San Francisco Marathon 2012 Results: Krah Benefits from Lack of Elite Runners

Salt Lake City's Nathan Krah won the 2012 San Francisco marathon, finishing in two hours, 26 minutes and 44 seconds.

The Ph.D. student must be commended for his efforts, but his victory did not come against the best in the world. San Francisco's arduous 26.2-mile trek is certainly tough, but it is not held in the same regard as the New York and Boston marathons.

It isn't considered to be in the upper echelon of United States marathons because of the lack of elite competition amongst the field.

When comparing the winners of the Boston and San Francisco marathons since 1991, it isn't hard to see the trend. In Beantown, 19 of the last 22 winners have come from Kenya.

Anybody who knows anything about long-distance running is aware of the fact that the best marathon runners in the world come from Kenya. The altitude and thin air of their home country give the Kenyan participants a distinct advantage over their competition when running in more ideal environments.

Since 1991, the San Francisco marathon has seen just three Kenyans win the race. Americans have won the last six races.

Without the world's best competing, it is hard to hold a race in the highest esteem.

The Kenyan runners—and other elite runners—choose not to compete in the San Francisco marathon because it is not worth their while.

Krah did not receive a massive payout for his efforts. All he got was some gear and some free food, which can hardly justify an elite runner's participation.

The absence of cash prizes are due to there being no corporate sponsors for the event. It is impossible for an organization to provide monetary compensation when receiving no help from outside donations.

In Boston, the committee has the luxury of receiving outside contributions, which makes cash prizes available to the competitors. Last year, winner Geoffrey Mutai took home $50,000 for finishing in first place.

That's a solid payday for one day's work.

San Francisco's marathon is a longstanding competition, but if prize money is not awarded, competition will continue to deteriorate.

Here is a link to the top-10 finishers.