Enlarge Timothy A. Clary, AFP/Getty Images American Ryan Shay, in red gloves and black winter hat, competes during the U.S. men's Olympic marathon trials Saturday in New York City. Shay later collapsed near the 5 1/2-mile mark and was pronounced dead at Lenox Hill Hospital at 8:46 a.m. ET. Enlarge By Julie Jacobson, AP An ambulance carrying marathoner Ryan Shay drives through Central Park en route to the hospital where he was pronounced dead Saturday morning. Digg



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Facebook NEW YORK  They went for a fun run Friday. When Ryan Hall and Ryan Shay ran through Central Park with a group that included their wives, it was like a reunion. Hall and his wife Sara Hall (formerly Sara Bei) were close friends with Shay's wife, formerly Alicia Craig, from their Stanford days. All four runners trained together for a few months last year in California. U.S. MARATHON TRIALS: Hall, Ritzenhein, Sell win Olympic spots When the two Ryans broke off after about four miles Friday to conserve their legs for the men's U.S. Olympic trials marathon the following day, Sara Hall and Alicia Shay continued for a few more miles. "We talked about our husbands and nerves, what we do to help calm their nerves," Sara Hall said. They never imagined what would happen during Saturday's race. Ryan Hall was one of the favorites to finish in the top three and earn a berth in August's Beijing Olympics. Ryan Shay was considered one of the dark horses. While Hall was running five laps in Central Park, fashioning a trials record of 2 hours, 9 minutes, 2 seconds for the 26.2 miles, Shay collapsed beyond the 5-mile mark. Shay, 28, was given CPR by bystanders and taken by an ambulance to Lenox Hill Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy Sunday proved inconclusive. Medical examiners plan to examine slides of Shay's heart tissue later this week. But Shay's father, Joe, said his son had been diagnosed with an enlarged heart at 14 but cleared by doctors then and as recently as the spring. He told the Detroit Free Press that Lenox Hill medical staff told him that Ryan had suffered cardiac arrest and likely died before he hit the ground. "The thing that made him such a great runner may have killed him," Joe Shay told The Associated Press. "He said the doctors told him that because your heart rate is so low, when you're older you may need a pacemaker to make adjustments on that." Joe Vigil, who coaches Shay, said Sunday he didn't learn of the enlarged heart until seeing news reports Saturday night. "There's nothing wrong with an enlarged heart if it's the right kind," said Vigil, a PhD in exercise physiology. "Sometimes you don't know why things happen. "I test my people physiologically, and he has an excellent profile. All his blood tests — we do three or four blood profiles a year — there was never any indication of any problem. He is the epitome of health and strength." The top three finishers — Hall, Dathan Ritzenhein (2:11:07) and Brian Sell (2:11.40) — didn't learn of Shay's death until after they finished the race. Hall's convincing win and Sell's dramatic late-race surge were overshadowed by tragedy, leaving the race with a surreal atmosphere. "This cuts a knife through everybody's heart," said a tearful Mary Wittenberg, CEO of the New York Road Runners, who put on Saturday's race and stageed Sunday's New York City Marathon. "This casts a cloud over what otherwise was the greatest trials ever seen. Three guys will be running with extra inspiration in Beijing. It's heart-wrenching that this happened." Pushing to the limit Deaths in marathons are not uncommon. There are six to 10 a year, according to Running USA, an organization that keeps road-racing statistics. But deaths of elite runners are unexpected. Running experts could recall only one elite U.S. runner who had died while training. In 1986, Jeff Drenth died after a workout from irregular heart rhythm. "They're not supposed to happen at the height of an athlete's life and on the biggest day of his career," Wittenberg said. USA Track & Field was unaware of another fatality at an Olympic trials. George Hersh, the retired publisher of Runner's World, has been around the sport for more than five decades. "I can't recall anything like this," he said. Shay was part of a starting field of 130. A five-time U.S. champion on the roads and the 2001 NCAA 10,000-meter champion at Notre Dame, he was known for his intensity. Shay had greater desire and will than leg speed. "He had an incredible ability to push himself," Sara Hall said. "I've seen him collapse