Thursday, Jul. 24, 2008
72. Bernard Lagat
Distance Running
United States
Age: 33
It's easy to call Lagat a hired gun. America has long struggled in distance running — the U.S. hasn't won 5000m gold in 44 years. Now here's Lagat, who has already won two Olympic medals for his native Kenya, competing for the U.S. in Beijing. But Lagat, who became a U.S. citizen in 2004, insists he's a legit American: he's lived in the country for more than a decade, attended Washington State University, and now resides in Arizona. He's also a class act. Lagat is the defending world champ in the 1,500m and 5,000m, and also won both races at the U.S. trials. He'll go for the double in Beijing.