Dathan Ritzenhein born December 30, 1982 in Grand Rapids, Michigan is an American track and cross-country athlete. He attended Rockford High School in Michigan and the University of Colorado in Boulder, and is arguably one of the greatest American hopes for distance running in the last 20 years. is the 364th day of the year (365th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Grand Rapids is the name of several places in the United States of America: Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids, Minnesota Grand Rapids, Ohio Grand Rapids, Wisconsin is the former name of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin Grand Rapids is also the name of a town in Canada: Grand Rapids, Manitoba. ... Official language(s) None (English, de-facto) Capital Lansing Largest city Detroit Area  Ranked 11th  - Total 97,990 sq mi (253,793 km²)  - Width 239 miles (385 km)  - Length 491 miles (790 km)  - % water 41. ... A womens 400m hurdles race on a typical outdoor red rubber track. ... The Minnesota State High school Cross Country Meet A cross country race in Seaside, Oregon. ... Look up athlete in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Man Running - Edward Muybridge Horse Running - Edward Muybridge Running is by definition the fastest means for an animal to move on foot. ...

Achievement chronology

• 1999 - Foot Locker national high school cross-country champion
• 2000 - Foot Locker national high school cross-country champion
• 2001 - IAAF World Junior Cross-Country Championships bronze medalist
• 2001 - 4th place at NCAA Cross-Country Championships
• 2003 - NCAA 5,000 m runner-up to Robert Cheseret
• 2003 - NCAA and Big 12 cross-country champion while at the University of Colorado at Boulder
• 2004 - Athens Olympics qualifier for the United States in the 10,000 m race
• 2005 - USATF 12k cross-country champion
• 2005 - Winner of the Belfast International Cross-Country
• 2006 - 4th place at the Edinburgh Cross-Country, defeating Sergiy Lebid and Alistair Cragg
• 2006 - 11th place at the ING New York City Marathon.

Foot Locker, Inc. ... The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA, often pronounced N-C-Double-A or N-C-Two-A ) is a voluntary association of about 1,200 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States. ... Categories: College athletics conferences ... The University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder, UCB officially[2]; Colorado and CU colloquially) is the flagship university of the University of Colorado System in Boulder, Colorado. ... The Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, commonly known as the 2004 Summer Olympics were the 28th Summer Olympic Games. ... USA Track and Field is the authority on track and field events within the United States. ... Sergiy Lebid (born July 15, 1975) is a Ukrainian long-distance runner. ... Alistair Ian Cragg an international track and field athlete was born in Johannesburg, on 13 June 1980, and was brought up in South Africa and has since lived in England and Fayetteville, Arkansas where he attended university. ...

Personal best times

• 1,500 m - 3:42.99 (2002)
• 3,000 m – 7:36.xx (en route) (2007)
• 2 miles - 8:11.74 (2007)
• 5,000 m - 13:16.06 (2007)
• 10,000 m - 27:35.65 (2006)
• Half marathon - 1:01:23 (2006)
• marathon - 2:14:01 (November 5, 2006, ING New York City Marathon)

is the 309th day of the year (310th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

High school

Ritzenhein ("Ritz") emerged as a cult figure among high school track fans during his junior and senior years at Rockford High School, especially since he graduated from high school in the same year as Alan Webb and Ryan Hall, America's other budding distance prodigies. He set numerous state and national high school records during this time, notably in the 3,200 m race (8:41.10). He won back-to-back regional (Midwest) and national titles in the Foot Locker high school championship races in the fall of 1999 and 2000. There was major build-up to the 2000 championships due to the impending clash between Ritz, Webb, and Hall. Ritz scored a resounding victory over Webb and Hall in Orlando, Florida, running the 5k course in 14:35, a phenomenal time for a high school harrier on grass. Perhaps more impressive, the previous year he claimed an unexpected national title while setting the course record in 14:29. Rockford is a city in Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. ... Alan Webb (born January 13, 1983 in Ann Arbor, Michigan) is an American track athlete. ... Ryan Hall (born October 14, 1982 in Big Bear Lake, California) is is an American track and cross-country athlete. ... Foot Locker, Inc. ... Nickname: Location in Orange County and the state of Florida. ...

