Ryan Hall
theophilus August 3rd, 2008
The Olympics start on Friday, but the guy I’m most intrigued by won’t compete until the 24th when the Men’s Marathon is run.
Ryan Hall, is a 20’s-something long-distance runner who last year stepped up to half-marathons and marathons. He made his marathon debut in London and ran a sub-2:10 (which is outstanding). He blew away the competition at the Olympic Trials in November. Just last April, he returned to London and took two minutes off of his time from the year before. That’s three marathons in his life – three sub-2:10 finishes, one win, three incredible performances. This guy obviously doesn’t understand how hard running a marathon is supposed to be.
He heads off to Bejing with expectations high. But that’s not what intrigues me about him.
He is a devout Christian who is running for the glory of God. This month, Runner’s World has an in-depth article on him and his faith is the foundation of the story. He seriously runs because he knows it is God’s call to him; the way he is to be an everyday evangelist. And he doesn’t do it by bashing people over the head with his faith; he does it by succeeding with his running and using that success as a platform to let others know that his success is because of God. Not a bad approach for us all.
Runners World also has a website chat with Hall that gives you a snapshot into the man. At one point, he discusses how he plans on dealing with his nerves -
“It is difficult to keep the right perspective. Part way through my buildup, I found that I was holding on too tight to my Olympic desire to get a medal. But God worked in my life in such a way that I have been able to surrender the race back over to Him and His will. My prayer going into the Olympics is the same of Christ’s before He went to Calvary, “not my will but your will be done.” I find that when I start thinking too much about medals, records, etc., it is important for me to get back to the basics. My sole focus is to follow hard after Christ during the race. I hope to pour myself out for Him in the same way He poured Himself out for me. If I run with this attitude then I will be happy with whatever result may come.”
This is an amazing young man. He is not just walking with the Lord, he is running with him. His race is on the 24th, the last day of the Games. It should be exciting to watch.
