2013 Boston Marathon & B.A.A. 5k/Invitational Road Mile

B.A.A. 5k and Mile Previews: Get Wicked Psyched for Weekend Action in Boston

Apr 12, 2013 by Christopher Chavez

Men's 5,000-meter run

On Sunday, April 14, the Boston Athletic Association will hold the 5K with an elite field of 11 runners. Dejen Gebremeskel (Ethiopia), Alistair Craig (Ireland), Stephen Sambu (Kenya) and the American duo of Daniel Salel and Aaron Braun will be among the top contenders in that field to watch. Get wicked psyched for the action!

Gebremeskel did not fare well in the men’s 3,000-meter run at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix back in February, but has since rebounded with a victory at last weekend’s Carlsbad 5,000. His win in 13:21 was aided by a strong final 800-meters, but it was still the slowest winning time on one of the fastest courses.

Cragg ended March well with a 13:24.7 run in Westfield, Mass. The time was not valid for a European record due to its elevation change and start/finish separation. The 33-year old already has a half-marathon and 10K under his belt in 2013. There is a slim chance he returns to the track after dedicating this much time to the roads.

Remember back in 2010 when Chris Solinsky ran the American record at Payton Jordan in his 10,000-meter debut? In that same race, Salel finished second in 27:07.85. That was the last time he has raced on a track and has switched gears to road races from 10K to half-marathon distance. Most recently, he finished second at the Paris Half-Marathon in 1:01.34.

Sambu can not be counted out. If you haven’t watched the latest Driven series, he’s holding his own weight training with Bernard Lagat...all 140-150 lbs. of him. (estimated weight) He finished seventh overall, which was five places ahead of his training partner. While some struggle with the transition from the collegiate to professional life, Sambu is doing just fine in Arizona.

Braun is coming off a victory in the Go! St. Louis Half-Marathon. $5,000 was the difference between finishing first and finishing second, so he made his move after the 11-mile mark and cashed out for $10,000 in a 1:03.13 victory. With a 1 1/2 year-old daughter at home, that will get him 505 Parent’s Choice diapers value packs from Walmart (not including shipping.) $4,000 with a win on Sunday would get him a lot more of those.

Women’s 5,000-meter run

After missing out on what could have been a big pay day at the New York City Half-Marathon, Kim Smith is out for revenge. Not a stranger to the money, she took home $100,000 from the Boston Athletic Association’s Distance Medley Relay (April 5K, June 10K, September Half-Marathon.) As a tune-up for this weekend, she won the Westfield 5K in Massachusetts in 14:48, which is the same race Cragg finished second in.

Kenyan Werknesh Kidane will challenge Smith across all three races. She enters with the second fastest personal best in the 5K at 15:12.

Men’s Mile

Nick Willis’ dog has helped his owner achieve a lot in 2013. He gets credit as the New Zealand Olympic silver medalist hits the A-standard for the IAAF World Championships in Moscow. He also was there when Willis’ hoop dreams came alive. (Made us check out the New Zealand Breakers, which includes a player drafted by the Vancouver Grizzlies of the NBA.) If the dog is assigned pacing duties, Willis could be dangerous.

Craig Miller ran 3:56 at the 2013 New Balance Indoor Games in the same race where Robbie Andrews headlined, but finished ninth in 4:11.13. He dropped a huge personal best in the 5K at the Stanford Invitational as he ran 13:35.51 to finish fifth. Still not close to the Worlds A-standard.

Don “Son of John and Deborah” Cabral has been very laid back of late as he spends his time reading Game of Thrones and sunbathing between practices. He stayed busy on the track during indoor season. A little overshadowed in the 3K at the New Balance Indoor Games with Galen Rupp in the race, he ran 7:55 in Boston. He followed that up with a sub-4 mile at the Husky Classic. Then came the beauty that was the “Between the Spikes” video. Don’t count him out even though he’s only run shorter distances.

Women’s Mile

Americans Brenda Martinez and Gabriele Anderson have been on a tear.

Martinez has the Worlds A-standard in the 800, but wants to chase the 1500-meter mark before the USATF Championships. Last weekend, she was the top American finisher at Carlsbad and fifth place overall in 15:44.

Anderson enters 2013 as a force to be reckoned with after finishing 4th at the Olympic Trials in 2012 in the women's 1500. Last year, she set a personal best in every race from 800-meters to 1500-meters.

Their toughest challenge will be Ethiopian Kalkidan Gezahegne. The 2010 world indoor silver medlaist enters with a personal best of 4:00.97 from 2011 in Henglo. The next best personal best in the field is Gabriele Anderson’s 4:04.84.

$3,000 on the line. Who wants it more?
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If you can’t make it to Boston this weekend by plane or cah (car), kick back, call your ahnt (aunt) and mummy (mother, if you’re from Beacon Hill), over to watch the races in the cella (basement). OK, I’m done with the accent. Killa races this weekend. Just watch.