PROVO, Utah, Aug. 10, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — Former BYU distance runners Conner Mantz and Clayton Young ran the fastest times by Americans in Olympic marathon history and celebrated together as they crossed the finish line in eighth and ninth place Saturday in Paris.
The former Cougars and training partners completed to 26.2-mile race together, with Mantz finishing in 2:08.12 and Young at 2:08.44.
“It was an amazing day,” said BYU Director of Track and Field Ed Eyestone, who coaches Mantz and Young professionally. “There was a lot of guts shown by both of them. It’s amazing to see them finish in the single digits. To place in the top nine in the Olympic Games is a pretty great accomplishment, when you consider the marathon and all that can go wrong. I thought they ran a really controlled race. It was a really solid day for both of them.”
Mantz, a Logan native and former Sky View High School star, said he felt like he was in position for a possible medal until the 29-kilometer mark when he “couldn’t stay with the pack.”
“I am grateful I hung on and had a great last 10 [kilometers] despite being dropped by the front pack and running it solo,” he said.
Young was proud of his single-digit finish and time at the Paris Olympics.
“We thought that 2:08 would be on the podium, but it wasn’t quite enough,” the former American Fork High School runner said. “It was fun finding Conner out there on the course and sharing ice, bottles, and an epic high five. [I’m] feeling grateful, motivated and inspired.”
Another former BYU track and field athlete, Rory Linkletter, finished 47th in 2:13:09 for Canada.
