Geb to run The New York Marathon

Growing up in Ethiopia, Haile Gebrselassie began running out of necessity: It was 10 kilometers each way from his home to school, and his legs were the only form of transportation available. Today, he is considered perhaps the greatest long distance runner ever—he has won gold medals in the 1996 and 2000 Olympic 10,000-meters, set 20 world records (and seven unofficial world bests), claimed numerous world championships, starred in “Endurance,” a Disney movie about his life, and become the only human being ever to run 26.2 miles in less than 2:04:00 with a 2:03:59 world record at the Berlin Marathon in 2008. But there is one thing the 37-year-old hasn’t done: run the ING New York City Marathon.

That’s a big asterisk for a man whose name has become near-synonymous with the word “marathon.” And this fact does not escape Gebrselassie. “If you are a marathoner and someone asks you if you have run New York and you say no, that’s unimaginable,” he says. “My career would not be complete.” That is why Geb, as he is fondly known, will erase that asterisk this November when he lines up against a stellar field for his first-ever ING New York City Marathon.

Though Geb won the NYC Half-Marathon in 2007 and ran the race again this year (an asthma attacked forced him to drop out), he has competed in very few big races on American soil, which makes his participation in this year’s ING New York City Marathon especially exciting. And what a race it promises to be: With defending champion Meb Keflezighi and a bevy of world-class runners also gunning for victory, Gebrselassie thinks the course record of 2:07:43, set by his pal Tesfaye Jifar in 2001, is within reach. “With all of us in the field I believe that we might be able to make it a race which can be remembered for a long time as a historical race,” he says diplomatically.

Even if the record doesn’t fall, Geb’s presence is sure to make the race a special one. Off the roads and track, Gebrselassie has earned legions of fans thanks to his charity work, his advocacy for the Ethiopian cause (he recently opened a resort about four hours from his current hometown of Addis Ababa to boost tourism), his dedication to expanding the running community to people of every ability level, and his thousand-watt smile. In other words, he’s a great guy, well worth rooting for on November 7.

Be sure to catch the action on November 7th, 2011 on NBC4.

Go Get'em!

Story compliments of http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/