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The men's 5,000m was one of the most interesting races of the
championships. Coming in, there were three athletes who already
had the World Championships "A" standard of 13:21.50,
defending champion Tim Broe, Adam Goucher, and Jorge Torres, and
two more who were just ticks away, Ryan Hall, and Ian Dobson.
When
Broe burst away from the pack in the first kilometer, Dobson and
Hall saw their chance. They followed Broe, caught him, and then
paced each other until, with two laps remaining, Broe again pulled
away, this time to win his third title in the event in a record
13:12.76. Hall followed Broe initially, but as he began to tie up,
it was Dobson who took second (13:15.33), with Hall third in 13:16.03.
All three were under the "A" standard, and all three were
under the U.S. Championships record.
Q:
How does it feel?
Ryan Hall:
I've been training for this race a really long time, for four years,
and not even coming close. I just can't believe it.
Q:
Did you guys know you were on pace for the "A" standard?
RH:
Yeah, I was looking up at the screen, and when I saw that no one
was coming, I thought, 'I've gotta get this 'A' standard.' I was
rigging pretty bad in the last 200.
Q:
That's a big time saver, standard and team qualifying all in one
night.
RH:
Yes, I can't believe it. Two for one, standard and top three. I'm
pretty lucky. I was not that sure of myself coming in.
Q:
This was your first race as a professional, right?
RH:
Yes, this is my first. And Sara [Bei] and I are with the same company
(Asics).
Q:
Did you think it would take a few years before you were able to
make a senior team?
RH:
Yeah, in my first year, in the 5K, I didn't really know what to
expect. But the choice is looking better and better to me.
Q:
Is this your first senior team?
RH:
I've never made anything. Never even been close. This is incredible.
Q:
What was your plan tonight?
RH:
We [Hall and Dobson] wanted to work together if we could. It was
sweet to switch off laps, and when he got in front of me, I could
just watch and relax. When I took the lead back, I'd keep pressing,
and stay relaxed. When Broe went by, I could try to sight on him
and just run as hard as I could.
Q:
It looks like you took over from Ian any time the pace started to
lag.
RH:
Yeah, you could feel it slowing down a bit, so I would think, 'Okay,
we've got to keep after this.'
Q:
Did you hope to get out and away like you did at NCAAs?
RH:
Kind of. It wasn't as slow as NCAAs, with Torres and Goucher and
a few other guys in there. We were kind of just planning on the
fly. When Broe started pushing the pace, at first we were going
so fast, and I thought, 'Let's just sit for a minute.' But Sara
told me before the race, she said, 'Be bold.' So I decided to see
if we could go with him and see what happened.
Q:
Are you still going to train at Stanford?
RH:
It's been working so well, and plus I've got to finish up school,
I've still got 19 credits to go. I'm planning on spending some time
at altitude in the fall, then coming back to Stanford in the winter
and spring and taking some classes, and finishing up.
Q:
Have you thought about what you'll do between now and Helsinki?
RH:
No. Sara and I have a wedding to plan, and we'll be doing some of
that, and I'd like to get in a few good weeks of training, now that
we'll be racing so late in Helsinki.
Q:
Any races?
RH:
I don't know. Sara's telling me something about some races, I'm
sure they'll get me in something.
Q:
When did you two get engaged?
RH:
It was a week ago tonight. The day after that, we decided to turn
professional. Sara graduated the Sunday before that. It's been a
crazy few weeks. And my brother's getting married tomorrow, so we're
catching a 6:30 flight in the morning.
(Interviews
conducted June 24, 2005)
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Ryan
Hall.
(Photo by Alison Wade/New York Road Runners)
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