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BOSTON MARATHON

April 17, 2006

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS

THE MODERATOR: Course record, you must be very happy about the course record.
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: Sure.
THE MODERATOR: Can you talk about the race in terms of, you were off the pace for a very long time and then you came on at the very end; was that the way you planned it?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: At the beginning, I was trying because I have experience here in the course, the Boston course. I had some tips from Moses and when we were traveling from home, he told me how to tackle, how to outrun Boston, to go some times, front runner. So I follow as he told me.
At the first half, I didn't follow because I know the race is too fast and it was fine for me.
THE MODERATOR: Basically what he said was that he had talked with Moses and got some advice on the race. He thought that --
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: Also, I talked to Paul, he's my training partner. He told me how I'm supposed to do.
THE MODERATOR: I guess you followed the instructions well.
Also joining us is Benjamin Maiyo. Benjamin, one of the things we noticed at the 20-mile mark, you were giving some hand signals to Robert. Can you tell us what those signals were?
BENJAMIN MAIYO: I was trying to tell Robert to assist me in pacing but Robert refused. (Laughter).
THE MODERATOR: He was trying to tell Robert to assist him, but I guess Robert was confused. I'm not sure if that was the case.
Robert, when he was signaling you, I made the assumption he wanted you to take the lead; did you not want to do that?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: I think I was following the instruction from the people that told me what I should follow. Also I talked in the morning with Dr. Rossa (ph), my coach, and he told me what I'm supposed to do. So I could not go against what they have told me, and you see the results, how the results came.
And also, I'm not run myself, 2:07.
THE MODERATOR: Basically he had a plan to run the race and he was not going to go against the plan that he had.
Q. Robert, are you surprised how early in the race that Ben began to push the pace? And did that shock you at all, were you worried that he had moved so early, 15K?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: Sure, I was not -- this is a marathon, and even though, if you can go two kilometers, I was able to catch him because the marathon is a long distance, 26 miles is a big distance.
You see sometimes people that run, I think you remember when you watch, when Moses was running, the guys in the front was very far, but Moses caught them, you see.
Q. So you were thinking about Moses?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: Yes. And I was here also that day. Because he's the one who put me when I was a young athlete in 2001, when I was join the association.
THE MODERATOR: Robert said he when they ran in 2001, Moses was giving him some advice.
Q. Robert, over the last couple of miles, you were looking at your watch several times, were you aware that you were close to the course record, and how do you feel about breaking the record that was set 12 years ago?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: I see when I was at 40 kilometers, I think maybe I can run 2:06. Paul told me, don't run too fast, you need only to win. Then I see I can make it. But after I reach -- I got confused when I saw the finish line, I got confused because I did see it was fast and then I start to increase again.
Q. I don't know if you know, but at the halfway mark, you were more than two minutes ahead of the course record at the time. Did you know that you were going that fast against the old course record; was that part of the plan or did you just feel really good?
BENJAMIN MAIYO: I was feeling it was fast, but my tactic was to run the course record. But we were talking last night with my group that let's try to run a fast race, let's not go very slow. So the guys that we were supposed to do it together, Lackimuti (ph), was very tired, but it was not a surprise to run.
THE MODERATOR: Robert, your history is that you've only run one marathon a year. Will you change that now for the world marathon major series, will you run more marathons?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: I always run two marathons a year.
THE MODERATOR: Joining us is Brian Sell, and we also have Alan Culpepper.
Q. When you ran Chicago very well, which is a very flat course, were you concerned when you went into the hills that you were going too fast, given how difficult this course is in the last eight miles?
BENJAMIN MAIYO: Before when we race here, we come and see the course three days ago. But when we were going through the course, I see the course, they were saying that there's a lot of hills, but when I saw the course was only two weeks, was too long for me to see the course. I had good training, so I was not -- I was not feeling that the course would be a problem.
