The Best American Marathoners Ever

America has had its share of great marathoners. But there hasn't really been a clear way of determining where they rank. I set out to answer that question, and this lens shows my results. It's a dynamic list, though, and with every performance by present and future Americans, it will no doubt change.

So check out how I awarded points, and then check out the list. If you want, you can even tell me I'm a dolt and show me why. Just make sure you answer the polls along the way!

The process for determining the best ever

A tablespoon of objectivity, with a dash of subjectivity

How do we determine the best American marathoner ever? That's the task I sat down to answer with an Excel sheet, an internet connection, and some good ol' fashion brainwork. I decided to create a gender neutral scoring system, where each runner would earn points based on their achievements. I broke it down into nine categories:

Olympic performances: This is the ultimate achievement in marathon running. On one day every four years, every country enters their three best and the winner can truly say he was the best in the world. Gold = 75 points; Silver = 50 points; Bronze = 25 points.

World Championships: The Olympics "Lite". Americans haven't competed as seriously in this, but we have had some success. Since not all countries send their best, I've discounted the points. Gold = 30 points; Silver = 15 points; Bronze = 10 points.

Major Marathon Wins: What's a major marathon? Boston, New York City, Chicago, London, Berlin, and the Olympic Trials. That's it. For each win in a major marathon, I gave 5 points.

Other Marathon Wins: Did they run, and win, a bunch of other marathons? That's gotta count for something, right? For every non-major marathon victory, I awarded 2 points.

World Records: Any runner who sets a world record has achieved something that no other runner in history was able to accomplish. Breaking that mental barrier alone is worth a bonus. Any runner that set a world record earned 50 points.

World All-Time List: This is a fun one. Where does the runner's PR rank all-time? I gave major bonuses to being in the top-10, and awarded some form of points to anyone in the top 1000. This is based on all performances, not just PRs, so Haile Gebrselassie's races all count against them. Basically, the faster people run, the more it hurts the fastest people on this list...unless it's them! 1st = 100 points, 2nd = 90, 3rd = 85, 4th = 80, 5th = 75, 6th = 70, 7th = 65, 8th = 60, 9th = 55, 10th = 50, 11-20th = 40, 21-50th = 30, 51-100th = 20, 101-250th = 10, 251-500th = 5, and 501-1000th = 1 point.

American Records: Anyone who was ever "the fastest ever" American runner earned a bonus in my system. It's worth half a world record: 25 points.

US All-time List: Again, similar idea to the World List, but modified for the US only. 1st = 30 points, 2nd = 20, 3rd = 15, 4th = 14, 5th = 13, 6th = 12, 7th = 11, 8-10th = 10, 11-20th = 5 points.

Sub-2:10/2:27 performances: It turns out that 2:10 for men and 2:27 for women are right around the top 1000 all-time. I counted how many performances each athlete ran under that threshold. For each performance, I awarded 5 points.

A couple more points to make here. First, all performances had to be run as an American citizen. Any race run while representing a different country was excluded. Sorry Mark Plaatjes, that's just the way it's gotta be. Second, my source for most times/performances was All-Time Athletics, an awesome resource for track fans. Third, I'll be updating this list after major marathons, so positions could change. The first major changes could take place after the Olympic games this year!

Here they are, the top-10!

1. Joan Benoit

240 points

Personal Record: 2:21:21
US Rank: 2
All-time Rank: 27
Olympic Performances: 1st (1984)
Marathon Wins: Boston (1979, 1983)

By almost any measure, Joan Benoit was the greatest American marathoner ever. She set the world record of 2:21:21 at the Boston Marathon in 1983, a time that 25 years later is still ranked 27th all-time. Then, she followed it up by winning the gold medal in the inaugural women's Olympic marathon in 1984.

Despite her relatively short career, she did nearly all you could do as a marathoner. And she's still the greatest for her age after breaking the US 50+ age record at the US Olympic Trials, running 2:49:08.

2. Khalid Khannouchi

205 points

Personal Record: 2:05:38
US Rank: 1
All-time Rank: 8
Olympic Performances: n/a
Marathon Wins: Chicago (1997, 1999, 2000, 2002), London (2002)

Khalid Khannouchi is certainly the fastest American marathoner ever, having run the 8th fastest marathon all-time (and broken the world record twice). He also dominated some major marathons, with four Chicago victories and a world record performance to win the 2002 London Marathon.

As a naturalized citizen, Khalid ran many great performances as a Moroccan. But because I'm only evaluating those races Khalid ran as an American, he actually loses some points compared to where he'd be if we evaluated his entire career. Still, they wouldn't be enough to catch Joan Benoit given that Khalid never ran in the Olympics. With his 4th place finish at the 2007 Olympic Trials, he is currently the US alternate.

Quick Poll: Should Khalid Khannouchi's success be handicapped?

