Update: Eilish McColgan OUT of 2023 London Marathon

Racing a marathon with a knee issue is a bad idea. Unless you don’t really care if you are able to run again or not.

If it's bursitis around the knee it might hold up, but hopefully it's not bone related

I hope she makes the sensible decision and withdraws. No point in turning up then bailing out half way round. She's not a hobby jogger like the rest of us. Her health is what pays her bills!

I get that her Mum (note correct spelling) won here. And she'll want to do well, but there's always next year and she's only at the beginning of her marathon career, so there's no rush or urgency just yet

Nooooooooo!

I’m also a bit unsure if the long term move is for the marathon for her as it stands. Obviously she does really well with marathon training or her version of it (more like 80 mpw). It seems dubious she’ll be able to run the 100-130 mpw the 2:15-2:18 women run. That being said she could have a niche racing on the roads (10Ks-Half) and then come back to the track for Worlds and the Olympics.

Update: McColgan just announced she's out. Said she had a knee issue that would not heal in time to run well on Sunday. Second straight year she's withdrawn -- she pulled out last year after fueling issues in training.

"Trust me, I've tried but it’s just got to the point where it’s not going to be feasible to run a marathon this weekend."

She is not built for the marathon. Tall, gangly awkward stride. Looks labored when she runs. No sir, not the prototypical marathon build. Why the fascination with the marathon when you are a top performer on the track? She could be a medal contender on the track.

Imagine how much more the appearance fee for the top Brit at the London marathon pays. This is an athlete that was dropped from the uk funding pool at one time.

I'm sure people said the same about Paula Radcliffe- a giant compared to her competitors, gangly, and awkward bobbing running form. So being 'built for the marathon' might not be as important as you think it is.

She could end up like Ritz, someone who excels at 10k and the half but injury/fueling/cramping issues prevent them from reaching their potential in the full. (Not that Ritz didn’t have some pretty decent marathons, but let’s be honest, with his talent he should have been a 2:05-2:06 guy like Hall and Rupp).

"Tall, gangly awkward stride."

We talking McColgan or half the EAs.

Jon regarding the sponsor issue raised... Eilish had SIS sponsorship at Berlin half, London is sponsored by Lucozade - I think that's more likely the issue than Asics?

Would be insane to raise a sponsor issue for a shoe brand in a sport like running and also starts a big brand war where NB athletes won't be welcomed to Asics sponsored events...

Would also be very odd given the NB Indoor Grand Prix (in their own facility) a few months ago had races won by the likes of Neil Gourley (Under Armour) and Noah Lyles (Adidas) - NB saying starting an issue like this with the biggest British female distance runner would be very stupid in my opinion.

Yeah I think you're right that that is the more likely option (I also don't know what the sponsor logo restrictions are in World Marathon Majors). I have heard of certain sponsors not sending athletes to certain meets (it happened earlier this year indoors) but it would be strange for the marathon. Sara Hall is Asics and ran London three years ago.

Add in the big Brit men; Farah and Cairess both not being NB either!

It's still very odd that SIS is a problem, frustrating that we're getting stuck in these issues that sports like cycling and triathlon have found a solution to years ago.

I've run through runners knee for 2 years. Just do the race and rest afterwards. You get enough lottery funding not to sit around.

“I was then hit with a further roadblock having been told I wouldn't be allowed to race, due to a sponsor clash between myself and London Marathon's sponsor. I do not doubt that the major marathon contracts will be updated in future years, (most likely once the bigger-named athletes are involved.) But it needs to change to give athletes the chance to be financially stable. And they certainly should not be restricted as to what races they can or cannot do, purely because of a logo on their chest!”

"As you can imagine, juggling the above and coming back from injury has been incredibly stressful. I've tried to push things and as a result, suffered from a knee issue this week. Thankfully, it's nothing too serious (ligament/tendon/bone are all very healthy) but I have a lot of swelling and an impingement under the kneecap which has become very painful. I'm hopeful I'll be able to use my fitness in another marathon."

Between no McColgan, Sisson and Assefa... and then Kosgei confiding that she's not fully fit, the race has lost a lot of depth. Would tend to think it will be Peres and Y-Squared clear of the rest, but maybe Ayana, Korir or Chepkirui take a big step forward. I'd more surprised by Dibaba or Hassan.

It's definitely nothing to do with shoes or kit. Like most marathons, London is usually overrun with Nike and Adidas athletes.

With SIS, it could depend on where she was promoting it. If she's doing so at official London Marathon events like meet and greets, then you can see why LME would be irritated. They need to sell the event to sponsors and if an athlete can just turn up and guerilla market their personal sponsors, then that affects LMEs ability to attract advertisers. It's the same logic as the Olympics but without the stupid restrictions on athletes' kit.

I thought the contractual issues could also be to do with her running Berlin so close to London. LME is paying her to turn up so they could expect her to take reasonable steps to ensure she can get to the line, which might include not running an all-out HM a few weeks before the big event.

Anyway, it's a shame we won't see her run as I think she could have done something quite special for British distance running. The British women's race is now lacking in top level quality. Jess Piasecki and Charlotte Purdue had already withdrawn, so Sam Harrison is the only person I'm interested in. I hope she can get the Olympic standard, it would be a great reward for the last couple of years of impressive progress.