Q. Robert, as you neared the finish line, could you hear the crowd urging you on toward that record?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: Yes, I saw the clock, I see I can make it, because I know that the course is 14 or 15, I don't know, and then I see I can make two seconds or one, because I was already -- when I ran before, I thought I could make 2:56, I would have pushed from there. I got confused in the corners.
Q. You seemed to really break away and really start to take control around the Heartbreak Hill area and your overall strategy.
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: Sometimes in the hills, because the way I train myself, it's good for me and I like running in the hills than down the hill. Down, it's difficult to go down, but to climb is very easy for me.
Q. After Robert went past you going up Heartbreak Hill and pulled away, did you think you would have any chance to catch him later, or did the race end at that point?
BENJAMIN MAIYO: I was thinking that he was going to slow down maybe but he was very strong.
Q. The cool conditions and the windy conditions, were you able to stay loose or did you have any problems cramping? You both looked pretty fluid in the end but did the cool, windy weather bother you that much, especially towards the end?
ROBERT CHERUIYOT: Today, I thanked God for giving us wonderful weather in Boston here. It was very nice weather. The weather was very nice.
BENJAMIN MAIYO: The weather was nice. The last three kilometers, I was very tired. So I was trying to see the finish line only.
THE MODERATOR: When you took your hat off, did you take it off because you were starting to heat up? Were you in a place like you feel you needed to take it off.
ALAN CULPEPPER: Yeah, I could feel like sweat was running down my face but I stuck it in my shorts just in case, anticipating that it might get cooler as we were going but that never really happened.
THE MODERATOR: And Meb, you kept yours on the entire race?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: Yeah, just like Alan, I got rid of it early and stuck it in, because it might get colder, but I'm glad I kept it on.
THE MODERATOR: Also joining us in Brian Sell on the end.
Q. Meb, you seemed to be a bit overdressed; were you cold?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: I had a pull-off sleeve. I'd rather be hot than be cold. Actually, when I threw it away toward the end, I wished I had it on. I was a little bit, somewhat cold. I didn't want to wear a long-sleeve shirt because then I wouldn't take it off easily. So I just had the cut ones and I threw them away after I got by the fire station.
The gloves, I kept them all the way. I was not uncomfortable. I was not hot. I was not hot at all.
THE MODERATOR: Brian, you came here and did a little training run in February, I believe. How did that -- how did today compare to that in this was your first try at Boston.
BRIAN SELL: Today was a lot tougher. We hit the hills pretty well in February when we came out. We ran the hills a few times. I sort of knew what was coming, kind of held back early in anticipation of the hills, so I think that helped in the long run today.
Q. And Meb, this is your debut here and you tide your personal record. You have to be pleased with your performance here.
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: It was great to be here, first I should have done it a little earlier, congratulations to all of the U.S. runners. I think it was very well done and we had five guys in the top ten or so, I haven't seen the official results yet but that was a tremendous effort on all of us.
I went out really fast. I went for it, and Benjamin kind of was not patient and I wanted to be a little more patient. We both played in Robert's hand and I wish we had a great finish toward the end, but didn't happen for me. It was 1:02:45 or so and then almost 1:07. But I'm delighted with my performance. I think I was ready to run my PR, so it was very close, plus on minus three seconds, I think it was three seconds slower.
Q. Did you feel like you went out too fast?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: I had my split and I felt very comfortable all the way. I saw a couple 4:43 and 4:45. If I keep this up, I don't know what we're going to do on Heartbreak Hill. You always think about those, Newton Hills. I give it my best and those guys had an outstanding race just like the rest of the U.S. guys had an outstanding race.
Q. For all three of you, can you talk about the significance of five Americans in the top ten and what this bodes for the future of marathoning in this country?
