We are six days away from the 2018 Boston Marathon, and the entry list leaves much for American distance running to be confident about. Galen Rupp returns after finishing second in 2017, and Shalane Flanagan, Molly Huddle, Desiree Linden, and Jordan Hasay give the U.S. a legitimate shot to make history in the women’s race. 

Here are five confidence picks about this year's race.

Confidence Picks, Presented By Rocket Mortgage By Quicken Loans

1. In what turns out to be her final professional race, Shalane Flanagan becomes the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon since 1985. 
2. Galen Rupp wins the men’s race, his second World Marathon Major victory in a row. 
3. Four American women finish in the top 10. 
4. Shadrack Biwott finishes in the top five in the men’s race. 
5. Edna Kiplagat will finish in the top five, the 10th top-five finish in a World Marathon Major of her career.