You have to admire Blake Russell (4th Olympic trials) for her aggressive front running

Vipam:

I'll probably catch all hell for writing this, but I'm not sure I agree. I think you have to admire Jen Rhines who had a solid race plan, stuck to it, and executed it to perfection. The goal, in this race, is top-3...Rhines did achieved that goal by running a perfect race...

Blake, on the other hand, failed to execute on her game plan. It was fine for 20 miles, but left her just short.

Hoovis

The race seemed very strange with first Blake running strong and almost instantly hitting the wall and then Deena charged past only to slow to near 6 minute pace and be passed by Collen de Rueck. The leader 16 miles and 20 miles were still on 2:25-2:26 pace, so what happended?? Well at least Deena made the team with her 2nd place finish; however, Blake's 4th place finish is worthy of a medal for bravery.

Vipam

sometimes you can execute your race plan to perfection and still lose. could she have qualified with another race plan? maybe but her's didn't look so bad for about 25 miles.

I think it is braver to hold back when you see others bolt out at an insane pace, to have confidence in your race plan and the fact and knowledge that they will be slowing down when you have the strength to speed up. Blake may have made the team if she had raced smarter. She is a marathoning novice and didn't use the best tactics but she is to be commended for holding on as well as she did which must have been very hard at the end. Jen Rhines ran a superb race with much more bravery and confidence, as did Colleen.

Vipam, I admire your energy and enthusiasm for the sport, but I often don't understand your critique of things. Blake ran a poor race today. I'm surprised she held on for fourth which may be a reflection of the strength of the field. The marathon is a race of energy consumption in which she positioned herself poorly from the get-go. Gutsy and brave, but not very smart.

Well its only my opinion but running conservatively doesn't take bravery because then your fate lays in other hands that they will falter and thats not always the case. In such a race where there are faster opponents you take chances and sometimes they work and sometimes they don't, if Blake legs didn't cramp up would Jen's plan worked, NO! My point is that too many times Americans get praise for running conservatively/non-competively. Yeah Jen will be going to the Olympics instead of Blake but Blake by far ran a much more courageous marathon!

Vipam

Blake's running through the first 10k at 2:20 pace reminded me of the best advice I've ever heard in how to run a marathon: the last mile counts as much as the first mile. She clearly went out too aggressively. Brian Sells had at least trained to run a 2:12; did Blake really train to run a 2:20? I doubt it. Poor judgment on her part. She hit the wall at 18, just where you'd expect. Still, she made the race exciting. So kudos for that.

Vipam's comment that Blake didn't just want to make the team is silly. I'm sure she's quite upset now that she did not make the team.

Still...she's obviously no fluke, she's talented, she's got some sustained leg speed. She could end up in Athens in the 10,000.

Blake's legs cramped up in her only other marathon too. Maybe she should do something about that.

I agree with Vipam. Blake made up her mind and went for it. Obviously, it doesn't always work out, and especially the sheer distance of the marathon makes it even more risky to strike out on your own like that, but gotta respect her for going for it. I'm sure she'll have regrets about not making the team, but I doubt she'll feel like she could've given anymore than she did. This will definitely make her stronger the next time around.

This was a fantastic race on the whole...and great job to Running Times & RW for their online coverage.

Conservative? Jen's best marathon was in the 2:40's. Compare her last two marathon experiences with some of the other women she was running with and then we'll talk bravery. Plus she made the team! You're equating being conservative (which is highly relative) to non-competitive. Cleary you don't understand the difference or the marathon.

Vipam wrote:

Well its only my opinion but running conservatively doesn't take bravery because then your fate lays in other hands that they will falter and thats not always the case. In such a race where there are faster opponents you take chances and sometimes they work and sometimes they don't, if Blake legs didn't cramp up would Jen's plan worked, NO! My point is that too many times Americans get praise for running conservatively/non-competively. Yeah Jen will be going to the Olympics instead of Blake but Blake by far ran a much more courageous marathon!

Vipam

Maybe you should go ask Mark Plaatjes or Steve Spence about running conservatively (or maybe conservative is the wrong word here -- maybe it's about running right at the red line without crossing over it). These two were the last American men to medal in an Olympic/WC distance event...Spence came from way back and Plaatjes just ran within himself in a pack until 30K.

IMHOP, Blake ran a great race. In the end, Rhines ran a better one...

Hoovis

She ran stupid. Blake, that is. Jen Rhines ran great and Blake Russell ran stupid. She's so talented and she could have made the team - she SHOULD have made the team - but she ran stupid from the gun and in the end, it doesn't really matter.

She ran very stupidly. Period.

Reports were that she wasn't even taking fluids. She uses her head, learns to take fluids, tuck into the pack and just cover moves, and she'd likely be an Olympian today. Simple as that.

The marathon is very unforgiving mistress. If you don't follow her rules, she will bite you every time.

There is always some idiot that blasts out from the start in the Trials marathon and implodes. In the mens race it was Sell, in the womens it was Russell. These things never end well, but people never learn.

She surprised the hell out of me. A slew of steady 5:20's off the top to steady, steady 5:30's, I think? No backing down to a 1:11 1/2. At that point, I would not of given her a shot at 2:33-34. Russell is incredibly strong and will be back.

Zat0pek wrote:

There is always some idiot that blasts out from the start in the Trials marathon and implodes. In the mens race it was Sell, in the womens it was Russell.

Well, I for one do NOT think you can put Sell's name in this. Russell had like a 5:08 mile early, followed by like a 5:13 or something. That would have been like Sell running in the area of a few 4:35's. 4:50's for Sell was aggressive. 5:08's for Russell was stupid. If I'm Sell, I'd ignore all these morons who compare what Russell did to what he did. People all around called his efforts "brave". Hers would be called "foolish". I just read a quote from her saying she felt the fast early pace would not hurt her or take much out of her legs because those miles were "downhill". I don't think that really matters in a marathon. The distance will catch up to you if you put your body through a pace that fast that early with that much running left to do. Sell on the other hand was only really running a few seconds faster that he should have, and that didn't really start until 10 miles or so.

Vipam, you do okay when talking track, but your math and your grasp of today's marathon both suck. Russell was on 2:23:56 pace at halfway (and to the guy who said she was on sub-2:20 pace at 10K, it was actually closer to 2:22-even pace). Plus, Russell did not "instantly hit the wall," although it would not have been a surprise had she blown up all at once.

The strongest three runners out there today were Kastor, Russell, and De Reuck, but only two of those three are Olympians today.

How was Russell among the strongest of the top 3? Rhines blew dust in her face at the end. Russell was to weak to respond. RHINES WAS STRONGER!

This is the dumbest thing I've read on here in a long time. Leave it up to Vipam to lead the pack.

Yeah, go out too fast, crash and burn and fail to make the team. Gotta admire that. Only Vipam would admire ignorance.