by Former winner Sifan Hassan has admitted the London Marathon is “in my heart” as she prepares to return to the scene of her remarkable debut in the competition two years ago.
The Dutch athlete of Ethiopian origin, in what was her very first marathon, achieved a resounding victory on the streets of the capital in 2023, despite two stops during the race and falling 28 seconds behind first place in a given moment.
Since then, the 32-year-old all-rounder has gone from strength to strength in the middle and long distance disciplines, including another stunning performance at Paris 2024. There, she won marathon gold with a women’s Olympic record of two. hours 22 minutes and 55 seconds – a feat achieved just 36 hours after winning the bronze medal in the 10,000 meters final.
Hassan is now turning her focus back to the TCS London Marathon, which takes place on April 27, and she hopes to enjoy this year’s event more than her epic bow two years ago.
Hassan, who did not take part in last year’s race, said: “If you look back, London is in my heart. It’s incredible, it’s almost a bit like Paris.
“I thought I don’t know what I’m going to do, but sometimes it’s a miracle, sometimes a miracle happens.
“Miracles happen by doing, by working hard, by training, by trying, so it happened to me and that’s a bit like that for me, London.
“I have really good feelings there, the way I start (the marathon), I never dreamed of a marathon. It was London, when I finished after London, that’s when suddenly my brain thinks of Paris – I’m going to do the marathon there.
“Mentally, my brain was the London marathon, the Paris marathon, the Olympics…
“It’s actually my debut, no matter what happens, I just wanted to enjoy it because I didn’t really see (anyone else), I was so focused on myself.
“I was so scared of the marathon, I was wondering: ‘Will I finish, will it hurt, what will happen?’ Everyone’s going to say, “Oh, she’s worthless, why did she try that?” “.
“Or people will say I made a big mistake and it’s stupid to do it. All the things. I didn’t really enjoy the London Marathon.
Ethiopia’s Tamirat Tola, the 2024 Paris men’s marathon champion, is also set to compete alongside five-time Paris Paralympic gold medalist Catherine Debrunner, while fellow Swiss Marcel Hug will aim for a fifth consecutive London Marathon victory in the men’s wheelchair race.
Hassan won three Olympic medals at Tokyo 2020, with gold in the 5,000m and 10,000m as well as a bronze in the 1,500m, and added to his tally in Paris with a gold in the marathon and two bronzes in the 10,000 m and 5,000 m.
The runner is still aiming for personal bests on the track alongside her marathon competitions and wants to “see how far” she can go over the next few years, with an eye towards LA 2028.
When asked about her goals, Hassan said: “I want to run four marathons in a year, four major marathons.
“I want to see how far I can go, but I don’t know if I’ll do it next year and then two years, I don’t think.
“Not this year, but I think maybe near LA, I want to see how I can handle that and I also want to see some PB on the track.
“I have so much stuff, I’m really crazy. If you open my head, there are so many things inside.
