Leading up to the February 13th U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, FloTrack will highlight the storylines of the contenders on both the men's and women's side.

Dathan Ritzenhein: Resilient Ritz A Solid Bet Heading Into Trials

Name: Dathan Ritzenhein

Age: 33

Hometown: Rockford, MI

Marathon PR: 2:07:47 (Chicago 2012)

Best Trials Qualifier: 2:09:45 (Chicago 2013)

Previous Trials Results: 2nd, 2:11:07 (2008); 4th, 2:09:55 (2012)

Our Take: Even with yet another injury popping up during his Trials build up this fall, the thought of Dathan Ritzenhein failing to finish top-3 this Saturday seems unlikely. Ritz has racked up plenty of training miles on the Alter-G throughout his career while returning from an assortment of ailments, and he has shown a remarkable ability to secure fitness with less than ideal training. His fragility has certainly limited him from reaching his full potential in the marathon, but with the fastest PR in the field and coming off a solid 2015, plus a hip that has healed, the 33-year-old should be in the hunt for the win on Saturday.

Ritz’s solid campaign last year was proof that his Michigan homecoming and venture into the world of self-coaching in 2014 was not the ease into retirement that it had once seemed. When he left the Oregon Project and promptly suffered through an injury-consumed season that year, the idea that his best marathons were behind him seemed probable. That still may be the case, but his seventh place finish in Boston last April— where he was up front as late as 21 miles— was the flashing sign that this new plan could work.

Heading into his third Trials marathon on Saturday, Ritzenhein's wealth of experience combined with his defeat of reigning Trials champ Meb Keflezighi in Boston by a 1:22 margin appears to stack the odds in his favor of qualifying for his second Olympic marathon. With the other top contender being a marathon first-timer in Galen Rupp, a healthy Ritz seems as close to a top-3 lock as there is.  

Here's a workout (4x3k) with Ritz after he had returned to Michigan in 2014:



After a crushing fourth place finish at the Trials four years ago, redemption is surely weighing heavy on the three-time Olympian’s mind. Noting the workout that Ritz claims has been his best in his preparation— which you can read about below— it’s hard to imagine him walking away with anything less this weekend in LA.

A disappointed Ritz speaks after his fourth-place finish in 2012— "I'm a little bit shocked":



Below, Ritzenhein answered three questions leading up to the big race.

Give us the details of your best workout

My best workout was an 11-mile tempo run. It was done 1:04 faster than before my 5th place finish at The Chicago Marathon in 2013. 

What do you need to do on race day to make the team?

On race day I just need to rely on my experience and trust that my training has been great. 

What’s been your biggest obstacle to overcome in your Trials prep?

My biggest obstacle early on was making sure I was healthy. Now it has been holding myself back in the last couple weeks because I feel very fresh still. It is easy to overdo it in the last couple weeks.