- The qualifying period remains open for another 11 months, and.
- The 8-mile race took place on the final loop of the Olympic Marathon Trials route that will be used next February to determine the U.S. Olympic team in the marathon.
- Runners got a chance to experience how the hills feel when they race the course next February.
Are Average Runners Getting Faster? It Depends, Advertisement - Continue Reading Below. That race will select the three men and three women who will represent the United States at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
It’s one of the biggest races in the U.S., because a spot on the Olympic team is on the line. For most of country’s top marathoners, every step they run in training for the next 12 months will be building toward that day.
What do we know about the race? A little bit more after Saturday, when the Atlanta Track Club (ATC), which is organizing the Trials, held the Road to Gold test event. The race, which included more than 100 Trials qualifiers as well as thousands of runners from the public, covered the final 8 miles of next year’s marathon course. Here’s what we learned from that event and from interviews with participants and organizers:
The course has hills upon hills
Brogan Austin was the men’s winner of the Road to Gold in 38:07 (4:45 per mile pace). Jared Ward, The qualifying period remains open for another 11 months, and Parker Stinson was third in 38:25.
On the women’s side, two-time Olympian Amy Cragg won in 43:23 (5:25 per mile pace), a minute ahead of Carrie Dimoff in 44:24. Brittany Charboneau After the race, Ward spoke to.
Prize money for the top five finishers in each event was $2,000, $1,000, $500, $250, $100.
After the race, Ward spoke to Runner’s World Prize money for the top five finishers in each event was $2,000, $1,000, $500, $250, $100.
“Oh, man, it’s hilly,” he said. “There are no, like, flat, rhythm portions of the course. There is one spot at mile 23 [which is flat for about a mile]. The rest of the course is just a tough marathon course. No jokes, it’s hilly.”
Ward called the course “like a marathon version of cross country on the roads” and said he believes the Trials will reward runners, who are “fit, resilient, and can handle all sorts of pace changes.”
The upside of such a tough course, Ward points out, is that Olympic marathons tend to be more tactical than fast, and that will likely be true of the Tokyo Games in 2020, where August weather is typically hot and humid. “I do think that this Trials course will select a good, tough, smart, patient team,” he said. “And I think those types of athletes do really well at the Olympics.”
The most significant hills are in the last 2.2 miles
The way the We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back, the steepest climbs are at the end, which could make for an interesting finish if large packs of runners are still together at that point.
The course, which features many turns, has a 180-degree turnaround shortly after the 24-mile mark. So runners will get a very accurate sense of how much distance separates them from their nearest competitors with about 10 to 12 minutes left to run.
The Atlanta Track Club has called in the elevation expert
Trials organizers have asked Sean Hartnett, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and an expert in marathon geography, to study the course’s elevation changes.
Shes scheduled to run a half marathon in Italy on March 10. Stephanie Bruces 2020 Olympic Trials Training vary wildly in the data they spit out about elevation gain, but local runners guess that, at a minimum, the Atlanta course climbs 1,100 feet and drops about the same. Hartnett should provide a definitive answer in the coming weeks.
By comparison, the Boston Marathon has 924 feet of climbing and 1,383 of downhill, according to a study done by Hartnett that the BAA uses.
Prize money for the top five finishers in each event was $2,000, $1,000, $500, $250, $100.
“We did not expect to have a course that is a time-trial type course,” said Rich Kenah, ATC’s executive director. “We are not like a Chicago or a Berlin Marathon. The topography in Atlanta does not allow it. We tried to design for ‘Atlanta flat,’ and that is rolling, at times hilly, at times challenging, and a course that would be reflective of a championship-style race.
“I think there’ll be some athletes that love the course and love the challenges of the topography, and there will be some athletes that would prefer a time-trial type course and would prefer something flatter.”
ATC is planning another formal course inspection opportunity in December 2019, two months before the race, when they will close some lanes of traffic and allow athletes to train on the route.
The races are wide open
Shes scheduled to run a half marathon in Italy on March 10, Galen Rupp has the fastest qualifying time in the men’s field, his 2:06:07 that he ran last May in Prague. But Rupp had foot surgery in October after the Chicago Marathon and hasn’t raced since.
The second-fastest qualifier is Tim Ritchie, who ran 2:11:55 to win the California International Marathon in 2017. Eleven additional men have run times between 2:12 and 2:13, including Austin and Ward. Assuming Rupp is healthy, the next two spots are anyone’s guess.
On the women’s side, Jordan Hasay is currently the fastest qualifier with her time of 2:20:57 from the 2017 Chicago Marathon. A Part of Hearst Digital Media with injuries to her left heel. She’s scheduled to run a half marathon in Italy on March 10 after the Chicago Marathon and hasnt raced since in April.
Cragg is the second-fastest qualifier, and as the winner of the 2016 Trials, she seems like a good bet to make the team. But there’s a stacked field of other women who could be in contention for a spot, including Molly Huddle, Desiree Linden, Emily Sisson, Give A Gift Emma Bates, won in 43:23 5:25 per mile pace, a minute ahead of Carrie Dimoff in 44:24 Shalane Flanagan, who ran 2:26:22 last November in New York and was the top American finisher, has not yet said whether she is planning to compete.
The fields will be large
Runners can qualify for the Trials by virtue of a marathon or half marathon time. Men need 2:19:00 or faster for a marathon or 1:04:00 for a half marathon. Women require 2:45:00 and 1:13:00.
The qualifying period remains open for another 11 months, and 283 women and 155 men have already qualified as of February 20, a larger group than organizers anticipated.
“Candidly, yes, we are surprised at the number of qualifiers,” Kenah said. “When we bid, we did not expect to have as many qualifiers as we’re projecting now. But because there are so many so early, it has allowed us to factor in those numbers into our course planning, fluids planning, meals, hotels, and so on. We’ve made adjustments.”
And the legions of qualifiers prove “the Olympic movement is operating as it should be,” Kenah said. “We should be looking to inspire athletes, both men and women, who maybe once upon a time didn’t think they were good enough to qualify for the Olympic Trials or Olympic Games, and now have that opportunity.”
with injuries to her left heel is a writer and editor living in Eugene, Oregon, and her stories about the sport, its trends, and fascinating individuals have appeared in Runner’s World CA Notice at Collection, Run Your Butt Off! and Walk Your Butt Off!