ALAN CULPEPPER: Well, I think for those of us that are in it, as we make our profession this way, we're not probably as surprised as some other people are honestly. We've seen it coming for a while and we've seen it building. This has been a work-in-progress for the last five or six years. Myself and Meb, this started ten years ago for us and Brian showed today that, you know, the fruits of his labor are paying off. So you know, I think it bodes very well for the future. I think three or four years ago, I don't know if there would have been as many guys that pick up the slack there when the Kenyans were fading or when some of these other guys started to really fade. In years past, they just would have maintained their placing whereas now, guys that are coming up from behind and running them down. So it's really good to see and I think it's going to be the progression that's going to continue.
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: Alan said it all. As long as you persist with it, keep working hard and do the right things, it will pay off. You know, today, John Hancock and BAA did a great job in bringing a lot of great guys to do their performance, and I think we performed the way we should. That's the results. My hat is off to everybody, you know, we came to run and we did it really well.
BRIAN SELL: I've got to give you two guys credit for going out with the leaders. I wasn't quite gutsy enough to do that, but I ended up running a decent time. Good job to you guys.
Q. Brian, you just said congratulations to them, but did you feel the fact that you had never run here before worked against you?
BRIAN SELL: Not necessarily. My PR coming in was 2:13. It was a good four minutes behind these guys.
My goal was just to try to run as close to a five-minute pace as I could per mile. I hit pretty well five flats through the first half, and those guys were out the sight. I was a little worried at halfway, but, you know, I stuck to the game plan and it turned out pretty well.
Q. This is for all three. Bill Rogers indicated on TV that this is a new day for Americans in this event, maybe in marathoning. To what degree do you owe that to the organized effort you received in terms of your coaching and your training?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: Personally for me, I've been working with Coach Bob Larson since '94, so that's 12 years or so. The consistency of training and working with him, it's a relationship that, you know, we should be able to work together. We always have since '94, we got through UCLA and then developed to be a really good runner at the U.S. level and international level. That was today.
You know, it's exciting, I think, to be able to see a lot of the U.S. guys run well and, you know, it's fun and we don't hide anything. If they ask us what kind of training we're doing, we definitely share it, and I think that's what is going on.
ALAN CULPEPPER: For myself personally, I do a lot more on my own individually in terms of coaching myself and training alone. So that's not really the part that has benefitted me. It's more the collective effort that has come together with all of these major races. With the big five coming together with the race directors, with the sponsors, everyone now is really starting to get on board and they see what we can do. They believe in us, which really helps us. The crowd support was unbelievable. I had people along the way just, I mean, USA crowd support was incredible and people saying, "We believe in you." We haven't had that for a long time. That is contagious, for sure.
So, you know, I'm just really happy with the direction that all of this cohesive effort that all of the sponsors are coming together, the directors coming together. It's a full-time job for these guys and they are really starting to see the benefit of pushing towards the American athletes. I think it is a new day, for sure.
BRIAN SELL: I have to thank the Hansons and Brooks for having a team, because I can't do it on my own. I owe every performance to the team. I wouldn't make it out of bed in the morning if it were not for those guys. The team thing is working for me, and like Alan said, too, the American support out there on the course was amazing. It was really good.
Q. How difficult was it when you see this insane pace going into the hills, to stay at that level, and for Alan, when you were with the pack and kind of lost contact, were you confident they might come back to you as they did last year?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: Well, the pace was, you know, pretty consistent for me, low 40s, 4:43, 45. At the beginning it was five minutes even or so. It felt pretty comfortable. There was some spots where I did not see the mile mark person for me and I couldn't engage, I knew we were at mile 10 or 12 or 13 but I could not get every split for the mile.
The crowd was just phenomenal, "go USA," and "go Meb," the chanting like that, for me personally toward the end, that's what carried me in. Could have gave up after middle of Newton Hill, but I look back -- it just forces you to push hard and we were phenomenal. That's about it for me.
