Congratulations Goes Out To Merhawi's Brother, Meb

Italy's Stefano Baldini surged ahead with two miles to go and won the gold, while American Meb Keflezighi earned the silver. The bronze went to Vanderlei de Lima of Brazil.

De Lima was clinging to a shrinking lead when he was shoved into the curbside throng by a man dressed in a green beret, red kilt and knee-high green socks. De Lima was able to get back into the race, but several more seconds were sliced off his lead.

Keflezighi, 29, who emigrated from the African nation of Eritrea at age 10, is the first American to medal in the men's marathon since Frank Shorter's silver in 1976. Deena Kastor won the bronze in the women's marathon a week ago, marking the first time the United States had won two medals in the 26.2-mile race at the same Olympics.

"USA running is back," Keflezighi said. "Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Coming in I was not a favorite, I'm just very happy to win a silver."

Keflezighi, the American record holder at 10,000 meters, showed little emotion at the finish, crossing himself and putting up a No. 1 sign with his finger. Baldini was lying on his back nearby, and Keflezighi bent over him in congratulations.

He ran a personal-best 2:11.29, 34 seconds behind the winner. De Lima finished in 2:12.11.

Keflezighi, who has 11 brothers and sisters, became a U.S. citizen in 1998. In Eritrea, he lived in a hut that had no electricity. When he saw his first car at age 10, he ran away because it scared him. He remembers soldiers surrounding his village, looking for boys 12 and older to drag off to war. His brothers would hide in the bushes to avoid them.

His family first moved to Italy, then to San Diego in 1987, when Meb -- whose full name is Mebrahtom -- was 12.

He didn't begin running until junior high in San Diego, then went to UCLA, where he won the NCAA 5,000 and 10,000 titles in 1997, a year before he became a citizen.

The three-time U.S. 10,000-meter champion was 12th in that event in the Sydney Olympics. He won the 10,000 at the U.S. trials this year, but chose to run the marathon instead. Like Kastor, he lives in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., where he trains in the high Sierras.

For three weeks leading up to the Olympics, he shifted his training to the hills of Crete, becoming a popular fixture among the resort staff where the U.S. track and field team set up its pre-Olympic camp.