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From: Biniam Tekle (biniamt@dehai.org)
Date: Tue Oct 26 2010 - 08:09:34 EDT
Finishing Touches: Exclusive Interview With Meb Keflezighi
Updated: Oct 25th 2010 11:44 AM EDT by Matt Fitzgerald
Meb Keflezighi will attempt to defend his ING New York City Marathon
title on November 7. Photo: PhotoRun.net
The defending ING New York City Marathon champion is ready to take on
the world record holder.
Interview by: Matt Fitzgerald
It’s an exciting time to be Meb Keflezighi. The Eritrean-born American
running great will arrive at the starting line of the ING New York
City Marathon on November 7 under the defending champion’s spotlight.
He was recently inducted into the UCLA Sports Hall of Fame. His
charitable foundation, the MEB Foundation, got a boost from his
victory last year and is rolling along. And he has a new book, Run to
Overcome.
Although he was not able to race much in 2010 due to injury,
Keflezighi declares himself healthy now and ready to give his best in
the five boroughs. He spoke to us by phone as he begins to put the
finishing touches on his marathon fitness.
Competitor.com: How do you feel now compared to this time last year?
Meb Keflezighi: Ever year is different. Every field is different. You
can always expect great competition [in the New York City Marathon].
That’s what it’s known for. Last year they assembled one of the
deepest fields ever, and this year they’ve done the same thing again.
As far as my fitness, I feel pretty strong. Obviously I missed out on
a lot of races this year, so that’s a difference. I’ve been cautious.
You don’t want to jeopardize [the main goal]. Since I won New York
last year my goal has been to come back and do it again. Coach [Bob]
Larsen and I have worked very hard to be able to do that, hopefully.
You were able to get in one tune-up race at the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose
Half Marathon. Since you did that same race last year, it must have
given you a good basis for comparison.
Last year San Jose was a good one. I ran a PR [1:01:00]. This year I
ran about 45 seconds slower, but considering the situation—staying up
late for the UCLA Hall of Fame induction, driving to LA, flying to San
Jose—that put quite a bit on the body. And also sponsor obligations,
which I’m always happy to do, but I’m not doing that in New York and
they understand that.
Last year [San Jose] was four weeks before the race and after that it
was time to start backing off. This year it was five weeks out, so I
had a couple more weeks to keep the mileage up and run longer long
runs. Even though I didn’t run that fast I feel I’m close to where I
was [last year].
Are you 100 percent healthy?
Going into a marathon you’re never 100 percent healthy. I’m fairly
healthy—there’s nothing stopping me—but there’s always aches and
pains. Last year I had a little issue on the outside of the left foot
going into [New York]. But once the gun goes off you forget about
those little things. I’m as healthy as I can be going into a marathon.
Hopefully it will be my day again, but I know everyone else feels
that, so may the best man and the man who’s most prepared that day
win.
You’re also a year older than you were last year. Are you at the point
where you’ve started to feel telltale signs like slower recovery from
harder sessions, or do you feel that age is still not yet a factor for
you?
Thanks for asking! [laughs] No, but honestly I feel rejuvenated. I
feel as young as ever. I ran faster this year than I did in 2001, when
I was 26. You just have to take care of the body. I get numerous,
numerous massages. I take ice baths. I have a great support cast, from
therapists to my coach to my wife. We try to eat right and cook right
at the appropriate times for my runs. The night before my run I carbo
load, and then when I come back I have my routine, whether it’s a
PowerBar, Protein Plus or Generation UCAN until I get home. That helps
a lot. It’s not [a matter of just] running and seeing what you can do.
Doing the small things makes a big difference.
Have you tried anything different in your training this year?
If it’s not broken, don’t try to fix it! We would have liked to go to
150 miles a week, but because of the hamstring tightness I had before
Falmouth I decided not to do that. We went up to 120, 121. Last year
we had a couple of weeks at 130, 131. For me, the key is to be healthy
and not try to push the envelope to the maximum. I’ve been recovering
fine from it. My workouts have been good. As long as I can stay
healthy the next two weeks I’ll be fine.
I imagine you don’t put too much of your attention on any single
competitor going into a race, but does it add a little excitement to
this race to have world record holder Haile Gebrselassie there?
Haile is a great competitor. Haile’s at a different level. He’s 37
(maybe a little older), but he’s still performing as he has in the
past. Haile’s someone I’ve looked up to for a long, long time. He’s
been great for the sport, and a great ambassador for the sport. I
always learn something from him. There have been times when we’ve sat
down for an hour and a half and chit-chatted about sports and about
politics. I respect him a lot, and I think he respects me.
Come race day I don’t know if he’s going to run 2:03:59. That’s the
difference. If he has that kind of world-record fitness, he will win
the race. But there’ll be others who’ve run as little as 28 seconds
slower than that. You can’t count out James Kwambai [2:04:27 PR], and
there’s [Abderrahim] Goumri, who’s been around a long time. And
there’s another guy, Abel Kirui, who’s run 2:05:05. So there’s plenty
of competition. That’s why we compete. Nobody gets a trophy for being
the favorite on paper. You have to go there and give your best and
whoever has the best day, is most fit, will prevail.
About the Author:
Matt Fitzgerald is a senior editor at Competitor Group, with regular
contributions to RunNow.com, Triathlete, Inside Triathlon and
Competitor. Matt has written 17 books, and counting, including Brain
Training For Runners and Racing Weight.
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