Congrats to a champion on and off the course! Go Meb!
I would like to share with everyone how excited I am to hear the name Mebrahtom Keflezighi as this years New York City Marathon Champion (the first American winner in 27 years), or Meb for those keeping it simple. As a few of my friends and family will attest, he is someone I have looked up to for a long time.
I had the privilege of running cross country and track when I was in high school for Point Loma and we were in the same league as San Diego High School, the school Meb ran for. He was a leader in each competition and I was familiar with the back of his jersey as I saw it for the first few yards before he pulled away. Outside of his speed when the gun would fire to when he crossed the finish line, Meb was one of the most thoughtful and kind opponents I ever remember racing against.
Many times when the stars of our cross country sport would finish their races, they would often cool down on their own, away from the course. Not bothering to wait for the slower runners to finish, sometimes not even waiting for their own teammates. It was almost like the faster the athlete, the more ego. Go figure. Meb however was nothing of the sort. I will never forget how he would either stick around the finish area at our Morley Field home course to cheer for all the finishers. His team, opposing teams, fast finishers or the last finishers. If he did need to cool down to help his legs recover from his blistering fast race times, he would always manage to do so along the course so he could cheer those still battling the course to the finish line.
Meb leading the pack back in High School (Please visit www.RunMeb.com for more photos).
Having started my running career with very slow times and eventually getting a lot faster by my senior year, I will never forget how special it was having Meb cheer for me with a half mile or so to go still. Away from the finish line crowd and chaos of cheering parents and coaches, Meb would be calling attention to each racer and their team as they passed….”come on Patrick Henry!” “Way to go Serra High!” “Looking strong Point Loma - almost there!” The great Meb just cheered for me??? You bet I was gonna finish strong now!
Thank you Mebrahtom for being such a great person and role model. Sure the medals are nice, (the Olympic Silver I watched you get on TV in Athens will be as special a memory as I ever have of the Olympic games) but I will always remember you most for how you acted when the finish line had already been crossed.
Sincerely, Clarke Graves, PLHS c/o 95.