Identify metaphors in "To an Athlete Dying Young"

The entire poem does not refer to a specific athlete or a
particular sports event but to a universal condition. The condition of the
athlete becomes, therefore, metaphoric of the entire human existence and its inevitable
progression towards death. Significantly, in line 5, humanity is defined as formed by
different "runners". This second stanza is highly metaphorical, describing the
experience of death with terms such as "home" (grave) and "stiller town" (cemetery) that
usually refer to our everyday lives.

In addition to the
progression towards death, the characterization of humans as runners could also refer to
the equally inevitable competition among humans for fame. Such competition, as the
following stanzas make clear, may seem futile with hindsight as death is not simply the
culmination of physical decay but also of oblivion ("Runners whom renown outran/And the
name died before the man"). The paradox of the poem is that oblivion and disappointments
can be avoided through death, so that the dead person does not realize the transitory
nature of fame.