Sifan Hassan admitted she never believed she could win the London Marathon after doing it in unbelievable style on Sunday.
The 30-year-old Dutch runner of Ethiopian origin started the race on the back foot after having discomfort in her hip.
Despite the setback, the Adana-born athlete made her way up and crossed the finish line in a time of 2 hours, 18 minutes and 33 seconds ahead of Ethiopia’s Alemu Megertu and Kenya’s Peres Jepchirchir.
Hassan revealed she never took her first London Marathon seriously as he had her sights set on the World Athletics Championship in Budapest, Hungary.
“London has been my dream. And now here I am, I was doubting that I could even finish,” Hassan said after the race.
“This is just amazing. I will never forget this in my whole life.
“I enjoyed it so much. They said the marathon would hurt but I felt really good, even after 5km and 15km! When I saw the finish line, I thought, is that really it?!
“This year, the world championships is in my mind, I wasn’t really thinking about the marathon. I thought I would have to cancel this run to focus on the worlds in Budapest. But I am so happy.”
IT'S UNBELIEVABLE! ????
Sifan Hassan wins the 2023 TCS London Marathon.#LondonMarathon #WeRunTogether pic.twitter.com/lp664ftIRC
— TCS London Marathon (@LondonMarathon) April 23, 2023
Hassan went on to narrate how she struggled with her hip problem but was able to kick into gear once the marathon reached a certain stage.
“I had a problem with my hip, which made me stop. But it started to feel a little bit better,” Hassan continued.
“And then I missed one of the drinks stations! I didn’t practice that part of the race because I have been fasting and so that was quite difficult. But I needed it!
“At 20km I knew that I could kick on because I didn’t feel that tired and I didn’t care how I finished, I just wanted to get there.
“I wasn’t thinking about winning or how fast I was going to be and I think that was a good thing for me today. I felt really popular here today because the crowd were cheering me so much!”
Hassan made history at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo where she won gold in both the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres, and a bronze medal in the 1500 metres.
She became the only athlete to win medals across a middle-distance event and the two long-distance events in a single Olympic tournament.
Hassan also holds two gold medals in the 1500 metres and 10,000 metres from the 2019 World Athletics Championship in Doha as well as three pole positions in the 1500 metres and 5000 metres at the 2015 and 2019 IAAF Diamond League finals in Brussels.
