Cesar Lizano is a long-distance runner who will have the honor of representing Costa Rica during the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London. Mr. Lizano traveled to San Diego, California last month for two weeks of preparation and training for the tough race that awaits him in August: the men’s Olympic marathon.

Mr. Lizano’s coach, Mario Fraioli, recently shared his coaching experience to online athletics publication Competitor. Mr. Fraioli has been training Mr. Lizano since February, but the recent two-week session was not the norm. Mr. Fraioli does not spend too much time in Costa Rica, and thus the training sessions between him and Mr. Lizano are mostly conducted by electronic messaging. This means that Mr. Lizano gets to train, for the most part, by himself when he is in Costa Rica.

The training conditions in San Diego are similar to Costa Rica in terms of topography and climate, but Mr. Lizano’s workouts were augmented by competing against some of the top runners in Southern California. According to Mr. Fraioli, the training sessions in San Diego were also more intense: Mr. Lizano ran more than 100 miles each week. In the coming weeks prior to the Olympics in London, the overall training distance will increase to 120 miles per week, and the tempo will also heighten.

Physical conditioning is not the only training that Mr. Lizano received in San Diego. Being able to train face-to-face with his coach has allowed Mr. Lizano to focus on strengthening his mind ahead of the marathon. His personal records are quite a few minutes slower than the top-rated athletes he will be running against, but Mr. Fraioli believes that the Tico athlete can overcome such intimidation and elevate Costa Rica’s name in the Olympics.