Cross Country is a competitive sport. Athletes pushing themselves to their absolute limits in order to shave decimal points off their final time. Invariably, this strive for greatness breeds competition and, in turn, rivalries.

Dathan Ritzenhein, a high school prodigy who went on to become a two-time global medalist, three-time Olympian, five-time national champion and a 2:07 marathoner, has decided to retire after 16 years of professional running.  The 37-year-old, who grew up in Rockford, Mich., and competed for the University of Colorado during his collegiate career, decided that he had accomplished all of his main goals and the time was right to shift his focus away from competitive running.

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