Murphy Falls Short Of Olympic Dream
ATLANTA – A pair of local runners took their shot at a chance at qualifying for the Olympics. Both runners came up a few minutes short.
Warsaw Community High School graduate Robert Murphy and Middlebury resident Andy Williams both were among the 175 men who qualified for the Olympic trials in the marathon. The course, situated around greater Atlanta, the same site that hosted the 1996 Olympics, had Williams finish 121st and Murphy 144th.
Williams clocked in at 2:26:56 and Murphy was four minutes behind Williams at 2:30:58 on a hilly and grueling track around downtown Atlanta.
Murphy earned his shot at the Olympic trails with his top effort from the Houston Marathon, which had him finish in a time of 2:18:58. Williams earned his spot by posting a 2:17:49 at the Cal Marathon in Sacramento last December.
The top three runners from the trials this past weekend earn qualification for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. For the men, it will be Galen Rupp, Jacob Riley and Abdi Abdirahman. For the women, it will be Aliphine Tuliamuk, Molly Seidel and Sally Kipyego.
Men
1. Galen Rupp — 2:09:20
2. Jacob Riley — 2:10:02
3. Abdi Abdirahman — 2:10:03
4. Leonard Korir — 2:10:06
5. Augustus Maiyo — 2:10:47
6. Martin Hehir — 2:11:29
7. Clayton Albertson — 2:11:49
8. Jonas Hampton — 2:12:10
9. Colin Bennie — 2:12:14
10. Matt McDonald — 2:12:19
Women
1. Aliphine Tuliamuk — 2:27:23
2. Molly Seidel — 2:27:31
3. Sally Kipyego — 2:28:52
4. Des Linden — 2:29:03
5. Laura Thweatt — 2:29:08
6. Stephanie Bruce — 2:29:11
7. Emma Bates — 2:29:35
8. Kellyn Taylor — 2:29:55
9. Nell Rojas — 2:30:29
10. Julie Kohnen — 2:30:43