http://time.com/70704/meb-keflezighi-boston-marathon-victory/
Meb Keflezighi's Boston Marathon Win Is a Victory For Us All
Sean Gregory _at_seanmgregory
4:58 PM ET
One year ago, two young immigrant men, fed up with the American way of
life, allegedly terrorized the Boston Marathon. A year later, an old -- by
marathon-running standards -- immigrant who has totally embraced his adopted
country won the historic race, thrilling everyone in attendance. On the
first running of the Boston Marathon since last year's bombings, Meb
Keflezighi is the perfect man for the moment.
The message this victory sends to the bombers is not subtle: Screw you. You
squandered your opportunity, your chance at the American dream -- which
still exists, thank you. You blew it. This could have been you.
Keflezighi became the first American man to win a Boston Marathon since
1983. No one gave him much of a chance, given his age -- he will turn 39
next month -- and the reality that since 1991, a Kenyan has won the race 19
times.
But Keflezighi has surprised skeptics before. He won a silver medal in the
Athens Olympics marathon in 2004, and in 2009 became the first American to
win the New York City Marathon in 27 years. That win kindled a tortured
debate about "real" Americanism; aCNBC.com commentary, entitled "Marathon's
Headline Win Is Empty," said that "the fact that [Keflezighi] is not
American-born takes away from the magnitude of the achievement ... Nothing
against Keflezighi, but he's like a ringer you hire to work a couple hours
at your office so that you can win the executive softball league." Comments
on a running site included: "Give us all a break. It's just another African
marathon winner" and "Meb is not an American - case closed."
Yes, Keflezighi was born in an Eritrean house with no electricity. But his
family fled that country's war with Ethiopia when he was still a young boy.
"I ran my first mile here," Keflezighi told me in a 2012 interview before
the London Olympics, where he finished fourth in the marathon. "I didn't
know the sport was an option in Eritrea." He ran cross country in grammar
school and high school in San Diego, and at UCLA. He's a product of the
American running system.
CNBC.com, for its part, apologized after the flap. But all questions about
Meb Keflezighi's Americanism have surely been answered by now. Especially
on this day. Last year, Keflezighi attended the race, but did not run: he
left only about five minutes after the bombs went off. "When the bomb
exploded, every day since I've wanted to come back and win it," Keflezighi
said afterwards, via USA Today. "I wanted to win it for the people of
Boston. It's beyond words."
He doesn't need them. A year later, Keflezighi's win speaks louder than any
bomb ever could.
Received on Mon Apr 21 2014 - 19:45:30 EDT