My favorite – embedded below – is one that focuses exclusively on Ryan Hall. You’ll find the rest of the videos at this link.

The voice was heard across the web on countless blogs such as Anne’s and Mark’s, as well on numerous forums (Runners World, Dyestat, Coolrunning, RunningAhead and Tapermadness to mention just a few). Facebook even showed it can have a heart when KC Shafer posted about the event on Facebook, getting the word out to hundreds of highschools and colleges and thousands of students.

In addition to the November 17 event, Runner’s World put together a tribute page, Amby Burfoot provided touching reports and insight from his blog, a YouTube video tribute was created, and an almost overwhelming outpouring of emotion surfaced at Letsrun after Ryan’s father Joe posted there.

Thank you to everyone who paid tribute to Ryan – November 17th truly showed the potential for the web as a place where communities can come together. We’d like to pass on your tributes to the Shay family. Please leave us a comment (and a link to your blog or forum if you have one) to let them know how you paid tribute to Ryan – I’m sure they will appreciate hearing from you.

Rest in peace, Ryan. You are missed.

(details for donating to the Ryan Shay Memorial Fund can be found at this link)

UPDATE: The original post announcing this memorial generated 197 responses by people committing to run 5.5 in Ryan’s memory. That’s the most responses ever received by a single post on completerunning.com.

This news has rocked the distance running community, as Ryan had an incredibly promising career and had already set many records in his years at Notre Dame and proved himself at distances ranging from 10k to the marathon. At 28, the prospects of him representing the U.S. in future Olympics looked good.

Sure, the loss of a talented distance runner is a tough pill to swallow for the United States, which has only recently started to have a resurgence of talent at the marathon level. What is harder to swallow, though, is the thought of those that are left behind trying to make sense of the empty space that he once occupied. His wife, Alicia. His training partners, Meb, Deena, Josh, etc. his numerous friends and family.

Join us in support of them as they process their loss and dedicate your own 5.5 mile run next Saturday, November 17th in memory of Ryan. Run the exact distance, or dedicate a 5.5 mile portion of a longer run in his memory. Take the time to recognize life’s frailty, to think about those in your life that you need to tell that you love and most of all, pray for those who will feel Ryan’s absence the most. Our goal is to get as many runners on this planet as possible running this virtual memorial together. Leave a comment below if you plan to participate, so the Shay family can see the results of our efforts, and perhaps take some comfort. (UPDATE: If you’re not up to 5.5 miles, just dedicate whatever distance you are able to run or run/walk, or walk, to Ryan. It’s not about distance or speed.)

Ryan’s father, Joe Shay, started a thread about Ryan over at the Let’sRun forum. I know the family will appreciate any comments you feel moved to write.

Also, a memorial fund has been set up. I know money can never take away the sense of loss, but his devastated family will be most appreciative of anything you choose to offer.

Hall, of Mammoth Lakes, California, broke away from the pack in Mile 17, finishing in 2:09:02. Dathan Ritzenhein, 24, of Eugene, Oregon, placed a strong second in 2:11:07. Brian Sell, 29, a member of the Hanson-Brooks Distance Project, captured the last Olympic team berth by powering past world-marathon record holder Khalid Khannouchi in the last miles, finishing in 2:11:40.

Shay, a former national champion in the marathon and half-marathon and the 2001 NCAA title-holder in the 10,000 meters, collapsed at the 5.5 mile mark in the race. Despite immediate medical attention, he was pronounced dead at 8:46 a.m. EST. Doctors did not announce an official cause.

“It puts a knife through everybody’s heart,” said Mary Wittenberg, president of the New York Road Runners, which organized tomorrow’s New York City Marathon.

Today’s race was also surprising because several race favorites did not perform as well as expected. Meb Keflezighi, 32, the silver-medalist in the 2004 Olympic marathon, finished 8th, in 2:15:09, while 36-year old Alan Culpepper dropped out just past mile 15, according to marathonguide.com’s race-day coverage. Former world-record marathon-holder, 30-year-old Abdi Abdirahman, also dropped out at the 30k mark.

Related:
Read the USATF‘s official comment on Ryan Shay’s death.

Read this SI.com article on the reactions of top three finishers to Shay’s death.

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After having set numerous other world records, this amazing accomplishment certainly solidifies Haile’s well deserved position at the very top of the world’s best ever distance runners. Congratulations Haile!

Question: What movie was also voted runningmovie.com’s Best Running Film?

Question: What movie did I just moments ago order from Amazon because it’s finally become available on DVD?

Answer! Fire On The Track: The Steve Prefontaine Story

Fans of “Pre” will know about the two dramatic feature films – Prefontaine and Without Limits. Fire On The Track completes the picture. It’s a documentary film filled with races and interviews of Pre and people close to him. Take a look at the clips below. I dare you to tell me this film doesn’t look absolutely terrific!

To Gebrselassie’s advantage are victories at the New York Half Marathon over a strong field last month and a 26:52 10,000 on the track in May. As well, Sammy Korir will be running. Korir was Tergat’s pacesetter from his record run four years ago, finishing just a second behind Tergat.

Gebrselassie was 22 seconds ahead of world record pace as late as 35 km into the race, but wilted in the heat to finish more than a minute behind the mark. Given cool weather, there is every reason to believe that the 34-year-old can set the 25th world record of his career.

Still, a world record is never a given, especially over the 42 kilometres of a marathon. Gebrselassie will need to be on top of his game, but he will also need both excellent weather and excellent pacing.

On the women’s side, defending champion Gete Wami of Ethiopia takes on Sonia O’Sullivan of Ireland. With a win, Wami will move into the top spot in the Majors series and the $500,000 prize that comes with it.

Robert Cheruiyot of Kenya, with three victories in the series, is assured of victory in the men’s side despite having no plans to race this fall.

Following Berlin are the Chicago and New York Marathons on October 7 and November 4 respectively.

Do you think Gebrselassie can get the world record? Comment and let us know.