Does it matter that he first ran for Morocco?

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3. Deena Kastor

190 points

Personal Record: 2:19:36
US Rank: 1
All-time Rank: 8
Olympic Performances: 3rd (2004)
Marathon Wins: Chicago (2005), London (2006)

Deena Kastor is far and away the class of American marathoning today. With big victories at Chicago in 2005 and London in 2006, she is the only current marathoner to have won a major marathon race outside of the Olympic Trials (which she also won). She is also only the second American woman to medal at the Olympics, earning a bronze in Athens, 2004.

Her personal best, the 8th fastest marathon all-time, is nearly 10 minutes faster than any of her competitors, and is more than 6 minutes faster than the 3rd fastest American all-time. Though a favorite to medal in Beijing, she had to drop out with a foot injury at the 5k mark.

Quick Poll: Seriously, head to head, in their primes, who would win: Benoit or Kastor?

Or is it even a tough call?

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4. Frank Shorter

170 points

Personal Record: 2:10:30
US Rank: 25
All-time Rank: n/a
Olympic Performances: 1st (1972), 2nd (1976)
Marathon Wins: Fukuoka (1971-1974), US Olympic Trials (1972, 1976)

Frank Shorter was really the first of the world class American marathoners and helped to start the running craze of 1970s America. The winner of the 1972 Olympic marathon, he finished second to Waldemar Cierpinski in 1976 (but it is widely believed he was the first "clean" runner to cross the line).

Despite being one of the best Olympic distance performers ever and an American Record holder, Shorter's personal best ranks just 25th all-time in the US. He never won Boston or New York City, mostly because he maintained a very successful career on the track during his prime marathon running years. Still, his Olympic performances and dominance of the distance during his time put him #4 on this list.

5. Johnny Hayes

150 points

Personal Record: 2:55:18
US Rank: n/a
All-time Rank: n/a
Olympic Performances: 1st (1908)
Marathon Wins: n/a

Johnny Hayes is probably the most controversial person on this list. In the 1908 Olympics, Dorando Pietri of Italy entered the stadium first, but collapsed three times before being carried across the finish line by spectators. At around that time, Johnny Hayes ran into the stadium and crossed the finish line...in a world record time.

The race was awarded to Pietri until the US officials protested that Pietri received support (which he did). Hayes was awarded the victory, and now he's immortalized in the 5th position on this list.

6. Bill Rodgers

114 points

Personal Record: 2:09:27
US Rank: 8
All-time Rank: 716
Olympic Performances: 40th, 1976
Marathon Wins: Boston (1975, 1978-80), New York City (1976-79)

Bill Rodgers was the best American marathoner of the late-70s, taking over the spot from Frank Shorter. He set the American Record twice, won Boston and New York City four times each, and won a total of 22 marathons! He ran in the 1976 Olympics but missed a chance to win a medal in 1980 when the US boycotted the Games.

Bill's personal best of 2:09:27 was an American Record when he ran it, and it now ranks 8th on the US all-time list. The longevity and consistency of his career make him the 6th best American marathoner ever.

7. Alberto Salazar

86 points

Personal Record: 2:08:51
US Rank: 4
All-time Rank: 452
Olympic Performances: 14th (1984)
Marathon Wins: New York City (1980-82), Boston (1982)

Alberto Salazar had a short but explosive marathon career. As a sophomore in college in 1980 he won his first of three New York City marathons and set an American debut record at the time. In 1982 he won his first and only Boston marathon over Dick Beardsley in the epic "Duel in the Sun" captured in the book of the same name by John Brant.

Despite his short career, he ran under 2:10 four times, and his 2:08:51 personal best was an American Record at the time and ranks him 4th all-time in the US. Had his career been longer he may have passed Bill Rodgers on this list, but as it is, he stays at number seven.

Duel in the Sun

by John Brant

Duel in the Sun: The Story of Alberto Salazar, Dick Beardsley, and America's Greatest Marathon

by John Brant

Amazon Price: $10.17 (as of 08/20/2008)
Used Price: $3.73

The 1982 Boston Marathon is arguably one of the greatest road races of all time. Alberto Salazar was the "golden boy" and the favorite. Dick Beardsley was an unknown journeyman runner (despite wins at the Grandma's Marathon and London Marathon). Their epic battle is told in stride for stride fashion with each runner sharing his thoughts, doubts and pains. Mr. Brant does an excellent job of fleshing out each runner's biography both before and after the race. I could not put this book down. This is one of the best running books I have ever read. It transcends the sport and would be a very entertaining read for anyone!! --Michael Dennisuk

8. Leonard "Buddy" Edelen

84 points

Personal Record: 2:14:28
US Rank: n/a
All-time Rank: n/a
Olympic Performances: 6th (1960)
Marathon Wins: US Olympic Trials (1960)

Leonard "Buddy" Edelen was America's best marathoner of the early 1960's. He set the American Record in Fukuoka in 1962, running 2:18:57, and later became the first man in history to break 2:15 when he ran 2:14:28 at the Polytechnic Marathon in England. The record stood for just under one year.

