Dropped by sponsor Nike in 2011, at age 36, Meb Keflezighi is the oldest athlete to win the Olympic Marathon Trials in U.S. history and accomplished this historic feat despite missing 3 weeks of training due to an infected foot. Meb also achieved two Personal Records (PR) within 69 days, the first being at the 2011 NYC Marathon with a time of 2:09:15, which is 2 seconds faster than his 2009 NYC Marathon win.
The Eritrea-born, elite runner and 2004 silver medalist will be joining the U.S. Team in London after finishing first and setting a new PR of 2:09:08 at the 2012 Houston Trials on January 14. Oops to Nike, as Keflezighi made the following statement after his win:
“I am incredibly excited and proud to be representing the United States in London next summer," began Keflezighi. "And to come in first while setting a new PR at the Trials is icing on the cake. New York was only 69 days ago and in that short time I did what I could to maintain focus on today’s race while training at high altitudes in my SkechersGOrun racing shoes. With two PRs in just over three months it’s clear that SKECHERS’ mid-foot strike technology has made a positive impact on my stride. I’m running more efficiently than I have my entire life.”
Skechers GOrun is an innovative new minimalistic lightweight running line featuring revolutionary mid-foot strike technology and GOimpulse sensors for enhanced sensory feedback. Meb has provided SKECHERS with expert insight by testing and consulting on the design of Skechers GOrun as well as other high-performance product currently in development. And he will be wearing exclusive Skechers GOrun racing shoes specially designed for the premiere event when he competes for gold in London on August 12, 2012.
“We congratulate Meb on his fantastic performance in Houston today and look forward to being there with him on the global stage in London next summer," said SKECHERS president Michael Greenberg. "Meb is a great inspiration and he illustrates to runners of all levels that it’s possible to achieve great success by training and competing in our new minimalistic, extremely flexible, responsive, light weight footwear."
Meb Keflezighi became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1998, the same year in which he graduated from UCLA. Congratulations to Meb on your PR and your spot on the U.S. Olympic Team!
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