ALAN CULPEPPER: For myself, I came into this race really with the mindset of "I'm here to race." So honestly, I didn't even check any splits until I started to get left. So probably not -- the first ten miles, I didn't look at any splits, which it's good and bad. I mean, it was good because I didn't panic. I was just running how I felt. I think that was a testament to the day, just you could just feel better. For me, I kind of had to switch modes as soon as I started to pull back a little bit and I went through halfway, in 1:03:25 or something, and that's pretty quick. Gosh, I can't tell you how much different people have told me that to run well here, you've got to be conservative, you've got to be conservative, you've got to save it, you've got to save it. So my mindset was try to relax as much as you can and feel good.
I kind of switched more into a time mode, keep trying to run five minutes a mile and a lot of guys will come back, which I was pretty confident of that. Unfortunately I was one of those guys towards the end. (Laughter).
The positive split after 1:03 is pretty expected on this course.
THE MODERATOR: Alan, it seems in your history you chased guys down at the end of the race, you fell back and you were back to 9th, 10th, 11th and yet to finish where you did in the top five, did you get to a point where you felt like you had to be conservative enough that you had enough left to chase some people down or did you just get a second wind so to speak?
ALAN CULPEPPER: No, it was more a matter of just maintaining. I was really trying to maintain through the hills and that's what I was able to drop the three guys that were hanging on me and sat on me for about five miles and I was able to pick off three guys through the hills. I felt good through the hills. As soon as you come out through the top, the last two years my hardest mile is from 22 to 23. There's really nothing there, I don't know why. But it's like you've come through all this stuff and all of a sudden you're like, "oh, good, kind of a relatively flat mile." Both years, I felt horrible on that mile. It was one of my slowest miles. There's just something that physiologically happens when you've gone through all of these different undulations.
For me it was more of a matter trying to maintain. It wasn't really a second wind, per se.
Q. Brian, I don't know if you took a tally out there, but do you know how many people you passed during this race?
BRIAN SELL: No. I saw John Carrera. It was nice to pass him. (Laughter).
No, I don't know -- when those guys went out like they did really fast, I kind of went into the mode I was in in Helsinki where I just kind of let the pack go and hoped I would see them again. I think today was obviously a course record day. But, you know, a lot of guys went out a little too hard. So I lucked out.
THE MODERATOR: So Brian, in retrospect, did you survive Wrestlemania?
BRIAN SELL: I guess so.
ALAN CULPEPPER: When Brian went by me, I thought he was some guy that jumped on the course. (Laughter).
BRIAN SELL: I was waiting for that 46-second quarter. (Laughter).
ALAN CULPEPPER: I thought I was clear.
THE MODERATOR: We won't talk about that anymore.
Q. When was that?
BRIAN SELL: The very last left turn, I was hoping it was a Kenyan or something up there. (Laughter).
THE MODERATOR: Boylston Street?
ALAN CULPEPPER: I just passed this woman and I'm like, "Man, she's coming back good." (Laughter).
Q. Could Meb elaborate a little, you said you and Ben might have played a little bit into Robert's hands, could you elaborate on that a little bit?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: It was quite a bit of wind, and Benjamin was moving left, right, left, right, so it's like I won't stay on him, so that's understandable, but we definitely were not using tangents. I knew he was getting tired because he missed one of his forwards, I think it was 25k. But it was a question I discussed, I really thought I had a great shot of winning this. I came in to win it and I positioned myself. When Yan (ph) left early on, we were probably like, okay, maybe he's helping somebody out or if he's going to finish or anything like that. When Benjamin went and I have to respond, I knew I was playing risky, but I looked back a few times and there was a big group coming. But at the same time, I was really shocked to see Robert coming because he wasn't really -- it wasn't a progressive move that he did. He was just kind of just jumped on us. We talked a little bit, so let's go with him, I tried to go with him for a while, I tried to catch Benjamin and he just looked strong and those negative splits that he did early on, I think that was going to hinder me. It was just Robert -- this course takes a lot of strategy, a lot of patience, and I didn't think I was patient enough today. But at the same time, you know, when you're trying to win, you can't let guys have too much of a gap. He finished second, he didn't fade away and finish 10th or 15th. So I gambled and if it was after 15 or 17 miles, definitely have to respond to that. But it was early on and a legitimate guy, so therefore I have to do what I have to do. And that was go out hard and I thought at least, if he does win it -- but the course takes a toll on you and that's part of the Boston course.
