Ryan Hall in men's marathon tonight.
Big Bear native Ryan Hall will run for the gold medal in the men's marathon tonight. It's scheduled to be part of NBC's primetime package tonight but, since it will take about 2 hours, 8 minutes to crown a gold medalist, don't expect them to show it start to finish.
Hall sent a message (via the Lighthouse Project) to the Big Bear Grizzly this morning:
To my family of Big Bear:As I sit here typing this email from the Olympic Village I can hardly believe that in less than 12 hours time I will be out there running. I want to thank you in sharing in this journey. I have been truly blessed by you all. The send off was one of the best moments of my life. Never have I felt so supported and loved.
Part of me wishes that I could be there watching with you all, but I guess that would kind of defeat the purpose of you all watching. I hope that you all enjoy the race. Know that you are not simply watching but through every mile you have run you have participated in the Olympic marathon with me. No one else out there has a million miles behind them.
I will be putting myself in beautiful Big Bear in my minds eye as I am out in the hot and humid streets of Beijing and I will have all of you in my heart as I run. I pray that the Lord shows you the power of a community that is united together. I have certainly tasted it and will be forever changed as a result. Thanks for all your support. I hope to make you proud. Keep being a lighthouse in our community.
Ryan