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Matt Hanson gave it his all in his attempt to clock a 2:18 marathon – the US Olympic qualifying standard – at the California International Marathon on Sunday. Hanson is well known as one of long-distance triathlon’s fastest runners – he’s never been outside the top eight of the run rankings in his 10 seasons since turning pro. He’s no stranger to challenges, as he just recently ran a 2:34 marathon at IRONMAN Florida. This weekend he aimed to test his endurance by embarking on the California International Marathon, which is known for being one of the quickest around.
Inspired by the challenges ahead, Hanson decided to push his limits and go all-out, opting for the ‘2:18 or bust’ title. The event started strong with Hanson ahead of schedule, but things shifted as he hit mile ten. In the end, Hanson was unable to maintain the pace required to hit the target.
Throughout the struggle of a race, Hanson recounts, “But that wasn’t the approach that I wanted to take. I wanted to give myself a legitimate shot at going 2:18.” He continued with confidence, “I set out to do that, ran with the group – there were about 100 guys at least, who were all there wanting the exact same thing. So it was a bit of fun going out with that many guys, running really hard, and I was able to stay with the group.”