Asics Athlete and Olympian Ryan Hall is headed to the London Games on the U.S. Olympic Team after finishing in second place at the 2012 Marathon Trials in Houston, Texas with a time of 2:09:30. Hall finished just shy of his Olympic Trials record pace of 2:09:02 set in 2007 in New York City.
On a cool, sunny morning, registering 33 degrees at the time of the men's start, Hall shot out of the gates quickly, setting the pace for most of the race. He finished the first half marathon in a time of 1:03:25, but as the race continued the pace gradually slowed.
In typical Hall fashion, he was animated throughout the race, notably talking with his competitors at times. Following a scary moment at the 18-mile mark when he tangled legs with Abdi Abdirahman, at a fluid station, Hall avoided a fall and broke away with a pack of three runners that never looked back.
Hall, Abdirahman and eventual race winner, Meb Keflezighi stuck together for most of the final miles. At mile 23, Hall and Keflezighi made their move, separating themselves from the third place finisher. Hall finished in second place, 22 seconds behind Keflezighi who greeted him at the finish line with a hug.
“We're going, we're going,” said Hall to his wife, fellow Asics athlete, Sara Hall. When asked why he led the group at such a fast pace, Hall stated, “I was feeling good. You never know what's possible on the day.”
Hall, who has been sponsored by Asics since 2005, also competed at the Beijing Games in 2008. Hall ran the fastest American marathon time ever (2:04:58) at the 2011 Boston Marathon breaking his previous personal best of 2:06:17 at the 2008 London Marathon.
Asics athlete and Olympic Bronze Medalist Deena Kastor also competed in the trials hoping to earn a spot on the women's team. In a valiant effort just nine months after giving birth to her first daughter, Piper, Kastor fell short with a sixth place finish in a time of 2:30:40.
