Sagarin wrote:He has as good a shot at medaling as anyone.
Sure, I'll agree with that. I just don't think a lot of people on this thread realize how many people 'anyone' includes. There are a lot of 2:08 guys. Goumri is a 2:07 guy who stayed with Lel for about 42 km in two major marathons. Hall isn't there yet.
Here's a list of three other 2:06 guys, ones you've likely never heard of.
2:06:29 Emmanuel Mutai KEN 01 04 1978 1 Amsterdam 21 10 2007
2:06:45 Richard Limo KEN 18 11 1980 2 Amsterdam 21 10 2007
2:06:51 Abel Kirui KEN 1982 2 Berlin 30 09 2007
You also want to consider Patrick Ivuti at Chicago for the race he put in, along with Luke Kibet and Joshua Chelanga (2:08 on a very hot day in Rotterdam). Granted, Kenya can only send three guys, but unless they send a B team, it's hard for you to tell me that Hall is better than any of them.
From Morocco you want to consider Goumri and Gharib. From Switzerland there will be Viktor Rothlin who has run 2:08 and has a bronze from Osaka. From Qatar, you want to consider Mubarak Hassan Shami, a proven veteran with a 2:07 PB and a WC silver. Then there's also Geb. Those are eight people (three Kenyans, two Moroccans, a Swiss, a Qatari and an Ethiopian) who are better than Hall. They just don't happen to be American. Anything can happen in a marathon, sure, but a lot of people in this thread need to get a grip.