Three-time medalist from Tokyo 2020 Olympics Sifan Hassan will not be chasing a hat-trick of titles at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene (USA) but will rather add just one more event to her bid for 5,000m gold. She will decide this week whether she will be in the 1,500 or 10,000 meters.
The athlete from the Netherlands won gold in the 5,000m and 10,000m at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and took bronze in the 1,500m but revealed the stress of chasing the treble had left her exhausted.
“I rested a lot and it was extremely difficult for me to start again, to concentrate”, said Sifan Hassan. “The Olympics was a highlight. It was really hard to set new goals after that. I had no motivation. But then I started missing running”, added she.
Just 10 weeks ago, Sifan Hassan decided to focus on the sport again but says she made a conscious decision to take it a little easier.
“Somewhere along the way you have to give something up in order to have a longer career”, she said.
Sifan Hassan pointed out that Eugene is followed by another World Championships in Budapest next year, then the Paris 2024 Olympics and then another World Championships in 2025.
“This is too much. I am afraid that if I trained as I have done in recent years, I will burn out”, said the two-time Olympic champion.
Sifan Hassan said she was happy with what she had achieved so far – two gold medals at the last World Championships in Doha in 2019 and then three honors in Tokyo last year.
“You get what you work for. I’ve been training this time, but not as much as in previous years. That means I can’t expect to be at the highest level. But I have no regrets and I’m really happy with how I feel now”, said she.
Sifan Hassan ran his first race of the season last Friday, winning the 5,000m at a tournament in Portland.
