Ryan Hall

Unlike many elite runners, Ryan Hall is his own coach. This 29-year-old has plenty of distance running experience though, breaking onto the running scene when he was in high school (he, Dathan Ritzenhein, and Alan Webb all graduated in the same year). Hall was the CA cross country state champion both his junior and senior years, and won many state titles in track, along with setting some records. He attended Standford University, where he continued to excel both in cross country and track (1500-5000m). Hall earned many Pac-10 and All-American honors, graduating in 2005 with a BA in sociology.

After college, Ryan Hall's running career gained more momentum. He won the USA Cross Country Championships in 2006, broke the U.S. 20k record later that year, and broke the North American record in the half marathon early the next year. In his debut marathon ('07 London), he finished 7th overall, and won the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in New York later that year. Since then, he has continued to excel at the 26.2 distance (he has run the fastest marathon time of any American - 2:04:58):

• 5th in the 2008 London Marathon
• 10th in the 2008 Summer Olympics
• 3rd in 2009, and 4th in both the 2010 and 2011 Boston Marathon

Ryan Hall has been sponsored by Asics since 2005. He is married to Sara Bei, who is also a professional runner. The two founded the Hall Steps for Foundation in 2009 to "empower the running community to use the energy and resources that fuel runners’ athletic achievements for social justice efforts". To stay up to date with Ryan Hall, follow his blog (although I'm not sure how often it gets updated).