Q. Was that your competitive nature when you saw him go, you said, I have to respond, or was that the way your coach and your team, you were told to do?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: We discussed all of the strategies with coach and at the end of the day, you make your own decision on the race day. Like when he left early on, just let him have it. We're eventually going to work as a group, Alan and I were there and eventually we'll catch up to him. But I'm a competitive guy, I love being in the front, and, you know, some days it pays off, some days it doesn't. It wasn't a good race for me and I definitely think there's more to come. I definitely feel people who have been helping me in San Diego, people that knew me, this was a course for me, but at least first you have to experiment with it and now I've got a feeling of racing on it, just like I did in New York the first time and it's very, very familiar course to me in New York and hopefully that will be the case in the future here.
ALAN CULPEPPER: I think we have the sense Maiyo coming in was going to be one of the guys to watch out for. It seemed pretty obvious to me that John was helping him, the way he took off, and the way Benjamin was the one always trying to bridge that gap, and then we go through a water stop and something, and boom, there they would go again and you go up a little hill and it's always you making those moves. It seemed pretty clear that Benjamin, he's the guy to watch out for. That's where Meb would make those conscious decisions in the race. You could tell which guys are the fittest and you could tell which guys feel the best. And especially if they are not doing much work, but getting help, so you know, that's why Meb responded to those, and likewise myself. You have to respond to those but still trying to stay within yourself. It's a delicate balance, because you don't want the race to go without you, but you also know you have 22 miles to go and when we're running some of those 4:40 miles, so it's a balance.
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: At the same token, Timothy and Benjamin, they were talking among each other, so there was -- Timothy was looking at me probably to see how I was feeling and what was going on. They kind of talk among each other and they made a move again. I'm just like, okay, be ready, they are going to make a move. But that's part of the game and we live and learn. But let's not forget about what we accomplished today. Like Roger said, it's a new beginning and my hat is off to everybody who ran really well, especially the people with the PR.
Q. The first time with this many Americans up high since before prize money and they are running 2:19s. What does it say, even more the placement, you're looking at 2:09, 10, in terms of how American marathoning has gotten better.
BRIAN SELL: I think it's a step in the right direction, anyhow. I'm still really hungry. I want to be up with the leaders. Maybe not next time, but two marathons from now, and hopefully in 2008, the Olympics, we can take a few more medals. That's the big goal. This is a step in the right direction.
ALAN CULPEPPER: Yeah, the sport, obviously, it's a lot different now than it was prior to prize money. Even the beginnings of prize money, it was a different -- whole different setup back then. And especially American distance running and male marathoning, back in the early '80s, that's kind of all there was, in a sense, you know what I mean. There was road racing and marathoning. So every road race you did was in preparation for some marathon. That's why we had 200 guys running under 2:20. Whereas now, there's a lot more options and a lot more incentive to stay on the track or make an Olympic team to that distance, or make a PR before you move up to the 5k or 10K before you move up to a marathon.
For me, I don't think we're going to get back to those days where we have hundreds of guys running 2:20, but that's not the goal. The goal is to have guys like Brian in 2012 running great and lies like Meb and I continue to run great through the rest of our career, so it's this progression, where today it showed that. Maybe we didn't have as many people run, in the 2:18, 19 range, but we had more guys run up in the front so that's the goal.
Q. Given the strategy that Alan and Meb came here with, do you think that next year you might adopt it or your strategy might evolve to where you want to stay with the lead back pack and let it all hang out so to speak?
BRIAN SELL: I'm going to play it on what the leaders do. I went in, I knew what kind of fitness I was in, I knew I wasn't ready to make it a four or five-minute jump. I made a three-minute jump and I'm pretty happy with it. I try to race to where I feel I'm at, and you know, eventually, if I keep improving that level, yeah, I'll be up there mixing it up with those guys but one step at a time I guess.
