The reigning Olympic marathon champion is out for this year’s season with an Achilles injury.
Sifan Hasan has pulled out of next month’s London Marathon (April 26) after being hampered by an Achilles injury he suffered on the track.
The reigning Olympic marathon champion suffered the injury after an “accident” on the track six weeks ago. The injury was initially thought to be minor and she continued to train, but during her preparations for the London Marathon, the Dutch athlete failed to progress as planned.
After a thorough assessment, Hasan has now withdrawn from the event to avoid aggravating the injury. The 33-year-old won the London 2023 championship and finished third last year. He has a personal best of 2:13:44 and is fourth on the all-time marathon list.
Hassan also won the Sydney Marathon last year and finished sixth in New York. He has decided to leave London to “prioritise his recovery and long-term health”.
“This was a very difficult decision to make. I love competing in the London Marathon, it’s where I won my first ever marathon and I have very special memories there. But it’s also the highest quality marathon on the planet, and to compete at that level you need to be in top shape.
“After the incident, I was hoping that the injury would be fixed, but during training it became clear that I was not able to prepare to the level that is expected of me. I need to listen to my body and focus on recovering properly. I look forward to returning to London again in the future.”
There have also been notable withdrawals in the wheelchair fields of the London Marathon. Susanna Scaroni, who won five of the Abbott World Marathon Majors last year and was second in London, will not be competing in this year’s event.
His US team-mate Daniel Romanchuk, the 2019 London Marathon champion, will also be absent, while Britain’s Nathan Maguire has also had to withdraw through injury.
