2012 USA Olympic Team Trials Marathon – Complete Coverage
MarathonGuide Staff
Jan 29, 2025
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2012 USA Olympic Team Trials Marathon –
Complete Coverage
By Sharon Ekstrom
Featured Book/Movie: Run For Your Life | A Race Like No Other
| photo: Victah Sailer/PhotoRun Meb looks to add to his Olympic resume |
| The USA is the only country that uses a single race to select its Marathon team for the Olympics and for the first time in history the USA chose to use a single venue and single day – Houston, TX on Saturday, January 14, 2012 – to stage two races to select both the men’s and women’s teams for the Olympics. According to varying criteria for the men and women, any athlete who had run faster than the “qualifying standards” is qualified to participate in the Olympic Trials Marathon and by the deadline 161 men and 226 women had qualified. Of course not everyone who can run a certain time at a distance is really planning to run the marathon – especially as fast 10,000m specialists would be “qualified” – so after the dust had settled; more than 300 athletes, 112 men and 194 women, had declared their intent to participate in the Olympic Trials Marathon, a record number. For 2012, the races would be held on a one-time use course designed to simulate what the athletes might find in London: a flat course consisting of a short lap and three longer laps with a couple of u-turns thrown in for good measure. The idea being that those who would do well on this course would do well on the similar London Olympics course. In attendance would be many past Olympians as well as a whole slew of new and upcoming talent. For most of the more than 300 athletes, just getting to the Olympic Trials Marathon was the goal, but for a couple of dozen their heads were filled with the possibility of getting a trip to the Olympics from a top three finish. And while a foot race normally has one winner, there will be six (three men, three women) to emerge from the Houston Trials as “winners,” having won the right to represent the USA at the premier running and marathon event held every four years, the Olympic Games to be held in London in August 2012. Some runners will be thinking about winning the race, but really any will be happy with a top 3 finish and trip to the Olympics; that is the goal. In the history of the Olympics, the USA has brought home 12 medals in the marathon: Thomas Hicks (St. Louis 1904 – gold), Albert Corey (St. Louis 1904 – silver), Arthur Newton (St. Louis 1904 – bronze), Johnny Hayes (London 1908 – gold), Joseph Forshaw (London 1908- bronze), Gaston Strobino (Stockholm 1912 – bronze), Clarence DeMar (Paris 1924 – bronze), Frank Shorter (Munich 1972 – gold), Frank Shorter (Montreal 1976 – silver) and Meb Keflezighi (Athens 2004 – silver) For the women’s event – Joan Benoit who won the first women’s marathon event and set world record while doing it (Los Angeles 1984 – gold) and Deena Kastor (Athens 2004 – bronze). If the USA hopes to improve on that count in 2012, it will have to happen from one of the men or women who will be competing at the 2012 Olympic Trials Marathon in Houston. We will be continually updating this page to add content and commentary. Please come back often as we will try to provide the most intelligent coverage of the Olympic Marathon Trials available… |
The Best and Smartest Race Coverage
2012 Men’s Olympics Team Trials Race Recap
2012 Women’s Olympics Team Trials Race Recap
Archive: As It Happened – Our real-time notes and comments
| he History |
| Past Races The use of one Qualifying race to choose the USA Olympic Marathon Team was introduced for the men in 1968, 1984 for women. Each of the preceding Trials tells a great story of USA marathoning in that era. Men’s Olympics Team Trials History Women’s Olympics Team Trials History The Olympic Marathon On these pages we’ll prepare you for the watching and reading about and appreciating the 2012 Olympics. But for those who want to review the history of the event, we’ll encourage you to read the chapters on our site describing – The Origin of the Marathon and – The First Marathon |
| The Rosters/The Lineups |
| Up-To-Date Starters Lists Oddly, it’s hard to find the starting lists for the Olympic Marathon Trials. The starting list will remain in flux until just before race day. Here is our best efforts at creating the comprehensive start list: Men’s Starter List Women’s Starter List The Qualifiers List 161 Men qualified for the Olympic Trials and 112 entered, while 226 Women have qualified and 194 entered. These lists are a who’s who of American marathoners…Complete List of Qualifiers With Commentary Demographics/Statistics & More (all from the link above) |
| Previews/Profiles |
| MarathonGuide.com – Preview The quick overview of the race – what you’ll see. If your time is short and you can read just one thing – start here… 2012 Men’s Marathon Preview 2012 Women’s Marathon Preview The Favorites – Overview Here we’ve provided more detailed information about each of the men & women to watch. Who are they, where did they come from, why do we expect them to contend in Houston? These athletes are proven winners – some of the ones we’ll expect to stand on the podium – anything can happen during a marathon – but expect these men & women to factor in the mix – why? The Favorites – Men The Favorites – Women The Contenders – Overview Beyond the favorites is a cadre of runners who might have been considered American favorites in any other year with a less deep field. Here are our picks to make runs at the podium. Men – Contenders Women – Contenders |
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