A Breakdown of Who Has the Olympic Marathon Standard So Far in 2019

By Adam Kopet of DyeStat

The IAAF has introduced tougher Olympic qualifying standards for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. The marathon standards have been made much more strict given a reduction in the goal field size for the marathon at next year's Olympics.

DyeStat has been tracking who has earned the new men's standard of 2:11:30 and who has qualified through place at Abbott World Marathon Majors races and at IAAF Gold Label races. When last reported in March, 94 men had achieved the time standard on an eligible course and another two had achieved the standard via place at highly ranked international marathons.

As it stands now, 209 men have achieved the standard of 2:11:30. Of those, Kenya leads the way with 79 and Ethiopia is second with 64. Japan is a distant third with 21 men who have qualified by time.

Earning the standard does not guarantee an athlete an Olympic berth. It simply means athletes have achieved a standard that the IAAF finds suitable for potential inclusion in the Olympic Games.

Individually, Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge leads the way on the year's descending order list. His 2:02:37 winning time at the London Marathon is the second fastest official time ever run. He owns the fastest of 2:01:39 from last year's Berlin Marathon. He has also run 2:00:25 as part of the Breaking2 event that was not record eligible.

In addition to the 209 time qualifiers, 10 men have achieved the standard by placing top-10 at the Boston Marathon. The Boston course is not eligible for time qualification or records due to the distance between the start and finish as well as the average elevation drop along the course.

Before Boston, no Americans had achieved the Olympic standard. Scott Fauble and Jared Ward, thanks to their seventh and eighth place finishes, now have the standard. That means if the Olympic Trials marathon were held today, they would be the only two Americans guaranteed to go to the Olympics.

Galen Rupp remains the top American in the IAAF World Rankings in the marathon. As of May 1, he is ranked 15th in the world, based on his 2018 Prague Marathon victory and his 5th place finish at the 2018 Chicago Marathon.

Americans have until Jan. 19, 2020 to achieve the standard prior to the Olympic Trials marathon Feb. 29, 2020. Athletes from countries without a selection race have until May 31, 2020 to achieve the standard. USATF will select the top three athletes from the Olympic Trials Marathon who have achieved the standard. Should fewer than three athletes have it, additional runners may be selected by the IAAF based on the IAAF World Rankings.