College

Ritzenhein began to attend the University of Colorado at Boulder in the fall of 2001 to major in history and compete intercollegiately in cross country and track. During his first cross country season he finished in fourth place at the NCAA Cross Country Championships with a time of 29:11. His finish along with the second place finish of teammate Jorge Torres helped lead Colorado to the team title. The following spring he competed in the 5000 m race at the NCAA Track & Field Outdoor Championships, finishing again in fourth place with a 14:01.02. His 5000 personal record during that season was 13:27.77. Stress fractures caused him to decide to redshirt his sophomore year in both cross country and track. In the fall of 2003, Ritzenhein once again competed in cross country. He won the Big 12 title, and then outkicked Ryan Hall of Stanford to win the NCAA Cross Country Championships individual title. His winning time was a 29:14.1. In the spring of 2004 Ritzenhein ran a 27:38.50 in his debut at 10,000 m to set the collegiate record in the event. The next day he won the 5000 m at the Big 12 Outdoor Conference Championships. Ritzenhein concluded his collegiate season by placing second to Robert Cheseret of Arizona in the 5000 m at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Ritzenhein harbored hopes of competing in the Olympic Games at the end of the summer in Athens, but shortly after the NCAA meet he developed a stress fracture in his foot. He limped through the Olympic Trials in the 10,000 m, finishing last, but was able to make the team because the two other athletes with Olympic qualifying times did not go to Athens, Bob Kennedy having dropped out of the Olympic Trials race with an Achilles tendon injury and Meb Keflezighi chosing to focus solely on the marathon. Ritzenhein ran the Olympic 10,000 m, but dropped out mid race due to pain caused by his stress fracture. Shortly after the Olympics he decided to forego his remaining collegiate eligibility in order to run professionally. At this time he changed coaches from Mark Wetmore to Brad Hudson. The University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder, UCB officially[2]; Colorado and CU colloquially) is the flagship university of the University of Colorado System in Boulder, Colorado. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA, often said NC-Double-A) is a voluntary association of about 1200 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletics programs of many colleges and universities in the United States. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 2003 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Post-collegiate/professional

Ritzenhein began his professional career on December 31, 2004 when he finished 3rd in a 10 km road race in Italy. In January of 2005 he won the prestigious Belfast International cross country race, and seemed to be in great form. Ritzenhein won the U.S. Cross Country Championships in the 12 km for his first senior national title. Before the World Cross Country Championships expectations were high and some prognosticators even predicted a top 10 finish, but Ritzenhein faded after going out with the leaders and ended up placing 62nd. Ritzenhein's 2005 track season began with a 13:22.23 5000 m PR and a 7:43.95 3000 m. In a much anticipated 2 mile race that included high school rival Alan Webb Ritzenhein ran 8:23.45, which was a solid performance, but was overshadowed by Webb's 8:11.48 for the American record. A few days before the U.S. Outdoor Track Championships Ritzenhein injured a nerve on his foot in a freak accident. This injury effecttively ended his season. is the 365th day of the year (366th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

On February 19, 2006, Ritzenhein faltered in the USATF national cross-country championships at Van Cortlandt Park. Leading with Hall and Jorge Torres for several circuits of the 12k course, he dropped off badly near the end as Ryan Hall ran away from field. Ritzenhein finished nearly a minute behind Hall and finished fourth in the race. He qualified for the team but appeared to be hurting badly after the race, leading some to question his fitness heading into the IAAF World Cross-Country Championships April 1-2. Ritz was diagnosed with walking pneumonia after the USATF national cross-country championships and forfeited his spot on the US team. is the 50th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Van Cortlandt Park is a large urban park in the Bronx, NY. It has an area of 1,146 acres (4. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

He again competed against Alan Webb in a 10 km at the Cardinal Invitational at Stanford University. Webb and Ritz battled throughout, but Webb, a miler, beat Ritz, the true distance runner. In the 5000 m at the U.S. Outdoor Track Championships Ritzenhein finished 3rd behind Bernard Lagat and Matt Tegenkamp. Ritzenhein's time on 13:16.61 was a personal record. He then went to Europe and ran two 5000 m races. He won his first race in Switzerland, and then ran respectably in an elite field in Rome. Ritzenhein then ended his track season to prepare for the ING New York City Marathon. Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly known as Stanford University (or simply Stanford), is a private university located approximately 37 miles (60 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco and approximately 20 miles northwest of San José in Stanford, California. ... The subject of this article may not satisfy the notability guideline or one of the following guidelines for inclusion on Wikipedia: Biographies, Books, Companies, Fiction, Music, Neologisms, Numbers, Web content, or several proposals for new guidelines. ...

Future assessment

Many argue that Ritzenhein has sub-27:00 10,000 m potential, but others say that his true potential will be reached in the marathon later in his career. Ritzenhein raced his first marathon, the New York Marathon on November 5, 2006 and finished 11th in 2:14:01 (5:06/mile pace). "Ritz" has been plagued by injuries, specifically stress fractures, that have hindered his seasons. Some question whether Ritz has the natural leg speed to compete someday with the Africans on the track. Most world-class 5000–10,000 m runners can run 52–55 seconds for the last lap of a race, which takes tremendous turnover and natural speed at the end of a long distance race. Modern day marathon runners The word marathon refers to a long-distance road running event of 42. ... is the 309th day of the year (310th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... This article is about stress fractures in bones. ...

Personal

Ritzenhein is married to Rockford native and University of Colorado distance runner Kalin Toedebusch. He currently lives and trains in Eugene, Oregon.

External links

• Dathan Ritzenhein's U.S. Olympic Team bio
• IAAF profile for Dathan Ritzenhein
• Colorado Buffaloes Biography
• Interview after 2004 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Meet

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) is the international governing body for the sport of athletics (known in the US as track and field). It was founded in 1912 at its first Congress in Stockholm, Sweden by representatives from 17 national athletics federations as the International Amateur Athletics Federation. ...

Video Links

• Flotrack videos of Dathan Ritzenhein