DATHAN RITZENHEIN: either nail this marathon or give it up and focus on the 5000/10000m

Being in 12:56 shape or slightly faster would make him a medal contender in any championship; however, 2:09:55 and he's just another decent marathoner with no medal hope!

Dathan should concentrate on the 5000m/10000m will he still have time and run a marathon in non-Championship years. He would command a bigger appearance fee with the more success he has on the track.

I'm so tired of Dathan Ritzenhein and it's of little wonder why he continually gets injuried. One year he's a marathoner and the next I'm focusing on the 5000m/10000m so I can be competitive, and then a COUPLE months later he's back to being a marathoner.

This guy changes his mind more then Mitt Romney.

MedalOrNot wrote:

. . . 2:09:55 and he's just another decent marathoner with no medal hope!

Someone needs to tell Meb that a 2:09:xx PR won't ever get him on a podium.

Citizen Runner wrote:

MedalOrNot wrote:

. . . 2:09:55 and he's just another decent marathoner with no medal hope!

Someone needs to tell Meb that a 2:09:xx PR won't ever get him on a podium.

Great post. Meb's 2nd best Olympic finish was even close to the podium. But hey... Meb's run 27:13, so he "should've" stayed on the track.

ttc

Are you really trying to compare Meb to Dathan. Meb keep getting better the longer the race went as he never was able to run a sub 4 minute mile or sub 13:10. Dathan has much more foot speed then Meb and his best performance is in the shorter distances like 5000m, 10000m, and 1/2 marathon.

Dathan ran 12:56 off limited training and then got injuried. Dathan DEFINITELY should've concentrated on the 10000m for 2013 and maybe planned a 2013 fall marathon. He has never given himself at least a year and half of injury free training and focused on the 5000m/10000m. He is too busy trying to train for a marathon and getting injuried.

It was great that Meb grab a medal back in 2004; however, since then Olympic and World marathons medals aren't typical in the 2:09 category anymore; therefore, Dathan needs to be able to run 2:06-2:07 to be a contender.

Except for this years Worlds none of the Championship medals were 2:09! Bust a 2:07 Dathan or give up the marathon, PLEASE.

Bust a 2:07 Dathan or give up the marathon, PLEASE.

Dude is 30 years old, been running at a high level for half his life - let him go with his heart. He says he cares most about the marathon. He will also make much more money there.

He should have been focusing the 5k / 10k the last 4 yrs. I feel like it is too late know. 12:56 is not going to happen again for him. He doesn't have the strength to run 26.2 I don't care how all his fans talk about how tough he is. His best performance is the 5k, you can't compare XC times.

A Salazar wrote:

COMMON SENSE??? Did you say common sense?

If the marathon was anything more than a payday then he would have not chosen a coach that has failed in the marathon. That is common sense.

First of all, everyone has failed at the marathon. Second, Salazar won three straight NYC marathons. Hardly a failure. He's forgot more than you'll ever know.

It is really sad that Alberto has coached athletes for over 30 marathons and his biggest success is.......when some,one else coached him.

Give me ONE Alberto coached marathoner that has not run better for some other distance. Just one.

This is not true for Hansons, Mahon, McMillan, or any other proven elite coach. Probably just a coincidence?

Had Ritz made the marathon team for London he would have finished no worse than 5th and would have had a good chance at the bronze. In the 10,000??? Well we saw what happened, a well beaten 13th and losing to a college runner from Canada. He can run 2:09 and be the best American, cash some nice checks and be a contender in Brazil. I would like to see him add some different distances on the road to his schedule and go after some of the really old AR's like Williams 15k record....gotta be more money in that than on the track.

The current forecast calls for highs in the low 60s the two days before the race, and the race starts at 7:30 AM. If this holds, the weather will be fine.

agip wrote:

This is the problem with marathoning - so much luck involved. It is going to be in the 70s all week leading up to the race - so if it is 77 on race day and ritz runs 2:09 and finishes 3rd is that a good day or not?

