Callum Hawkins confessed he had nothing left to give after being pipped to victory in Sunday’s United Airlines New York Half Marathon by Olympic marathon silver medallist Feyisa Lilesa.
The 24-year-old look confident as he spearheaded a breakaway group of three for most of the Big Apple event. However, in what turned into a two-man dash for the line over the closing stages, he was edged out by his Ethiopian rival who won in 60:04 with the Scot just four seconds behind.
And he admitted: “I was just thinking, like, why won't he leave me alone? But yeah, it was really fun running through Manhattan. I mean, such an exciting race, but overall it was just really tough, and I was throwing everything I could just to get rid of Feyisa, but he was just too strong in the end.”
Hawkins – who is set for only four more races in his build-up towards this summer’s world championships marathon in London – missed his own Scottish record by just eight seconds. And despite several attempts to make a decisive surge clear, coming out of Central Park towards the finishing line, the pain of pushing to the front finally hit home, he revealed.
“I was sort of trying to gear up for a sprint finish because I didn't have any more to go from that far out,” he said. “I know we both suffered under Lilesa's sprint finish. But unfortunately he got the better of me coming off the corner. I just didn't have it, didn't have any kick on me at all.”
American favourite Molly Huddle took the women’s title for the third successive year in 68:19.
Elsewhere, Joasia Zakrzewski was fourth in the Limassol Marathon in 2.47.23.
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