BRITISH ATHLETES HOPE LONDON MARATHON WILL DELIVER OLYMPIC QUALIFYING PERFORMANCES
By David Monti, @d9monti
(c) 2020 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved - Used with permission.

(02-Oct) -- While the USA marathon team for the Tokyo Olympics is already set with all six places filled based on the results of last February's Olympic Trials race, the British team only has one confirmed athlete so far, Scotland's Callum Hawkins.  Hawkins, twice fourth at the World Athletics Championships in the marathon, was pre-selected last December based on both his 2019 World Championships finish and on his 2:08:14 personal best at the 2019 Virgin Money London Marathon where he finished tenth.

The remaining five places for the British team remain open, however, and a raft of British athletes will be trying to achieve Olympic qualifying performances at Sunday's Virgin Money London Marathon.  Pacing groups have been set up so that men and woman can achieve the Games' qualifying standards of 2:11:30 and 2:29:30, respectively (a top-10 finish is also a qualifying mark).  So important is Olympic qualifying that four-time Olympic gold medalist Mo Farah has been enlisted as a pacemaker to improve athletes' chances of making the time.

"I'm actually looking forward to seeing him and hoping he's pacing to 25 miles," joked Chris Thompson at this morning's socially-distanced press conference which was broadcast via social media.  He added: "I think it will be interesting to see him running our pace."

Thompson, 39, who made his marathon debut in London in 2014, has yet to surpass the mark he recorded in that race: 2:11:19.  Since then, the often-injured Thompson has struggled to get the marathon right, running 2:15:05 in London in 2016, 2:24:11 in London in 2017, and 2:28:54 at the TCS New York City Marathon in 2018.  None of those marks reflected his accomplishments at shorter distances, including the 61:07 half-marathon personal best he set at the Big Half in London last March just before the pandemic struck.  He's hoping that the extra rest he gave his body during Britain's coronavirus lockdown in the spring, followed by a long period of stay-at-home training, put new freshness in his legs and renewed fitness in his heart.

"I'm actually looking forward to this weekend," Thompson said. "It may not be the most normal of build-ups, but I've actually just really enjoyed (it).  He continued: "I've actually enjoyed this build-up more than any, and I'm actually looking forward to the weekend more than any other marathon because of everything that's happened this year."

Thompson, and his wife Jemma Simpson, have been keeping their heads down at their home in Surrey, southwest of Central London. Simpson, a 2008 Olympian at 800 meters, has been working from home (she works for a sports nutrition company), while Thompson has been logging his miles and hunkering down in the couple's bedroom so that Jemma can focus on her work.

"I've actually not gone anywhere, gone away; I've just stayed home," Thompson explained.  He continued: "This is kind of different, very refreshing for me.  I think everyone hopes they are in shape.  You don't know until you run the race.  There's no reason that I can't.  My fingers crossed like everyone else."

Jonny Mellor, 33, who trains under coach Steve Vernon in a New Balance-sponsored group in Manchester, is in the unique position that he already has an Olympic Games qualifying time.  Back in February, he clocked a personal best 2:10:05 in Seville, well under the Games' qualifying standard.  Although there are no guarantees (U.K. Athletics has not announced their revised team selection policy for the postponed Games), logging another sub-2:11:30 on Sunday would put him in excellent position for Olympic team selection.  He said today that his training for London compared favorably to his Seville build-up.

"We do have some key sessions we do in our build-up," said Mellor.  "I feel I'm in similar shape to Seville.  Steve always liked to mix things up so we don't compare too much."  He added: "Things have been going exactly the same way."

On the women's side, the situation is different.  Although no British women have run sub-2:29:30 this year, four did it last year: Jess Piasecki, 2:25:29; Charlotte Purdue, 2:25:38; Steph Twell, 2:26:40; and Stephanie Davis, 2:27:42.  Twell, 31, who has only raced two marathons, is the only one of these women entered in Sunday's race.  Like Mellor, another solid mark could cement her selection for Tokyo.

"It's absolutely fantastic to be here today," Twell said this morning.  She added: "For the London Marathon to hold this opportunity has kept me optimistic.  It certainly kept me motivated in training."

The versatile Twell --who was the World Athletics U20 1500m champion back in 2008 and has a world-class personal best of 4:02.54 for that distance-- has taken well to road running in general, and the longer distances specifically, while still racing on the track (she was 15th at last year's World Athletics Championships 10,000m).  Now self-coached, said today that she has always embraced her long runs and that her move to the marathon has felt very natural.

"I've known from a very young age that the marathon would eventually be something that I would turn to," Twell explained. "I've always loved the long run.  I also love training for the social aspect as well, and I think the marathon is a beautiful event as a community event."  She added: "I've never been afraid of the hard work."

Lily Partridge, 29, will also be racing Sunday.  She ran 2:29:24 in London back in 2018 (still her personal best) and is looking to lower that time on Sunday to make her case for a Tokyo team berth.

"Full eye on the Olympic standard," said Partridge emphatically. "That's the goal for the weekend to make sure I come out of the weekend ready for next year with what I need for the Olympics.

Partridge's partner Ben Connor will be making his marathon debut on Sunday (he's coming off of a half-marathon personal best of 60:59 set in Northern Ireland last month).  The couple, who recently bought a house, live in Derby about halfway between Birmingham and Sheffield, and drove the three hours to London. They have a plan for who will drive home depending on the outcome of the race.

"We've already decided who runs worst has to drive home," she said.


PHOTO: Chris Thompson speaking at a Virgin Money London Marathon press conference (screen grab via London Marathon Events Facebook page)

PHOTO: Steph Twell speaking at a Virgin Money London Marathon press conference (photo by Dan Vernon for London Marathon Events)