Eilish McColgan expects to interrupt Paula Radcliffe’s 22-year-old British report within the London Marathon – however not on her debut.
The reigning Commonwealth Video games 10,000m champion will run her maiden 26.2-mile race in April, two years after she anticipated to compete within the iconic occasion on the streets of London.
Damage put paid to her 2023 plan and the Scot feels “dashing” her marathon coaching contributed to the accidents that meant she was unable to run for practically six months.
The four-time Olympian says she must settle in to this “completely different chapter” of her profession earlier than she’s going to have the ability to assault Radcliffe’s mark of two hours quarter-hour 25 seconds.
“It is so unrealistic to suppose I will go in and break Paula Radcliffe’s report on my first try,” mentioned the 34-year-old.
“That is nonsense. It simply is not going to occur. However do I feel I am able to getting right down to these occasions sooner or later? Completely. I would not be right here if I did not suppose I used to be.
“However I am taking part in extra of an extended recreation, and simply taking issues month by month and 12 months by 12 months relatively than attempting to hurry issues.”
McColgan believes she was in “the perfect form of her life” earlier than she was sidelined, having simply damaged Radcliffe’s 21-year-old British 10,000m report and enhancing her personal British half-marathon mark in Berlin.
She ultimately had knee surgical procedure and whereas her focus is now on street racing, the 2026 Commonwealth Video games in Glasgow – the place there will probably be no street occasions – stays behind her thoughts.
“I discovered rather a lot from 2023. Now I simply wish to be sure that I construct issues up regularly, do issues correctly, and I simply need longevity in my profession,” she mentioned.
“I nonetheless consider that this subsequent Olympic cycle I could be at my greatest. I nonetheless suppose I can get quicker over 5k and 10k.
“However actually the marathon is a long-term mission. I’m going to simply attempt to study as a lot as I can from this course of, after which attempt to implement that over the subsequent few years to see how I bridge the hole in direction of a 2:09 or no matter loopy time they’ve run by then.”