Why Sell will make the team for Beijing

Sell's a bawla.

It would be great to see him get a spot. It's always tough, but this year even more so.

Seems kind of Blue-collar. I am cheering for him. Hall, Meb, Sell- in that order. Three in the top 10 at Oly Games. The US will be back. It will start a second running boom of serious racers (not Gallowalkers). All these teenage boys will see that they can get a HOTT wife like Sara if they run a fast marathon.

Numbers in a training diary don´t win any races.

I thought this was a bit of a weird quote:

“I’ve still got to be in the top three to make the Olympic team, and right now, I’m ranked fourth in the country,’’ Sell said. “This will be the toughest year to make it, because there are a lot of foreign-born citizens from countries like Kenya who have become American citizens and will be running against me in the trials. I know that I will need to run the best race of my life.’’

If he is talking about Meb and Abdi, then I guess he is right, but this makes it sound like there are many recent additions to the US citizen pool that will be a threat at trials, and I can't really think of any...

What's with this comment:

"This will be the toughest year to make it, because there are a lot of foreign-born citizens from countries like Kenya who have become American citizens and will be running against me in the trials. I know that I will need to run the best race of my life."

I can't think of a single American Kenyan that will be in contention. This must have been a misquote.

Mbarak Hussein has recently run 2:14, maybe faster? Not that that puts him in contention though.

ryan hall is african.

Did they lengthen the marathon distance for the trials last time around. I dont remember it being 26.3 miles. No wonder he blew up. He was training for 26.2!

Sell finished 12th in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in Alabama, but paced the field at the 22-mile mark of the 26.3-mile event. He regards it as a good learning experience.

Simon Sawe also just became a us citizen.

I hope Sell makes it.

rreality wrote:

Numbers in a training diary don´t win any races.

Yeah, but mutton chops do, which is why Sell needs to regrow his mutton chops.

There is also a good chance that even if he finishes 4th or even 5th in the Trials, one or 2 of the guys ahead will opt for the 10,000 so they can then come back and run a fall marathon for bigger $$$. Abdi would seem to be the most logical to follow this scenario, but Hall and/or Meb might as well.

What sucks for Sell (or someone else in the 4-5 spots) is they won't know until after the outdoor track Trials, or even later.

The same thing was assumed about Culpepper, Meb, and Browne in 2004. People thought that at least one of them would run the 10k if they qualified, allowing the 4th and possibly 5th place finishers to make the marathon team. We all know how that turned out.

the340miler wrote:

Mbarak Hussein has recently run 2:14, maybe faster? Not that that puts him in contention though.

Granted it was a few years ago but he ran a 2:08:10 and a 2:09 in 2004.

Plus he was banged up (hamstring) at Twin Cities and it wasn't a quick day when he won with a 2:14. Not that it matters though because I think the other guys everyone is mentioning on this post will probably beat him, but he could be a factor.

Abdi and Meb will make it. Next three spots are between Culpeper, Hall, and Sell.

no way that sell makes it....there is just too much other talent out there...sucks..but that is the fact...maybe he lucks into a top 5 spot...but top 3 is practically impossible. Too bad, he seems like a nice guy too

ass-u-me wrote:

The same thing was assumed about Culpepper, Meb, and Browne in 2004. People thought that at least one of them would run the 10k if they qualified, allowing the 4th and possibly 5th place finishers to make the marathon team. We all know how that turned out.

True, however the horror stories about Beijing seem to be worse than pre-Athens. That might or might not scare one into the 10,000, although the success of Meb & Deena in '04 has indicated that there's a better chance of a medal in the marathon, where a lot more can happen. On the track, things hold a lot truer to form.

ex-rgs wrote:

I thought this was a bit of a weird quote:

“I’ve still got to be in the top three to make the Olympic team, and right now, I’m ranked fourth in the country,’’ Sell said. “This will be the toughest year to make it, because there are a lot of foreign-born citizens from countries like Kenya who have become American citizens and will be running against me in the trials. I know that I will need to run the best race of my life.’’

If he is talking about Meb and Abdi, then I guess he is right, but this makes it sound like there are many recent additions to the US citizen pool that will be a threat at trials, and I can't really think of any...

KK?

Cuz he's a Hause. And he trains with a team.