marathon Expo Andrews is trying to break his own 67:18 WR to raise money for educational projects in Peru. *Website
Q&A With Former Marathon WR Patrick Makau Ahead Of The Boston Marathon Makau says his favorite workout is 10 x 2,000m in 5:40 with 1 minute recovery (200m jog).
*Video With Makau Talking About His Strength/Interval Training
BAA And Abbott Anounce Multiple-Year Sponsorship Of The Boston Marathon Sponsorship complements Abbott’s title sponsorship of the World Marathon Majors.

Women Distance News

Recommended Read: 84-Year-Old Holocaust Survivor Says Running Saved Her Life Sylvia Weiner was the only one in her family of 10 to survive the Holocaust and was in a concentration camp together with Anne Frank. Weiner went on to become the first official Boston Marathon masters winner.
RRW: Flashback To Paula Radcliffe’s 2:15:25 World Record At The 2003 London Marathon 2003
*MB: April 13, 2003 – Guess what happened 12 years ago today? Where were you/what was your reaction?
IAAF “Personal Bests” Q&A With Emma Coburn Coburn shares her top achievement and disappointment, favorite venue and greatest indulgence.
Shalaya Kipp Signs With Oiselle The 2012 Olympian is part of the group with Emma Coburn who train under Mark Wetmore in Boulder.

3 World XC Getty Images Photo Galleries:
1) Pro Photos From Getty Images
2) New Rojo’s Women’s Photos
3) New Rojo’s Men’s Race Photos

More Boston in Our Special Section

LRC Everything You Want to Know About the Boston Marathon Men’s Pro Field From Friday Guaranteed If you want to dominate your Boston office pool read this as we give you insight on just about everyone. Ritz is getting help from Greg Meyer and Hartmann, Tadese hopes to have figured out the marathon, Makau is ready, Tadese still looks great, not to mention Teg, Cabada and oh yeah a guy named Meb. Interviews and more.

Eugene 2021!

LRC Analysis: Eugene Worlds 2021: Details And Three Quick Takes – USATF Thriving Under “Old School” Way Of Doing Business In a special vote, the IAAF decided to bypass the normal bidding process to give the 2021 championships to TrackTown USA. We break it down.

Not Everyone Is Happy: Gothenburg Says Eugene Bid For 2021 Worlds Was “Unfair” Gothenburg wanted 2021 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of their city.
European Athletics Head Svein Arne Hansen Congratulates Vinny But Says, “This type of decision would just not happen within European Athletics as we have a comprehensive bidding process that all candidates must follow.”
MB: Eugene Awarded World Champs in 2021!

Women’s News

Boston On The MB:

Full Coverage Here

Non-Boston Stories From Wednesday

Cherry Blossom Official Distance – 9.39 Miles – Stephen Sambu’s Adjusted 10-Mile Time Is 46:10 And Jake Riley’s Is 46:18
Asbel Kiprop Hoping To Actually Cross The Finish Line 1st In Beijing He won gold in 2008 – but only after a doping DQ. His teen rival Ronald Kwemoi will run two DL races
Frosh Morgan McDonald The Aussie was 2nd at Big 10s indoors in the 3k.
Jessica Ennis-Hill Nears Maternity Comeback And Insists: “I feel like I’m at start of my career again.”
Jessica Ennis-Hill Hoping Doping Authorities Will Give Her 2011 Worlds Gold Russian drug cheat Tatyana Chernova was retroactively suspended for two years – with the suspension ending just 16 days before Worlds.

Weekly Recap

WTWWTW: Definitely Don't Quit, Masters WR In Marathon Goes Down, Jake Riley Impresses, 20.20 By Bolt

Kenneth Mungara took down Andres Espinosa's master's WR in the marathon, Ryan Hall lost another high school record to Webb, Kodiak, Alaska pop 6,423 has had 2 sub-8:50 2 milers, Jake Riley ran a tremendous race of an unspecified distance, and two reasons why you should never quit.

Angry Reactions To AK Announcements

Kenyan Athletes React Angrily To Athletics Kenya Agent Suspensions Wilson Kipsang and others have spoken out, calling the move “unprofessional.” Kipsang also said, “AK is not trustworthy of handling finances … They cannot manage well the over 250 athletes in the two camps.”
Wilson Kipsang: “We want to make it clear that we are not contemplating switching managers and that our contracts are still valid and will remain valid.” “We strongly believe that the move was malicious and politically driven, a way crafted to frustrate some athletes.”
Former Distance Legend Moses Tanui Says Isaiah Kiplagat Didn’t Name The Appropriate Person As Interim President Lt. Gen. Jackson Tuwei was named interim president, but isn’t technically second in command. Tanui also criticized the banning of agents without evidence as it will hurt the athletes.
Commonwealth Games 1,500 Champ Faith Kipyegon Defends Her Banned Coach And Closed Training Camp Coach Charles Ng’eno was accused of sexual harassment and poor coaching, but Kipyegon says that’s not true.

Youth News

Video Interview With Alexa Efraimson, Who Says She’ll Be Going To University Of Portland Next Year She talks about life as a pro and how her parents give her an “allowance” out of the paycheck she gets from Nike.
Extremely Sad: Youth Track Athletes Among The 33 People Killed In A Head-On Collision Between Bus And Gas Tanker In Morocco
Three Time World 800 Champ Wilson Kipketer And 2004 Olympic 800 Champ Yuriy Borzakovskiy Will Participate In IAAF Kids Program In Russia

15 Minutes Of Fame – 51 Seconds Of Fame (Shame?)

LRC51 Seconds Of Fame (Shame?) - Oregon's Tanguy Pepiot Gets Skewered On ESPN's Pardon The Interruption

HS / College News

Jamaica’s World Junior Champions Michael O’Hara And Jaheel Hyde Banned From Penn Relays They both received sponsorship deals with telecommunications provider LIME and therefore broke the rules of amateurism.
Video: Duke Runner Makes Funny Track Parody Music Video From Bloodhound Gang’s “Bad Touch”
2015 Pepsi Team Invitational At Oregon Has Lowest Spectator Attendance Since 1994 Oregonian’s Ken Goe asks “Where were the fans?”
Texas A&M Men And Women Stay On Top Of Latest DI National Rankings

More Administrative News

Stephanie Hightower Resigns As Chair Of USATF Board But Remains As President Of USATF

LRC2016 Rio Olympic Track and Field Qualifying Standards

Dibaba Named Sportswoman Of The Year At Laureus World Sports Awards We’ve got no qualms with the decision even though she didn’t earn a #1 ranking in any event. Her WRecords were incredible.
Ugandan Coach Peter Wemali Arrested For Rape, Defilement
9.98 South African Sprinter Simon Magakwe Gets Banned, Will Miss 2016 For Refusing To Take Doping Test In December

Random But Interesting

Recommended Read: Basketball Legend Larry Bird Talks About His Love For Running And How He’d Run Before Every Practice/Game Bird talks about the time he ran a 5-mile race (~32:30) before a big game and scored 60 points and says he once ran a 5:08 mile.
World Indoor 60m Champ Richard Kilty Challenges Soccer Players Hector Bellerin And Theo Walcott To A Race For $44,200 He says he’ll race the two at “any sprint distance, any time, anywhere.” His challenge is in reaction to a recent report which claimed Bellerin ran 4.42 seconds for 40m, which would be faster than Usain Bolt ran for the beginning of his 100m WR. *2nd Article
*MB: Soccer player faster than Usain Bolt at 40m??
Very Cool Slow Motion Video Of Renaud Lavillenie Doing A Pole Vault Backflip

Sh&t Just Hit The Fan In Kenya *Discuss

Athletics Kenya Bans Two Agencies, Rosa & Associati And Volare Sports, From Representing Athletes For 6 Months (link fixed) AK is investigating the two agencies run by Italian Gabriele Rosa and Dutchman Gerard van de Veen for possible connection with the rise in Kenyan doping cases. Rosa previously represented dopers Rita Jeptoo and Matthew Kisorio and currently has Asbel Kiprop and Eunice Sum. Van der Veen represents Dennis Kimetto, Wilson Kipsang and Geoffrey Mutai.
Isaiah Kiplagat Says Van der Veen Has Current Doping Cases In His Group, But Couldn’t Reveal The Names While Investigations Are Ongoing There were rumors of this last week.
Isaiah Kiplagat Steps Down As President Of Athletics Kenya For Three Months To Campaign For IAAF Vice President He said even if he doesn’t win the IAAF vice president spot, he might not come back to AK. Lt Gen. Jackson Tuwei will fill in as interim president. *2nd Article
AK Will Take Over Duties Of Agents Leaving Athletes Like Asbel Kiprop Rightfully Concerned Kiprop: “We don’t what to do now since we don’t have a manager. … the managers will not be affected. Rosa will stay in Italy and Gerard in Netherlands. It is we who will suffer.”
Kenyan Training Camp Closed And Coach Banned For Life For Having Inappropriate Sexual Relations With Junior Athletes Coach Charles Ng’eno denies the allegations, however, claiming that a rival is trying to sabotage him. AK also announced they are investigating another coach for his connection with young athletes changing citizenship to Qatar and Bahrain.

The Search For A Better Running Shoe

LRC The Most Popular Running Shoe On LetsRun.com Is … Not Made Anymore … The Nike Pegasus+ 30 Thousands of you filled out our detailed running shoe survey in the fall and more of you ran in the Nike Pegasus+30 than any other shoe. Only problem is all of you need to find a new shoe, help us out below:

LRC The Improved LRC Running Shoe Survey Is Back – Three Minutes To A Better Running Shoe The running shoe buying process sucks and we want to improve it with data. We took your reviews from the fall, made a running shoe beta site, and have improved our survey to ask you what shoe your previously ran in. We now need more reviews from you on the latest shoes.