Eilish McColgan says it was a “hard slog” to make it to her fourth Olympics after she finished 15th in the women’s 10,000 metres final.
The 33-year-old Dundonian, who had to fight back from injury just to make the team, was cut adrift by the leaders in the opening stages at Stade de France.
And it was a lack of race sharpness that hurt her hopes of making an impression in the third Olympic final of her career as she finished in a time of 31:20.51 that was well short of her British record.
How did Eilish McColgan react to Paris 2024 result?
Eilish said: “Mentally, it’s tough. Because if it was another championship, you’d probably go ‘just skip it and get yourself in as good a shape as you possibly can.’
“But the last five and a half weeks have been brilliant. I couldn’t have asked for any more.
“I did absolutely everything I could, training-wise, to get myself into the best possible shape.
“I don’t feel that’s really reflected here, which is a little bit of a disappointment.
“But you can’t turn down the Olympic Games. It’s the biggest race in the world.
“I’m just disappointed that it didn’t quite go (to plan).”
What next for Dundee hero?
McColgan will return now to the mountains of France and then return to the roads to run the Big Half in London on September 1.
On Friday the Commonwealth Games hero said the Los Angeles games in 2028 could be a possibility, adding: “It would realistically be a marathon.”
Her partner and coach Michael Rimmer – himself a three-time Olympian – also hinted her days on the track could be over.
Michael wrote on X: “Super proud of this one. In what will potentially be her last ever track race, she’s shown insane resilience to come back from a horrendous 18 months of injury, to still finish as one of the top 15 women in the world!
“Honestly don’t believe there are many, if any, (clean) athletes who could do that.
“Although she’ll still feel a little disappointed knowing that training pointed to a better performance, unfortunately you’re always going to be up against it when you’ve missed so much racing and you’re lacking that competitive edge in your running.
“But it’s great to see her running healthy and happy again, that’s the main thing.
“And I suspect with a few more races in those legs it won’t be long until she’s back to her best!”
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