Boston bound: Meb: 'I'm Prepared to Do Well'

by M. Nicole Nazzaro

He is an Olympic medalist, a New York City Marathon champion, and a former honorary captain for the Houston Rockets (he notched that honor in 2003 while in Houston for a race). Meb Keflezighi, who turns 35 next month, is in Boston to try to notch a second consecutive World Marathon Majors title.

American running fans who consider Meb’s breakthrough race to have been that last fall’s New York City win, though, clearly have short memories. Keflezighi came into the 2004 Athens Olympics with the 39th-best PR in the field and proceeded to destroy all but one of his competitors, notching a silver medal for the highest American finish in an Olympic marathon since Joan Benoit won gold in Los Angeles 20 years earlier.

A rabid basketball fan who picked Kansas to go all the way in this year’s NCAA tournament before their stunning defeat in the second round, Keflezighi has no such plans for his race on Monday. In Boston on Friday morning, he talked about race strategy, his bum left knee, his thoughts on competition, and what it was like to meet New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul. Highlights below.

On his preparation coming into Boston: “I feel good. I still feel the knee a little bit but I feel I can tolerate it. I’ve run uphill and downhill [on it]. I’ve done 25 miles on it. I’ve done my tempo runs. I would say I’m prepared to do well. You can’t play defense with the other guys. I’m here to compete. The knee is still a little inflamed but I’m still running fast. I think my workouts have indicated I’m in good shape, and we’ll give it a shot on Monday. The Boston Marathon’s been here for 114 years, and it only comes once a year, so if you’re not 100% you still have to show up for this. It’s that big.”

On his race strategy: “Just be patient. That’s what you have to do. That’s what I learned in 2006 [when he finished third in Boston behind Robert K. Cheruiyot and Benjamin Maiyo]. In New York you have the Verrazano Bridge that forces you to slow down. Here, you can roll right away, and some people might want to do that. But I have to make a conscious decision based on how many people go. The slower [the start], the better.”

On what he’ll do if Ryan Hall takes the race out early: “I’m going to see how many people go! If a rookie goes, let him go. If somebody who’s run the course here goes, I have to make that decision. Who is it, and should I make that move now or try to make it up later?”

On trying to become the first man since Ibrahim Hussein of Kenya to win New York and Boston back to back: “It’s been 27 years or something along that line since someone has won New York and then Boston back to back. [Note: Hussein won the 1987 New York City Marathon and the 1988 Boston.] I don’t know how I’m going to feel. It’s a great feeling to have won New York. New York has done a lot for my career. I hope to do the same thing here because Boston is one of the biggest races in the world, if not the biggest. But I don’t feel any pressure. It was a big relief off my shoulders when I won New York. I’m sleeping better! I also want to do the same thing here. I want that prestigious win in Boston, because everybody knows about Boston. Whether it’s me or Ryan, him and me going 1-2 or close to it, we have worked very hard to get here, and may the best man win on Monday.”

On meeting his NBA heroes: “I was honorary captain for one game with the Houston Rockets. Yao Ming is taller than me when he’s sitting down and I’m standing! I have a picture with him. I’m from UCLA so I love basketball. I met [New Orleans Hornet] Chris Paul at a Knicks game the day after New York last year. He was fascinated by what I was able to do. I told him, ‘Hey, I won the New York City Marathon’ and he said, ‘I know – how did you do that?!’ He took a picture with me. He’s a great guy. I haven’t been to a Lakers game yet, but I was a big Celtics fan with Kevin Garnett playing. I love March Madness, too, even though I picked Kansas to go all the way this year!”

On the mental toughness necessary to beat a fast field: “I was the 39th-fastest guy going into Athens. That’s what Coach [Bob] Larsen and I talk about. I’m the 18th- or 16th-fastest guy here. But how many of those are going to be ready to run their PR that day? I might be. Six other guys might be with me, so that makes me seventh-fastest. Now you compete, you beat maybe four, five, or maybe all of them. So mentally, you have to think of saying, ‘Hey, I believe in my preparation.’

“If my preparation goes well, that’s what competing is. If you don’t study, how do you expect to pass the test? If you don’t do the preparation, how do you expect to run fast? The marathon is like life. It’s simple. If you do the work right, there’s no reason you shouldn’t be able to compete. That’s where my confidence comes from. Yeah, I was the 39th-fastest guy going into Athens, but I’d done the preparation, and how many of those guys have also done that? If somebody’s worked harder than me, he deserves to win. [Olympic gold medalist] Stefano Baldini had the day of his life and I didn’t make the right decision to go with him. He made it when it counts, and that’s what racing is.”