Boulder – Dathan Ritzenhein was making a point about Alan Culpepper’s longevity as a distance runner. Culpepper saw it as a setup for a wisecrack.
“When did you win NCAAs?” Ritzenhein asked recently at a small lunch gathering, referring to the 5,000-meter title Culpepper won for the University of Colorado in 1996.
“When you were in the fourth grade,” Culpepper shot back.
Ritzenhein was in the seventh grade when Culpepper claimed his NCAA crown and began a pro career that would take him twice to the Olympics. At 34, Culpepper remains one of America’s premier distance runners.
“I think Alan has been the model of consistency,” said Ritzenhein, also a former CU runner. “If I can learn a little bit from Alan’s consistency, that would be beneficial to my career.”
But Culpepper’s point was obvious. At 23, Ritzenhein is still a kid as distance runners go; Culpepper and his wife Shayne, also an Olympian, have two kids. Culpepper has made himself an accomplished marathoner; Ritzenhein makes his much-anticipated marathon debut in New York today.
Culpepper and Olympic teammate Meb Keflezighi, who won a silver medal in Athens, also are racing through New York’s five boroughs today, but the prospect of Ritzenhein’s first marathon has created more prerace buzz than both of them put together. Ever since he left Rockford (Mich.) High School with two national prep cross country titles, followers of the sport have seen Ritzenhein as a potential superstar.
“I’ve had the spotlight shown on me since I was in high school,” said Ritzenhein, who made the 2004 Olympic team in the 10,000 meters. “It has its downsides, but it makes me hold myself to a higher standard as well.”
Ritzenhein has had notable accomplishments in cross country and on the track, but many believe the marathon ultimately will be his best event.
“Obviously Dathan has proven himself to be extremely talented and he’s not afraid to work hard,” said Culpepper, who lives in Lafayette. “I think he’s right on track. He’s not coming into this like a normal 23-year-old. He’s had the benefit of numerous years of solid training, even from his high school program. I have a lot of respect for Dathan. I think he’s going to do great things.”
Boulder’s Mark Plaatjes, a former world champion in the marathon, said he believes Ritzenhein has enormous potential. Part of the reason is Ritzenhein’s size: 5-foot-8, 118 pounds.
“He’s very small,” said Plaatjes, a physical therapist. “He’s got a lot of muscle mass for his size, and he’s got this long, smooth stride. It’s everything that is so perfectly suited for the marathon. I don’t think there’s a doubt that he’s going to be a superstar in the marathon.”
Ritzenhein isn’t ready to turn his back on the track – he’d like to break Keflezighi’s American record in the 10,000 before he’s done – but there are sound reasons for his move to the marathon. Americans have had more international success in the marathon than on the track in recent years, and marathon training may help him avoid the kind of injuries that have hindered him in the past because it doesn’t require intense interval sessions.
“It’s more moderate training,” said his coach, Brad Hudson. “Dathan had three stress fractures in a row (that) came during intense track work.”
Ritzenhein had stress fractures in both femurs when he was at CU, one after the other, and he developed one in his left foot that forced him to drop out of the 10,000 at the Athens Olympics with 2 miles left.
Despite his perceived advantages in the marathon, Ritzenhein won’t commit to running the Olympic trials marathon next year in New York.
“It may happen that I finish on Nov. 5 and say, ‘I think we should wait a couple more years before we do one again,”‘ Ritzenhein said. “That’s a luxury I have, being 23. But I think it’s going to go well. The training has really suited me better. Brad says it’s more ‘moderate.’ That doesn’t mean it’s easy, but it’s not really intense.”
Ritzenhein finished third last month in England’s Great North Run, his first half marathon, and finished ahead of big-name marathoners such as Olympic champion Stefano Baldini of Italy and two-time world marathon champion Jaouad Gharib of Morocco.
Before making his marathon debut at New York in 1980, a 22-year-old Alberto Salazar predicted he would finish in 2 hours, 10 minutes, which no one had run there before. He won in 2:09:41, five seconds off the existing world record. That’s still the record for an American debut marathon, although Culpepper equaled it at Chicago in 2002.
“I won’t be as bold as Alberto and say I’ll run this time and win it,” Ritzenhein said. “I think I can compete with (the leaders) all the way. I have to be smart, of course. It (the marathon) is definitely stepping into uncharted waters for me.”
