Blake Russell waited four years for this race.

In 2004, the slender blonde ran to the lead at the Women's Olympic Marathon Trials in St. Louis, and stayed there for 17 miles, thinking she surely would secure a place on the US team as one of the top three finishers.

Instead, she was securing a reputation she didn't want.

Russell fell to pieces, in part because she had failed to drink water during the race, and she was passed by Deena Kastor and Colleen De Reuck, and then, as her heart sank into her sneakers, by Jen Rhines just 800 meters from the finish line. Russell ended up fourth, and fourth-place finishers don't go to the Olympics.

"After the disaster in 2004, my coach [Bob Sevene] and I knew we had to sit down and develop a game plan to get where I am now," said Russell, who got her spot by coming in third in the Olympic Team Trials yesterday. "Later on tonight, I think it's going to sink in, but right now, it's just really surreal. I couldn't be happier."