byRBR AdminThe Tokyo Olympics is just about 18 months out. The World Championships is now 8 months out. The Road to Gold race, the preview of the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials course, was held last weekend, March 2.
Parker Stinson, Brogan Austin, Jared Ward, photo by Atlanta Track Club
The watch is ticking. The decisions made now are what assist or deter in who makes the team for Tokyo. This will be a tough team to make, and with the IAAF standards, making the team will be all the tougher. In all honesty, the marathon in Tokyo will be a broiler. A medal will come down to the last meters, and those who can keep their heads together, and do the marathon rush over the last 5k! A medal will go to some one brave, listenng to their inner voice, and one will be won by someone who battles to the very end.
Carrie Dimoff, Amy Cragg, Brittany Charboneau, photo by the Atlanta Track Club
Carolyn Mather wrote this piece for us. Carolyn Mather is from the seminal publication, Running Journal. Its publisher, Bruce Morrison, is dealing with some major health issues. Bruce is one of the champions of regional running media. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
A VIEW OF THE OLYMPIC TRIALS MARATHON FROM THE PRESS TRUCK
On a chilyl and somewhat windy Saturday morning, approximately 55 men and 50 women led the masses to view the marathon trials course, which would be run exactly a year later on February 29,2020 on the streets of Running City USA, Atlanta, GA. The eight mile preview included the six mile loop which will be run three times, and the final eight miles which were run on this morning.The course is a beautiful showcase of downtown Atlanta.
The morning started with an unusual bit of excitement as a movie shoot was underway on the street where the race started, so all were amazed and delighted by motorcycles roaring through and doing wheelies. It was a unique venue to get the trials hopefuls ready!!
The horn sounded at 7:05am as the men took off five minutes before the ladies. The group stayed together in a fairly knit tight pack as they passed mile one in 4:45. The course is out and back on this section going out historic Peachtree Street, looping at 10th street and heading back.The pace continued with mile 2 at 9:26. Passing the famous landmark of the Fox Theater again, we were amazed at mile 3 (14:12) to see two time Olympian Amy Cragg outward bound with a commanding lead over the women’s fields. Apparently she took it out at the beginning and never looked back, running the entire race alone at the front.
Back to the men, the group that would eventually finish 1,2 and 3 separated themselves from the pack near the four mile mark (18:46). Brogan Austin, winner of the national championship at Cal International last December, moved decisively to the front of 2016 Olympian Jared Ward and Parker Stinson. By mile five (23:45), he was nearly five seconds clear of Ward and Stinson, who worked together chasing the leader. Passing under the 1996 Olympic rings at mile six (28:22), Austin was clearly going to take the win as he increased his lead. He only glanced back one time just past mile 7.
The hills coming down from the gold domed state capitol were pretty steep and Austin looked to be trying not to break his stride. This part of the course is fairly brutal. Mile 7 (33:15) began the final stretch as the Mercedes Benz stadium soon came into full view. Back to the two chasers, Ward moved on Stinson for a solid second place. Austin broke the tape in 38:06 followed by Ward (38:16) and Stinson (38:23). Austin was a bit surprised by his victory but he was delighted. Next year the eight miles will continue .2 miles further to finish appropriately in Centennial Olympic Park.
Cragg finished strong, totally on her own in 43:23. I talked to her later, as she was finishing her cool down and she said the course is tough and once she took the early lead she was not sure of what was going to happen.She said she could have run much faster, but she just took it a mile at a time. Cragg is not running a marathon this spring as she gears up for the trials next February. I would say with great confidence,that her coach, Jerry Schumacher, defintely has a solid contender in Cragg, who is one of the most dedicated and caring runners I know. Since she has finally found the keys to success after some tough times, Cragg is a force all of her own. If she stays healthy, I predict she will be on her way to Tokyo next year and she now has a good taste of the course. Her coach Schumacher and her husband, Olympian Alistair Cragg, ran the course twice after the race, checking out all of the twists and turns.
Plotting the trials race starts early.
Being from Atlanta, I knew this would not be a flat course. It is actually amazingly hilly with a few fairly steep sections. The runners will be able to see each other on some of the out and back sections and will be able to gauge their competition.I talked with several runners and coaches after the race and one coach said he would not be surprised if a 2:34 on the women’s side made the team. That would certainly open the field to the smartest and best prepared, not necessarily to the speediest. All of the dozen or more runners I talked with, thought the course was a true “bear”. Having worked at and seen all of the trials courses since 1992, I can say this will surely be the most challenging. I believe Running City USA will see many hopefuls in Atlanta in the next months as they come to check out the course, whether they ran the 8 mile race or not. Nearly four hundred women and two hundred men have already qualified to race for the coveted three Olympic positions.
As of this moment, nearly a year before the trials, those top spots could be claimed by more than a handful of contenders.