Buddy won the US Olympic Trials in 1960 by over 20 minutes, but could finish no better than 6th at the Tokyo Olympics. Despite a relatively short career, he makes it onto this list in 8th place. His life and career are captured in the book "A Cold Clear Day" by Frank Murphy.

A Cold Clear Day

by Frank Murphy

A Cold Clear Day: The Athletic Biography of Buddy Edelen

by Frank Murphy

Amazon Price: $14.21 (as of 08/20/2008)
Used Price: $11.00

I really enjoyed this book. Other people may go for the swagger of Pre or the domination of a Salazar or Rodgers. But, of all the the runners I've read about, Edelen is the one I identify with most. I suppose it's because he's more of an unsung hero of American running.

The book is fairly well written, and unlike many biographies, it does not drag on with boring uneeded details. It documents the man that Edelen was and shows excerpts from his training to give insight, to those of us who run ourselves, the kind of grueling training he did.

One of my top five running books. --William L. Burge IV

9. Meb Keflezighi

71 points

Personal Record: 2:09:53
US Rank: 14
All-time Rank: 945
Olympic Performances: 2nd, 2004
Marathon Wins: none

Meb Keflezighi surprised everyone but himself with his silver medal performance at the Athens Olympics in 2004. Always the bridesmaid, Meb has finished second or third in three other major marathons, New York (2004 and 2005), and the 2004 Olympic Trials (behind Alan Culpepper).

Though his 2:09:53 personal best only ranks 14th on the all-time US marathon list, he was America's best marathoner for many years and has earned his spot on this list with his Olympic medal performance and sustained success.

Meb Keflezighi's Squidoo lens

Mebrahtom Keflezighi

Mebrahtom "Meb" Keflezighi is the American record holder over 10,000 meters (27:13.98) and a silver medalist in the Olympic marathon (Athens, '04). He is a four-time NCAA champion, a three-time U.S. 10k champ, and a two-time U.S. cross country champi...

10. Ryan Hall

70 points

Personal Record: 2:06:17
US Rank: 2
All-time Rank: 23
Olympic Performances: check back August 24th!
Marathon Wins: US Olympic Trials (2007)

Ryan Hall took the marathon running world by storm in 2007. After setting the American record at the half-marathon distance (59:43), Ryan ran the fastest American debut marathon at London in 2:08:24. He then rose to the occasion at the US Olympic Marathon Trials in New York City and crushed the field in a Trials record 2:09:02. Then, to solidify his position as the best American marathoner today, he ran the 23rd fastest time ever (and fastest by an American-born runner) when he clocked 2:06:17 at London in 2008.

Despite not having won any major marathons except the Olympic Trials, nor competed in an Olympic Games, his amazing times have secured him a solid tenth on this list. There's no telling how high up this list he can climb!

Ryan Hall's Squidoo lens

Ryan Hall

Ryan has had success on the track, but he owns the roads. He is the American Record holder for the half-marathon (59:43), he ran the fastest debut marathon in US history (2:08:24), he won the US Olympic Marathon Trials and just ran 2:06:17 in London!...

10. Clarence DeMar

70 points

Personal Record: 2:34:48
US Rank: n/a
All-time Rank: n/a
Olympic Performances: 3rd (1924), 12th (1912), 27th (1928)
Marathon Wins: Boston (1911, 1922-24, 1927-28, 1930)

Clarence DeMar makes this list by virtue of his amazing record at the Boston Marathon, where he won an incomparable 7 times. The 19-year time span between victories is also something that will surely never be matched. A three-time Olympian, he only medaled once, taking bronze in 1924.

DeMar was far and away the best US marathoner of his day, winning more than just Boston. While his position in the top-10 seems short-lived--does anyone doubt Ryan Hall will score more points?--he deserves to be remembered as one of the great marathoners in US history.

Who should be higher? Who should be lower?

And who is juuuuuuuust right...

Okay, forget just right, I want to know what parts of this list you disagree with. If you want to move someone higher, tell me in the column on the left. If you want to demote someone, tell me in the column on the right.

If I like your point, I may adjust the scoring system and take it into account!

It's your turn to tell me...

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Who should be higher?

Who should be lower?

Paul says:

Meb is the disappointment of american marathoning. He just pulled a silver out of his ass in Athens. He has not done much elsewhere

Posted July 10, 2008

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Other runners who just missed the cut

But who can still get on the list by winning some races!

In order of their point totals from my calculations.

Bob Kempainen (55 points): 3rd US all-time, former American record holder, Olympic Trials champ in 1996
Dick Beardsley (37 points): 5th US all-time, winner of London marathon, and two performances under 2:10.
Patti Catalano (36 points): Set the American record in 1981 and 7th US all-time.
Mark Plaatjes (30 points): Winner of 1993 World Championships marathon.
Greg Meyer (29 points): 7th US all-time, winner of Boston and Chicago marathons.
Abdi Abdirahman (22 points): 6th US all-time, with one top-500 all-time performance.
Julie Brown (21 points): 3rd US all-time, with one sub-2:27 performance.
Alan Culpepper (16 points): 13th US all-time, US Olympic Trials champion
Marianne Dickerson (15 points): Silver at 1983 World Championships marathon

The final point tally

All-Time Fastest US Marathoners (Men)

A list of all Americans under 2:10:30!

1. 2:05:38 - Khalid Khannouchi - London (2002)
2. 2:06:17 - Ryan Hall - London (2008)
3. 2:08:47 - Bob Kempainen - Boston (1994)
4. 2:08:51 - Alberto Salazar - Boston (1982)
5. 2:08:53 - Dick Beardsley - Boston (1982)
6. 2:08:56 - Abdi Abdirahman - Chicago (2006)
7. 2:09:00 - Greg Meyer - Boston (1983)
8. 2:09:27 - Bill Rodgers - Boston (1979)
9. 2:09:31 - Ron Tabb - Boston (1983)
10. 2:09:32 - David Morris - Chicago (1999)
11. 2:09:35 - Jerry Lawson - Chicago (1997)
12. 2:09:38 - Ken Martin - New York City (1989)
13. 2:09:41 - Alan Culpepper - Chicago (2002)
14. 2:09:53 - Meb Keflezighi - New York City (2004)
15. 2:09:57 - Benji Durden - Boston (1983)
16. 2:10:04 - Patrick Petersen - London (1989)
17. 2:10:05 - Phil Coppess - Minneapolis (1985)
18. 2:10:06 - Ed Mendoza - Boston (1983)
19. 2:10:15 - Jeff Wells - Boston (1978)
20. 2:10:19 - Tony Sandoval - Niagara Falls (1980)
21. 2:10:20 - Garry Bjorklund - Duluth (1980)
22. 2:10:26 - Craig Virgin - Boston (1981)
23. 2:10:29 - Kirk Pfeffer - Fukuoka (1980)
24. 2:10:29 - Mark Plaatjes - Los Angeles (1991)
25. 2:10:30 - Frank Shorter - Fukuoka (1972)

Source: All-Time Athletics

All-Time Fastest US Marathoners (Women)

A list of all Americans under 2:30:00!

1. 2:19:36 - Deena Kastor - London (2006)
2. 2:21:21 - Joan Benoit - Chicago (1985)
3. 2:26:26 - Julie Brown - Los Angeles (1983)
4. 2:26:40 - Kim Jones - Boston (1991)
5. 2:27:10 - Marla Runyan - New York City (2002)
6. 2:27:35 - Francie Larrieu-Smith - London (1991)
7. 2:27:51 - Patti Catalano - Boston (1981)
8. 2:27:59 - Olga Appell - Minneapolis-St. Paul (1996)
9. 2:28:01 - Colleen De Reuck - Chicago (2003)
10. 2:28:15 - Lisa Weidenbach - Chicago (1989)
11. 2:28:18 - Christine McNamara - London (1997)
12. 2:28:34 - Libbie Hickman - Chicago (1999)
13. 2:28:53 - Maria Trujillo - Boston (1990)
14. 2:29:01 - Deeja Youngquist - Chicago (2003)
15. 2:29:05 - Kristy Johnson - Houston (1993)
16. 2:29:09 - Blake Russell - Chicago (2005)
17. 2:29:32 - Jennifer Rhines - Rome (2006)
18. 2:29:38 - Cathy O'Brien - Los Angeles (1991)
19. 2:29:50 - Margaret Groos - Pittsburgh (1988)
20. 2:29:54 - Jenny Spangler - Columbia (1996)

Sources: All-Time Athletics

Quick Poll: Who will be the next American to crack the top-10?

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What do you think of these rankings?

Or this lens?

I'd love to hear your feedback, particularly about the scoring system and the rankings. Hit me with any criticism you have and if I think it's valid, I'll try to modify the formula and update the scores.

buraian

Hi All,

I've added a couple people to the list I overlooked the first time: Johnny Hayes and Leonard "Buddy" Edelen. Thanks to all for the feedback!

Buraian

Posted June 23, 2008

Amby Burfoot

Brian: I love your marathon ranking system. It's an objective approach that nonetheless gives top points to Championship victories. And I couldn't agree more with your number one ranking for Joan Benoit Samuelson. Thanks for this great contribution to Marathon lore.

Posted June 23, 2008

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