Q. What part of the course was the most fun for the three of you?
ALAN CULPEPPER: The finish.
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: Probably, I think it was the big crowd by west lake. You hear about it, you read about it, but when they are chanting "Go USA, go USA," you're still feeling good, and you can say, you know what, I'm glad I'm here. Personally, the end, like Alan said, when I cross that finish line. Some days are tough.
BRIAN SELL: I thought the start was really good, too, with the fly over and stuff, and the Star Spangled Banner was really nice. It was really emotional.
Q. You all concerned points more the marathon majors series. Will that be part of your regimen now, the series and the Olympics?
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: Personally when I decided to come here, you know, it wasn't part of the plan for the world major marathon but I'm glad it is, and you know, like Alan said earlier, the new directors are doing a great job in being able to have us there and provide sponsorship. This is what we do for a livelihood. It's great stuff for us and encouraging for us because we got points at the beginning and not waiting until next year or so to say, let me get a few points. Boston was the first one and definitely all of us here are delighted to be the initiators of that.
So we might play some strategy, I guess, to be able to do well and with the Olympics or the major marathons instead of going to other marathons that are not on the list.
ALAN CULPEPPER: Those races are the greatest races in terms of what we try to do in terms of marathoning. So those are the ones you want to go to anyways.
So that's what is nice about it, so now there is this little extra bonus, for those of us that got points, it's nice to have that little extra incentive there. I don't know if that necessarily influences it, because those are the races you hope to be competitive in any ways. I just think it's good because it brings more exposure. We were talking about it right now, there's going to be things written about it, but it's just going to be a heightened level of exposure to our sport as a whole.
So again, for those of us that this is our profession, that's what I'm excited about is, just, you know, I'm answering questions about it, so that's a good step forward.
Q. Boston is a one-of-a-kind course, you have all of the commotion during the first half of the race with the downhills and that, and then positions are kind of set in when you go up the hills, but one of the unique things of Boston is you guys are like NBA players because for the last four miles; you're running in front of 20,000 people. What does that feel like? What is that experience like of being on an NBA stage with 20,000 people during that last stretch?
ALAN CULPEPPER: For me it's amazing because the last part of the marathon is amazing, especially this one. It's a great distraction. I found myself trying to get over to the side of the road to get that deafening crowd noise to distract and you just keep those positive thoughts going.
Yeah, that's what makes this race incredible, and that's what is so encouraging when you -- that the crowd doesn't -- they are not real selective. They don't care if you're having your best day or worst day. They are pumped up. I saw a lot of beer cups out there and everyone was pumped up. On the tough part of the course, that's when the crowd really brings it home.
MEB KEFLEZIGHI: This is the 110th anniversary. It's a tradition that Boston has. So to be able to -- for me today wasn't like, it's my first time obviously, but, you know, I was hanging on like I said. But they were still, "USA, USA," the whole way. And that drives you and motivates you and keeps you going. It's a unique sport that we have. You can do it at any age, they have a sign, "Go Meb" or "U.S." or American flag. It's beautiful. It's the closest you can get to the vicinity of the runners and some of them want to give you a high-five. I was close to giving them five, but just kept focused. It's neat that we have the exposure and fan level. You hear about it, read about it, but it's amazing.
ALAN CULPEPPER: One thing that was really cool was through the hill, especially the first hill, the Newton Hills after you make the turn at the fire station, you're hugging the turn because it bends to the left. At that point, it went through my mind, I felt like I'm in the Tour de France because the crowd is opening as you go by. People are like out on the roadway and as you come they were moving back and it's like, oh, "Go USA," you can't see because people in front are blocking them. That part was really cool, actually.
THE MODERATOR: Gentlemen, thank you very much.

End of FastScripts...

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BOSTON MARATHON

April 17, 2006

Robert Cheruiyot

Alan Culpepper

Meb Keflezighi

Benjamin Maiyo

Brian Sell