Sifan Hassan couldn’t help but admit that she had not trained enough this year to really be in top shape for the World Cup. For that reason, Eugene’s athletic stadium was missing her flaming final sprint that brought her Olympic gold in the 10,000 meters in Tokyo last year and the world title in Doha three years ago. The Sportswoman of the Year finished fourth and ceded her title to Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey.
“I actually ran very smart and economical, but in the last 200 meters I made a big mistake. I thought I was the Sifan from the past who could pass everyone around the corner, but that wasn’t the case now. I should have been wait, because now my energy was gone in the last part to the finish. Sometimes that happens. Of course I would have liked to have won a medal, but it is what it is. I have to resign in fourth place.”
Hassan nevertheless dared to look with confidence at the 5000 meters, which she will also run at the World Cup. “My time (30.10.56) was actually very good and I was less than a second behind Gidey, while I didn’t feel any major fatigue. The fact that I started training late and didn’t do any competitions meant that I didn’t really I could go deep and get through the acidification. The legs are not fast enough yet, but I will definitely try to take a medal in the 5000 meters.”