2012 Kenyan Olympic Marathon Nominess announced

Athletics Kenya has announced that it has widdled its marathon team down to six nominees on both the mens and women's sides. 

The absolutely astounding depth that Kenya has in the marathon is something that something that North Americans can hardly comprehend. Without an Olympic Trials, the governing body of Kenyan track and field is faced with an extremely difficult decision. Being chosen to represent Kenya is the Olympics is a double edged sword for many athletes. With the announcement of the final six, the nominees will most likely forgo running a spring marathon in order to fully focus on London.

The three athletes who are chosen for the team will obviously be honored to represent their country on the world stage, but will also miss out on some appearance fees and race payouts for big name marathons. The remaining three will be heavily favored to come away from 2012 with a nice chunk of change.

Granted, a gold medal may yield larger appearance fees in years to come, but it is just shows another aspect of the athletic life of Kenyan runners that make life more complicated than we know. 

Here is the official IAAF / Athletics Kenya Story

The Final Six on the Mens Side:

Patrick Makau- World Record Holder


Geoffrey Mutai-  Fastest Marathon Ever 2:03.02 Boston and NYC Champ



Abel Kirui- Two Time World Champion



Moses Mosop - Chicago Marathon Champion 2:05.37
Wilson Kipsang - Frankfurt Chmapion 2:03.42
Emmanuel Mutai - 2:04.55