Eilish McColgan ran an NR of 65:43 at the Generali Berlin Half Marathon on Sunday, April 2, 2023. Stuart Weir wrote this piece on Eilsh, who is looking to race her debut marathon at the TCS London Marathon.
McColgan wins Berlin half
In just under 3 weeks, Eilish McColgan will make her Marathon debut in London. Her 2023 form bodes well for her first race over 26 miles. Last month, in California, she set a new British road record over 10k – beating Paula Radcliffe’s record with a finish in 30:00.86.
Then last weekend, she smashed her own British record to win the Berlin Half Marathon in one hour five minutes and 43 seconds, taking 43 seconds off her previous best over the distance.
Ethiopia’s Tsigie Gebreselama was second, 30 seconds back, with her compatriot Yalemget Yaregal third. McColgan’s fellow Briton Samantha Harrison missed out on the podium in fourth.
GENERALI BERLINER HALBMARATHON 2023, by SCC Events.
With around five kilometers to go, Eilish McColgan overtook the leading Gebreselama in cold and windy conditions. Running against the wind most of the time now McColgan reduced the gap of around 20 seconds and finally passed her rival. “Breezy and cold conditions, I am used to this,“ said the runner from Scotland, who became the first British woman to take the women’s race of the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON. “This is a big personal best. I think with this time, I am in a good position for my marathon debut in London”. Her winning time was the fourth fastest-ever run in the history of the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON.
A total of 35,515 athletes from 131 countries entered the 42nd edition of the GENERALI BERLIN HALF MARATHON. 34,458 runners competed in the half marathon, making it one of the world’s biggest races over this distance.
Top men:
Sabastian Sawe KEN 59:00
Alex Kibet KEN 59:11
Bravin Kiprop KEN 59:22
To women:
Eilish McColgan GBR 65:43
Tsigie Gebreselama ETH 66:13
Yalemget Yaregal ETH 66:27
Before the race, McColgan told RunBlogRun’s Stuart Weir: “The marathon is something that we’ve thought about for a long time. I’ve always known that that is the type of runner I am, more strength based than speed, and always have been from a very young age. We can see from training that I tend towards longer events. It feels more comfortable and comes more naturally. I have always been a bit scared to go up because of the injuries that I have had in the past. Over the years, I have thought that I may be too injury-prone and pick up too many injuries or that I might not reach the mileage needed for a marathon. But over the past two or three years, I’ve realized that I am a lot stronger than perhaps I give myself credit for. And I am overcoming those fears – what if I get injured -because I used to be scared of that. I think now I’m ready to make that move up in distance. The half marathon gave me a lot of confidence – running 66:26 in early 2022 and knowing that that wasn’t 100% either. I feel that I’m capable of getting close to perhaps 65:30, which gives me confidence for the marathon distance. I think you need to be competitive over 10 K and a half before you move up to the full distance”.
