Two-time Olympic champion Sifan Hassan said she learned a valuable lesson at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene after failing to win a medal in both the 5,000m and 10,000m. She triumphed in both disciplines at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics last year.
The 29-year-old Dutchwoman took a break from the sport after her double triumph in Tokyo, where she also won bronze in the 1,500m, and the lack of training affected her form in Eugene.
“You should train very hard to win. You can’t do it with talent alone, I’ve learned my lesson”, said Sifan Hassan after finishing sixth in the 5,000m final, well behind winner Gudaf Tsegay from Ethiopia. “I was good, but the others were better”, added the Dutch athlete, who thought she could win a medal in the 5,000m.
“I did everything I could, I gave it my all, I ran smart, but in the last 100m they were just better. I knew it could happen. They train all year and I started too late”, said Sifan Hassan, who took several months off after the triumph in Tokyo to rest before the next Olympic Games in Paris 2024. “That’s it. I can’t keep saying if only I had done this or that. I don’t want to make any more excuses. It doesn’t make me better”, added she.
She will miss the European Championships in Munich next month, but will play in several Diamond League tournaments later this year.