I'll be the first to say that Salazar was a better runner then than he is a coach now. But he's not as bad a coach as you're making him out to be, either. He still is one of the top five marathoners this country has ever produced. The same can't remotely be said about the other coaches you mentioned.

I've never met Salazar, but I'd be very surprised if it turned out that I liked him. He just doesn't strike me as the sort of person I'd want to hang with. So I have no reason to defend him. I'm certainly no fanboy.

But that being said, it's really obvious that you DO have something against him and are thoroughly incapable of judging his achievements objectively.

As far as the "name just one" challenge, you take away Ritz American Record 5,000--which many consider a fluke--and I'd argue that his marathon times are well in line with his other PBs. And I also think that Kara Goucher's marathon results are pretty much in line with her other times. There's two.

Also, Mahon and Hansons train marathoners with no other talent than the marathon itself. Salazar has been coaching runner's with much more impressive range.

who, Who, WHO said that Ritz's personal best of 12:56 was a fluke and how can a person performance that was acutally run EVER be considered a fluke? He hasn't been healthy and has been shifting from 10000m to marathon training to approach a sub 13 clocking; however, it doesn't mean he couldn't do it again.

I truly think Ritz could approach 12:55 and sub 26:50 if he focused on the 10000m, trained 100% of the time with Mo and Galen, and if he could stay healthy for over 18 months.

Unless he pops a significant personal best in the marathon he should focus on 2013 and 2015 Worlds 1/2 marathon, 10000m, or 5000m double.

No. Many track runners graduate to the marathon, so he should give the longer distance a go and see where it takes him.

FORGET the marathon. Dathan Ritzenhein ran a personal best of 27:22 during a major championships and since haven't been healthy long enough to improve on his 10000m potential. The guy finished 6th and beat many international runners who are still focusing on the track 10000m. I agree with an earlier poster who said improving his track personal best would improve his appearance fees because unless he runs 2:07 on a flat course then he is just showing up for the appearance fees.

Worlds 2009 10000m Final

1. Kenenisa Bekele (Eth)....26:46.31

2. Zersenay Tadese (Eri)....26:50.12

3. Moses Ndiema Masai (Ken).26:57.39

4. Irmane Merga (Eth).......27:15.94

5. Bernard Kipyego (Ken)....27:18.47

6. DATHAN RITZENHEIN (USA)..27:22.67

7. Micah Kogo (Ken).........27:26.33

8. GALEN RUPP (USA).........27:37.99

9. Kidane Tadasse (Eri).....27:41.50

10.Gebregz Gebremariam (Eth)27:44.01

11.Ahmad Ha Abdullah (Qat)..27:45.03

12.Teklemariam Medhin (Eri).27:58.89

only sub 28 finishers shown out of 20 competitors and note Dathan beat Galen.

orbitboy wrote:

As far as the "name just one" challenge, you take away Ritz American Record 5,000--which many consider a fluke--and I'd argue that his marathon times are well in line with his other PBs. And I also think that Kara Goucher's marathon results are pretty much in line with her other times. There's two.

I agree that those 2 are his bests but they fail the test. Bere are the comparisons from Mercier Scoring Tables. If you think these tables are not accurte, I am willing to hold other coaches accountalbe using the same tables. REMEMBER These are the best you could come up with for Alberto.

Ritz actual 2:09:55

60:00 half says he should be able to run 2:06:22

Missed by 3:33

Kara actual 2:24:52

66:57 half says she should be able to run 2:21:03

Missed by 3:49

Those are his successes in the Marathon?? Let me know if you want me to come up with any 2 athletes from any of the other coaches that I mentioned. I would love the comparisons.

Interesting does it really equate a 60:00 half to Dathan being capable of 2:06:22, what would his 12:56 equate to in the marathon?

Davila is has run better than anything Dathan has run in the Marathon. How can you say that these groups have not produced athletes that have run at Dathan's level in the Marathon?

Which U.S. front-line offensive combat infantry outfit was Dathan Ritzenhein a member of ?