Charlotte Purdue hopes to run 2:23 at the London Marathon
Going into the London Marathon on Sunday, Britain’s Charlotte Purdue has ex-GB athlete Mara Yamauchi’s marathon PB of 2:23 in her sights.
When asked at a press conference on Thursday 30 September what pace she’ll be aiming to run on Sunday, Purdue said: ‘It’s very weather dependent, but obviously I’ve got that 2:23 in my head of Mara’s. But like I said, it’s very weather dependent, so I'll have to make the call with my coach.’
Yamauchi ran 2:23:12 at the London Marathon in 2009 – the second fastest time by a British woman over the marathon, behind Paula Radcliffe's 2:15:25.
To run at this blisteringly quick pace (5:23/mile) over 26.2 miles is, clearly, a tall order but for 30-year-old Purdue, who has already enjoyed great success at British road races this year and has had an exceptionally strong training build-up, it’s by no means unobtainable.
Purdue won the Vitality Big Half in August this year, in a course record of 69:51 and placed third in the Great North Run last month.
She was first Brit home at the London Marathon in 2019, where she ran a PB of 2:25:38, but was forced to sit out of the 2020 event due to injury.
However, despite achieving a qualifying time for Olympic selection at the 2019 London Marathon, Purdue, controversially, wasn’t selected for Tokyo.
Despite that significant disappointment, Purdue says this year’s London Marathon is ‘as exciting’ as the Olympics. ‘Obviously I was disappointed not to get selected,’ said Purdue, ‘but then I just quickly focused on something else, and having the London Marathon was a great thing to aim for. It's always something that I want to run every single year. So, for me, the London Marathon is as exciting as the Olympics.'
And Purdue has every reason to be excited, given how well her training has gone for London this year. ‘I always look back on my training diary, and everything's gone better than it ever has before,’ she said, ‘so that's a good sign.’
When asked if she believes she’s on track to run a personal best on Sunday, Purdue said: ‘Based on my training, I'd say yes. But obviously with the marathon you don't know what can happen in the race on the day. Based on training, everything's looking good.'
If Purdue finishes as first British woman, she will automatically be selected for the 2022 World Championships in Oregon, US – provided she runs a qualifying time of 2:29:30. But Purdue says she’s not thinking that far ahead. ‘I haven’t decided what my plans will be for next year yet,’ she said. ‘Up until Sunday, I don't have any plans. So, I guess I have to plan out what will happen next year because obviously there's World Championships, a Commonwealth Games and a European Championships. So, I'll have to decide which one I go for.’
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