by Larry Eder
Wilson Kipsang, photo by PhotoRun.net
The weekend around the marathon is a fascinating social experience. Managers, athletes, coaches, sponsors, fans, are all together. The bar at the NYC Hilton is a meeting place where many deals are made and many hope to meet athletes, coaches, and other players in the sport. It is also fascinating to see how the hotel rates go from $199 a room to $500 plus a night. Oh, New York. One has to pay for the opportunity to be in the very nicest of places, but especially during the week of the marathon.
For many of us, there is no place that we would rather be this week. The New York City marathon is a meeting place for the industry, for media, for 50,000 marathoners and their families. Add the World Series, and the celebration of Halloween (our digital team, the Shoe Addicts are dressed up as characters from the Power Rangers, but you can see those on our twitter account @runblogrun).
Below are some of the stories behind the stories in New York, from Alfons Juck of EME News. Alfons is read by many of the key players in the sport on a daily basis.
Enjoy! And remember to watch our social coverage at RunBlogRun.com at the Live tab.
NEW YORK CITY MARATHON NEWS
NEW YORK CITY (USA): There are no Russians in the elite field of the New York City Marathon, something agent Andrey Baranov said would be a scandal if it occurred in another sport, report the New York Times. Baranov said that he feels that it is due to the doping problem in Russia, but he points out that organisers are applying the same principal to other Eastern European runners. “I know there’s a doping problem there (in Russia),” said Baranov. “But just because there’s one bad apple doesn’t mean in Russia there are all bad apples. And in other Eastern European countries, the apples are even from completely different trees!” NYC race director Peter Ciaccia said the reason for the lack of Russians was due to a drop in standard in their performances. Baranov claimed that if one of his athletes wins gold in Rio, and the NYC Marathon wants to have them in the race, he will refuse.
NEW YORK CITY (USA): European marathon champion Daniele Meucci may not be able to compete in Sunday’s New York City Marathon, report Repubblica. The Italian had bad stomach pains and a series of bouts of vomiting on his arrival to the city. In the professional men field also other Italians are included with Andrea Lalli, Stefano Scaini and Carmine Buccilli. In the women pro field more Europeans also with one Italian Anna Incerti but also strong duo from Portugal Sara Moreira with Ana Dulce Felix, French star Christelle Daunay and former winner Jelena Prokopcuka from Latvia.
NEW YORK (USA): Legendary Haile Gebrselassie explained to Flotrack in an interview his current activities: “I want to do something. To coach might be difficult because at the moment I am doing a lot with my business. Because of that, being a coach would not be easy for me. Instead of that, I would like to do something for athletics. I can do media. I can encourage youngsters by going to their training camp, especially in Ethiopia where I am doing a lot. Once a week, I go to a training group to talk to their coach, to encourage them, to advise them. At the same time, I like to give types of advice to the Ethiopian athletics federation, to the sports commission, whatever. Those are the types of things I am doing right now. Besides that, the thing that I have to do is attend to my business. My business is quite big now. Over 1700 people work in the company. It’s not easy. I am here a week and every day I have to call and see what is happening, so forth and so on. When you talk about business, it’s not something that you put your money (in) and then you watch. When you do a business, you put your money and you put yourself as well. That is what I am doing now.”
NEW YORK (USA): For a trio of athletes based in America, New York City Marathon represents a new and exciting challenge. Olympic silver medalist Sally Kipyego and reigning USA cross country champion Laura Thweatt will be making their marathon debuts, while 18-year-old college freshman Alana Hadley will run her first Five Borough race. Training under coach Mark Rowland, Kipyego said she’s learned a lot about what her body can handle. Bumping her mileage up to 110 miles a week, Kipyego is covering distances at a pace she once believed was impossible. “I’m just going to run against the distance, that’s all it is really. Myself against the distance,” she said. Thweatt, coached by Australian Olympic marathoner Lee Troop says: “”Mentally I think it’s really going to prepare me for the training I’m going to have to do and competing I’m going to have to do if I’m going to fight for an Olympic spot [on the track],” said Thweatt, 26. “It’s relentless. It’s going to be a grind.” Unlike Kipyego or Thweatt, Hadley has completed the marathon distance before. Transitioning to the marathon as a young teenager, she achieved the U.S. Olympic Trials ‘B’ Standard by running 2:41:55 at the 2013 Indianapolis Monumental Marathon, then improved to 2:38:34 on the same course a year later. Informs Race Results Weekly. In total 50 000 runners are expected.
