Former BYU runners are dominating the U.S. marathon scene. Here’s a big reason why
Coach Ed Eyestone instructs Conner Mantz at BYU’s track in Provo on Thursday, April 10, 2025. | Laura Seitz, Deseret News This is getting ridiculous. In the last 12 months, five former BYU runners have thrown down sub-2:09 marathons.
That means nine BYU alumni now rank among the top 50 fastest American marathoners ever, four of them in the top 10. Is there something in the water? Ethan Shuley — who!?
— ran 2:07:14 last February in Osaka, Japan. Casey Clinger delivered a 2:08:43 performance earlier this year in Tokyo in only his second marathon attempt. In October, Conner Mantz covered the Chicago Marathon in 2:04:43, breaking a 23-year-old American record.
Two minutes later, his former BYU teammate, Rory Linkletter, crossed the line in 2:06:49. A few months earlier, Clayton Young finished the Boston Marathon with a time of 2:07:04. “It’s kind of a foregone conclusion.
We don’t talk about the marathon, but if you’re successful in the 5,000 and 10,000, then that usually means you can excel at the marathon. ” BYU track and cross country coach Ed Eyestone No school has produced more world-class marathoners than BYU, and it’s not even close. No other school has more than two in the top 50.
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