An exclusive Q&A with the corridor after she played 22 minutes and 31 seconds of her best
There is no doubt that this year’s TCS London marathon produced a myriad of unique and sensational stories. From Sabastian Sawe and Tigist Assefa dominating in the streets of the capital to Alex Yee and Eilish McColgan making their debut of 26.2 miles, the 45th edition of the event will not be quickly forgotten.
In heat conditions, those of the elite field starred. However, there were also some quite notable stories in the element of mass participation of the race, with a particular prominent.
Lucy Jones, who recorded 2:52:54 in London last year, played an incredible 22 minutes and 31 seconds at that time 12 months later. Its or 2:30:23 was the third fastest by a British female athlete in the event, with only Eilish McColgan (2:24:25) and Rose Harvey (2:25:01) going faster [Phily Bowden ran 2:30:28].
The British was also part of the Puma Project3 initiative and runs on Puma Fast-R Nitro Elite 3, Tok Home $ 9000 shoes as the fastest woman in the project in London.
Now, a few weeks after his career, Jones speaks on that magical day in the capital, how it was to balance full -time work with training and why he dreams of becoming a professional athlete in the future.
How did you feel run 2:30:23 in the London Marathon this year?
Honestly, I couldn’t believe it. I knew that maybe I was fit for a 2:34 or 2:35 race, maybe a little faster on a good day, but going out and running 2:30 was incredible. It is something I had dreamed since it was very little.
I had a broad idea of what I thought I could handle the rhythm and left quite constantly. After about two or three miles, it was what I expected and I felt very good. So I trusted myself from there and I really went through 10 miles a little faster than I had anticipated.
Simply a child or I said ‘that’s fine, let’s go to 20 miles and we will reevaluate the situation’. Around the 17/18 mile brand, I had a lot of confidence and began to receive a lot of love from the crowd. I started to see people I knew and who was really enjoying it. I was sure that the wheels would not fall!
I looked at my watch a lot in the last five or six miles, since I just wanted to send it as hard as I could. I had only trained up to 22 miles, and I didn’t run it at a career rate, so it was a period unknown to me. I was nervous how it would feel, but I overcome it at the end.
I will be honest, I don’t know what I felt crossing the line. I loved it and started crying as soon as I completed the race. I could not stop the tears and I was very proud of myself. I always knew that there was a performance like that there. It was about having confidence and everything became perfectly instead.
I think it’s a place where I deserve to be and I am able to go faster. My body was able to deal with the training block well, so if they gave me more opportunities to train as a professional, then it is expected to be a good part to take time in terms of time.
You have a full -time account management work, so what was the balance with the training ahead of London?
Yes, obviously, it is difficult, but I think you get used to as you get in a rhythm. I think it can be done and I don’t think anyone is discouraged through training if it is in full -time work. I think there are days when you have to be more with yourself and reality, and you understand your body to minimize, I suppose, injuries and diseases. Work on a desk, so I like to get a release when I am training.
Work from 9 am to 6 pm from Monday to Friday, in office three days a week, and then only fit my training sessions around that. Monday and Wednesday would be easy days, so between eight and ten or maybe a little less.
Then it is gym in both days too. On Tuesday it would be a track session and I have made a conscious effort to maintain the speed work there in addition to that. I really love to train with my group in Herne Hill Harriers so that this track session is really important. On Thursday I may make a median race or a longer session. Friday is a rest day and then Saturday or Sunday is a long race.
What are your plans for the rest of the year now? Is your goal to make a Valencia/Berlin/Chicago in autumn?
I don’t think I do another marathon in 2025 as I still have, I hope, a lot of potential on the track. I have some high goals this summer and I would really like to improve my best personal results in all areas. I would like to reduce my 5000m time to something like 15:30 and I could even immerse my feet fingers by about 800 ms and 1500 m. I still don’t want to label myself as a marathon runner, but if the opportunity came in the short term, another crack would definitely do it.
I think it is important that my personal growth runs through many distances at this time and I think it keeps everything really exciting and fun. Then you are not obsessed at a given time if you are constantly competing the same distance and becomes quite monotonous and dense.
I would like to compete in some son of the main long -term championships and I hope to continue the trajectory in which I am now. I love to run Howver, so it’s not the Be-Lall and End All.
How did the Puma Project 3 initiative arrive and do you dream of being a full -time professional?
I just requested online around December or January when they published the applications. I saw people like Becky Briggs and a couple of other athletes who announced him in his Instagram history and declared that the opportunity was for the London Marathon. I was like ‘Well, I’m running London anyway, so I have nothing to lose.’ I put a fairly speculative application and then, one morning, I recovered an email saying that they accepted me.
It was incredible since we obtained kit and got a lot of confidence from a brand that supports you a bit. Being part of the initiative definitely gave me something to aim at and with time -based bonds. I was like ‘bloody hell, put your legs in motion’ in the last miles!
I placed to give me the greatest possible opportunity to notice to notice to obtain a full -time contract. This was one of those situations in which if you fell a little more, I could put on the map, so I wanted to do justice to Myelf in London.
The possibility of being backed by a full -time brand is literally the final dream and I think it is something that I have thought about what I literally had nine or ten years. I would roll the hand for a small contract or part -time right now!
For example, I went to Font Romeu a little ahead of the London Marathon and spend more time in the altitude blocks, which would get the back and financing of a brand, would be really useful. I obtained a sample of the professional environment and it was great.
Finally, is there any athlete who admires in sport at this time, with respect to training/attitude/mechanical?
I guess he goes with the marathon twice, but I closely follow Calli Hauger-Tacings. She plays the girl or how I feel, I suppose and is a very sandy athlete. She lowers her head and is a brilliant marathon broker.
But it is also incredible lethal about short things and is very open about races in all areas. I just look at Calli and I think it’s very inspiring. I would love to do the same.
