The 2008 US Olympic Team Trials for the men’s marathon will be remembered for record performances and one of the most competitive fields in decades. It captured the hearts and minds of distance running fans and energized the spirit of distance running. Along with the triumphs on November 3, a day of celebration, tragedy struck with the death of Ryan Shay. My heartfelt condolences go out to Ryan’s family and all those whose lives were touched by this incredible athlete and human being.

My friend, Ian Torrence, got to briefly know Ryan and trained with his wife, Alicia, while he lived in Flagstaff. He recently notified me of the Ryan Shay Memorial Fund set up by the Center for High Altitude Training at Northern Arizona University. If you can, please consider donating to this fund.

For more information, here is a video interview explaining the fund.

And an explanation, quoted from the Ryan Shay Memorial Fund website:

In honor of Ryan Shay, an integral member of the Flagstaff running community, the Center for High Altitude Training has designated its current “Running Fund” through the Northern Arizona University Foundation to be a “Ryan Shay Memorial Fund,” with the targeted purpose of serving as a source for athlete stipends. These stipends are financial allocations to eligible U.S. middle distance and distance runners that help pay for their training-related expenses while training in Flagstaff.

The topic of athlete support was very important to Ryan, who repeatedly acknowledged how difficult it is for athletes to directly benefit from dollars given to organizations in support of U.S. distance running. In response to Ryan’s concern, for the next 12 months all gifts received into the Running Fund will be tagged “In Memory of Ryan Shay” and will be used for athlete stipends and to help pay for expenditures that athletes incur while training in Flagstaff. Examples of expenditures include, but are not limited to, room, board, blood testing, physiological testing, coaching, and rehabilitative services.