If Meb Keflezighi wins again with a time of 2 hours eight minutes . . .

Meb Keflezighi made history in the 2014 Boston Marathon race, the first after the bombings. His victory was the first by an American man in the open race since 1983. He’s fit and healthy and ready to try to defend his title; if he does, he’d be the first U.S. man to win back to back since Bill Rodgers in 1980. . . Dathan Ritzenhein, the third-fasest U.S. marathoner ever, is also running Boston for the first time.
http://www.wbur.org/2015/04/19/boston-marathon-preview

Lelisa Desisa gave Boston his medal for winning the city’s marathon in 2013. This year, he gets to keep it.

Two years ago, Desisa turned onto Boylston Street and put on a finishing kick that was too much for fellow Africans Micah Kogo and Gebregziabher Gebremariam. Hours later, tragedy struck when two bombs detonated at the finish line. In a gesture to a wounded city, Desisa donated his winner’s medal to the people of Boston.

Two years after the tragedy and one year after he dropped out of the race due to injury, Desisa won Monday by breaking the tape at 2:09:17. This time, the Ethiopian was alone for his sprint down Boylston.

Desisa emerged from a tightly-bunched pack of 11 runners who battled it out for more than half the race. The pack included last year’s winner, Meb Keflezighi, who finished 8th, and fellow American Dathan Ritzenhein, who held the lead for much of the first half of the race. Last year, Keflezighi ran alone for much of the race, becoming the first American man since 1983 to win Boston.

Patrick Makau, who has the fastest personal best marathon time of any runner in field—2:03:38—dropped out of the race shortly after the 5-kilometer mark.

Desisa edged second-place finisher Yemane Adhane Tsegay by 31 seconds. The 25-year-old becomes the fourth man to win two Boston Marathons.

http://www.boston.com/sports/marathon/2015/04/20/lelisa-desisa-gets-second-boston-marathon-medal-and-this-time-gets-keep/hxEAM6OA4EQ6Kl0pfTxsRL/story.html?p1=well_thBostonMarathon_subheadline_hp