There are so few of them now that they’re known by their first names, usually mentioned together — Deena-and-Kara. Amid platoons of Ethiopians, Kenyans, Russians, Japanese, and Chinese in women’s marathoning, Deena Kastor and Kara Goucher are the only American runners among the global elite. At a time when the US males, led by Meb Keflezighi and Ryan Hall, are enjoying an upsurge, their female counterparts make up a list of two.If there are no marquee domestic names in the field for Monday’s 114th Boston Marathon, it’s because Kastor is running in London April 25 and Goucher is hoping to have a baby. Paige Higgins, the top US contender, has a personal best (2 hours 33 minutes and 6 seconds) nearly two minutes slower than all of her foreign rivals.
No American woman has won here since Lisa Larsen-Weidenbach in 1985, the last year before prize money was awarded. None has won in New York City since Miki Gorman in 1977. “In the last 10 years no American was going to win a major marathon except Deena,’’ observes New York race director Mary Wittenberg. “That’s what we have to move beyond.’’
Kastor, who won Chicago in 2005 and London in 2006, is 37 now and her personal best (2:19:36) was set four years ago. Goucher, who made her 26-mile debut two years ago in New York, is 31. Magdalena Lewy-Boulet, the Polish-born Olympian who ran 2:26:22 to finish second in Rotterdam last weekend, is 36. Along with Desiree Davila, they’re the only US women who’ve broken 2:30 since the beginning of last year. “What’s more surprising is the age of the people who are doing it,’’ said Larsen- Weidenbach, who was 23 when she won here 25 years ago. “We’re not nurturing our young.’’
While the Americans have been running in place, the rest of the world has been getting both faster and deeper. Ten Ethiopian women already have run faster than Lewy-Boulet this year. In 2009, Goucher’s best time (2:27:48) didn’t put her in the global top 50.
USA Track & Field said the dearth of depth is temporary. “It’s the same situation we were in with the men,’’ said Jim Estes, the federation’s associate director of long-distance running. “It takes a while to turn it around. The women just aren’t on the same development cycle that the men had been.’’
The men’s pool is decidedly deeper. Besides Keflezighi and Hall, either of whom could be the first domestic men’s winner here since Greg Meyer in 1983, the up-and-comers include Dathan Ritzenhein, who finished ninth in the Beijing Olympics, Brett Gotcher, Jason Hartmann, and Jorge Torres. Though the women’s pipeline undeniably is thinner, help should be on the way with the likes of Shalane Flanagan, Amy Hastings, Molly Huddle, and Ilsa Paulson, who won last year’s US title at 20
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