The Olympic marathon is only a 2nd tier event in the same fashion that the 5k and 10k are - in the sense that the extra 10 Kenyans and 5 Ethiopians who could kill every American aren't running as only 3 per event are allowed.
As if Ritz's 5k was exciting to watch. THe last mile as he tore up people was exhilirating but for the average fan, no way. The announcer didn't even notice ritz until 800 left.
The whole race was exciting for me but i was trying to guess how far back he was buy counting out load every time I saw Bekele or him. You could barely fit Ritz in the picture.
Yes winning a major marathon that's not watered down or set up for an american win like boston might seemingly do is probably harder than winning olympic gold or equally as hard. But the difference is in a marathon you get to run with the lead pack for a long time if it's not a rabbitted race. Face time = exciting.