Rosenkranz represents Team USA for first time, competes well

It was a warm evening shortly after sunset when TCC member Josh Rosenkranz stood on the starting line of the Maccabi Games half marathon in Jerusalem. With no knowledge of the competition, and recognizing that the course was hilly and the night warm, Rosenkranz only had a loosely-formed game plan. The pace was immediately taken out by an Israeli competitor who covered the first mile in 5:10. Rosenkranz was 5 seconds back at 5:15. While this may have been an acceptable first mile for a flat half marathon in cool San Francisco temperatures, this proved far too fast for the day's conditions. Unfortunaely, Rosenkranz was unaware that the lead runner had a marathon PR of 2:09 and Rosenkranz should have been MUCH further back. At around 5k, Rosenkranz was starting to feel not great (yikes). He slowed slightly running up the first extended hill on the course and through the flat middle miles but maintained his competitive attitude. This despite struggling to follow the course (the lead runner was out of sight and had taken all three lead bikers with him), having to avoid unaware pedestrians on the bike path, and sturggling with the full plastic water bottles handed out at aid stations. At around mile 10, as the course entered the Old City of Jerusalem, the wheels really started to fall off. A series of brutally placed hills and slick stone streets slowed his pace well above 6 minute pace. (Honestly there would be more detail for this section if Rosenkranz could remember more from this section of the race.) The last 5k was a battle of survival, trying not to walk and just get to the finish. Rosenkranz was passed by one of his American teammates a couple miles from the finished but held onto third place. Rosenkranz somehow ended up with a silver medal as the top finisher was not considered a Maccabi participant, just an entrant in the mass-participation road race. And so, despite his very poor pacing and impressive blowup in the second half of the race, Rosenkranz accepted his silver medal draped in an American flag. He was, however, alone on the podium as the gold medallist had been taken back to the hotel due to severe dehydration and the bronze medallist was nowhere to be found. It was a fitting end for a race with the participation levels of a city road race but the organization level of a 100-participant local 5k. All in all though, Rosenkranz had a great experience training and racing in Israel, and now is very glad to (cheekily) call himself a global medallist.

Header photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash