The First Olympians

As most of America settles in for the holidays with some football, too much food (and maybe some track and field) there is a group that will be having a much different experience.

As former New York City Marathon champion Meb Keflezighi demonstrates in the Team Meb video, the top distance runners in the U.S. will be chasing bikes on long runs. That because the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials are about three weeks away, scheduled for Houston, Texas, on Jan. 14.

This is the first time that both the men's and women's races will be contested at the same Olympic Trials Marathon.

Runner's World's Amby Burfoot has laid out the basic facts of the races.

Keflezighi will be joined by the likes of Ryan Hall, Dathan Ritzenheim, Brett Gotcher and, maybe, Galen Rupp. On the women's side, stars like Desiree Davila, Shalane Flanagan, Kara Goucher and Deena Kastor will be competing.