Dathan Ritzenhein (2021) - CU Athletic Hall of Fame - University of Colorado Athletics

Dathan Ritzenhein

Induction:
2021
Class:
2004

A three-time U.S. Olympic team member (2004, 2008, 2012) and three-time World Team member (2007, 2009, 2013), he retired from professional racing after a 16-year career in May 2020 … Over the course of his high school, college and professional career, he won a total of 52 major events (amateur and pro) … Turned professional after his junior year at Colorado, when he was the individual champion in the 2003 NCAA Cross Country championships (the fourth – and last – Buffalo to win the title) … A six-time All-American, twice in cross country (his 2003 win plus a fourth place finish in 2001), twice in the indoor 5,000-meter run (third in 2002, fourth in 2004) and twice in the outdoor 5,000 (second in 2004, third in 2002) … Still holds the CU outdoor records he set in 2004 for the 3,000-meter run (7:50.39) and the 10,000-meters (27:38.50); in fact, he still owns the second-best time in the 3k (8:14.96) … That 10,000-meter effort at the time was an American-Born collegiate record, which is still the third-best by an American (and 11th overall) … His 13:27.77 clocking in the 5k was the second-best at the time he set it in 2002, and remains the fourth-fastest … Also set the school best at the time in the indoor 5,000 (13:42.09, still the sixth-fastest) … A six-time Big 12 individual champion: Cross Country (2003), Indoor 3,000 (2002, 2004), Indoor 5,000 (2004) and the Outdoor 5,000 (2002, 2004) … Also the 2003 Mountain Regional champ, thus he had a sweep in ’03 (conference, regional, nationals) … Professionally, his accomplishments include: 2004 USA Olympic Team member in the 10,000-meter run (2004, 2012, finishing 13th the latter year) and in the Marathon (2008; finished ninth) … Three-time (2005, 2008, 2010) USA Cross Country champion, finishing second in 2013 and third in 2007 … 2005 USA Road 10k champion … Third in the 2006 USA Outdoor Championships (5,000) … Second in the 10,000 in the 2009 USA Outdoor Championships (placed third in the same event in 2007) … Earned his spot on the ’08 USA National Team for the Olympics with a runner-up finish in the Marathon Trials … Finished sixth in the 10k in the 2009 IAAF World Championships … In 2009, he set the USA 5k national record (12:56.27) … He was the bronze medalist in the 2009 World Half Marathon Championship … Though he just missed making the 2012 USA Team in the Marathon (he was fourth), he made the team by finishing third in the 10k trials … In the 10,000 in 2013, he posted a runner-up finish in the USA Outdoor Championships and a 10th place finish in the IAAF World Championships … Born December 30, 1982 in Grand Rapids, Mich., he was the nation’s top distance running recruit, having been a two-time Footlocker national champion and a bronze medalist in the IAAF junior world cross country championships … He has since relocated to Niwot, where he is head coach of the On Athletics Club (OAC), a professional track team based in Boulder and sponsored by On Running, a Swiss running company.