In this episode of "Running: State of the Sport," George and Amby chat with Conner Mantz, a favorite in the Feb. 3 Olympic Marathon Trials, based on his recent 2:07:47 at the Chicago Marathon. Mantz also won two NCAA Cross Country Championships in his days as an undergrad at Brigham Young University. He’s part of a strong BYU marathon contingent that includes Clayton Young, 2:08:00 at Chicago, and 2016 Olympic marathon runner Jared Ward. All are coached by two-time U.S. Olympic marathoner Ed Eyestone. Before talking to Mantz, George and Amby discussed the biggest recent news in running. This included the fast results in the Valencia Marathon, where Ethiopian Sisay Lemma set a course record of 2:01:48, and his countrywoman Worknesh Degefa ran a personal best, 2:15:51. In the same race, Kenenisa Bekele, 41, set a world record for a masters marathon runner with his 2:04:19. In Oregon, Addy Ritzenhein, just a sophomore and daughter of former U.S. super-elite runner Dathan Ritzenhein, won the Nike Nationals XC meet. In England, Lauren Fleshman’s book Good For A Girl was named winner of the prestigious William Hill Sports Book of the Year. It was the first win for a running book, and the first win for a female author writing about female sports. Where to find “Running: State of the Sport” Use your smartphone to download podcast apps from Apple, Spotify, Audible, Pandora, or Google Podcasts. Once you've selected your favorite app, Search for “running state of the sport.”  With your computer, tablet, or smartphone, you can also listen direct to “Running: State of the Sport” at the below internet links. Apple Spotify Audible Pandora Google Podcasts  "Running: State of the Sport" is brought to you by MarathonHandbook.com and RunLongRunHealthy.com. Marathon Handbook is the world’s leading marathon website, with a special focus on trustworthy running information and free, runner-tested training plans for all ability levels. Run Long, Run Healthy is Amby’s weekly newsletter with the newest, most scientific, and most useful training advice for runners. Audio engineering by BJ McGeever.