on treadmill tests before. He could push himself to the limit. I also saw a soft side of him with Alicia. You could just tell his love for her. That was a side I got to know more." Sell, who trains near Detroit, knew about Shay from their shared Michigan roots. "He was from East Jordan," Sell said. "In Michigan, all the manhole covers are made by East Jordan Ironworks. I always think of him every time I see one of those. He's a tough guy from a tough area." Both of Shay's parents, Joe and Mary, have coached cross country at Central Lake (Mich.) High School, where Shay became the first four-time state champ in Michigan history. His seven siblings are also runners. Shay had described his professional career as "up and down." One of his lows was an 18th-place finish at the 2005 New York City Marathon. The best part of the weekend was that he met Alicia Craig, who had set an NCAA 10,000 mark. They began dating a few months later. "They hit it off right away; they were inseparable," Sara Hall said. Chasing a goal Shay had been training recently in Flagstaff, Ariz., re-connecting with Vigil. Shay had abandoned training with the Halls and others in Palo Alto, Calif., and at altitude in Mammoth Lakes, Calif. He moved to altitude in Flagstaff, where he could get more individual attention from Vigil. He had run his personal best of 2:14:08 in finishing ninth at the 2004 New York City Marathon. The week before Saturday's trials, he commented on his need to run 2:11 to make the team. "I know it's going to be difficult," Shay said. "You just hope that you have the perfect day. What else can I do, sit home? You go out there to race. If you have the qualifying mark, you've got to go out there. That's what makes our system of qualifying for the Olympic team great, because it gives even the biggest underdog a shot at making the team. "I've always felt that I could run three minutes faster than my best time, but obviously, I haven't done it yet. I think I've prepared to do it in my training. It just depends on how healthy the body is that day and all the other factors that go into a marathon." To Sara Hall, Ryan Shay had shown no signs of trouble during their easy Friday run. "Alicia expected him to have a good race," Sara Hall said. Said Vigil, "From working with him and working with elite athletes, he was ready to run. His spirits were high. Recently married. Extremely happy. Wonderful wife. He was on top of the world." Shay was with the lead pack at five kilometers (3.1 miles), officially 21st. But he never made it to the 10K mark. He was pronounced dead at 8:46 a.m. ET, 1 hour and 11 minutes into the marathon, a few minutes before Hall broke open the race, dropping the lead pack that also contained Ritzenhein, 2004 Olympian Dan Browne (sixth, 2:13:23), Olympic silver medalist Meb Keflezighi (eighth, 2:15:09) and Abdi Abdirahman (did not finish). During the last couple of miles, Hall did a lot of fist pumping and pointing to the sky, celebrating what had been his dream since he was 13 — a chance to run in the Olympics. Afterward he was subdued, remembering how Sara had been a bridesmaid at the Shay-Craig wedding in July in Jackson Hole, Wyo. "The guy's a workhorse," said Hall, who stood on the start line next to Shay. "Nobody ran harder than him. He had a lot of passion. I'll be thinking of him when I'm out there training. He trained his butt off every single day. He was inspiring to be around." After Ryan Hall had left the post-race conference, Sara Hall's thoughts were with her friend Alicia. Both Sara Hall and Alicia Shay have qualified for the June 27-July 6 track trials in Eugene, Ore. " I think it shows how fragile life is," Sara Hall says. "The different extremes: You're on a high one moment yet something completely opposite can be going on. It makes us realize that it may seem like the Olympic trials is the end of the world and that it's the most important thing. lt's obviously not. We have such a short time. What we do with our life, the people that we impact and the god we serve is the most important thing." --- The Associated Press contributed to this report Share this story: Digg del.icio.us Newsvine Reddit Facebook Enlarge By Jamie Squire/Getty Images Ryan Shay (8) leads the pack in the 10,000-meter run during the U.S. Olympic Team Track & Field Trials in July 2004 in Sacramento. Shay died Saturday during the U.S. Olympic marathon trials in New York City. Conversation guidelines: USA TODAY welcomes your thoughts, stories and information related to this article. 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