“I tried to prepare myself for a long time for this,” Tola said through an interpreter. The 30-year-old Tola broke free over the final couple of kilometres.
Levins hung in amid a large group at the front on the fast and flat course that featured plenty of scenic views. “I think that’s part of the big result is always believing that was going to happen, besides just preparing for it.” When I was coming into the last lap, I was telling myself ‘I’m here to medal, I’m gonna do this.’ I was definitely telling myself that I was here for a big performance. “I was feeling great, but it was still a difficult last 10K. But even despite that, it’s still really hard on your legs, hard to keep going like that,” he said. Anything can happen over the last 10 kilometres, no matter how well-prepared athletes are, Levins pointed out. “When I got to the start line, I knew I was ready.”īut the marathon is difficult to predict. “I really had an incredible buildup, like the last six months, I’ve trained really well, the hardest I have in every conceivable way,” added Levins, who won the Canadian half-marathon championships recently in Winnipeg. “I took so much away from the Olympics last year, I just realized I need to be better, in just like every aspect of my training. “It was crazy going from one of the last-place finishers at the Olympics, to one of the top finishers at the world championships,” Levins said. He posted on social media that he’s seeking redemption in Eugene. Levins wasn’t re-signed for 2022 by HOKA, the team he’d been with since 2018.
At the Olympics, he faded to 72nd place in sizzling 34 C temperatures in Sapporo.
Teammate Mosinet Geremew won the silver in 2:06.44, while Bashir Abdi of Belgium took bronze in 2:06.48.īack in 2018, in his marathon debut, Levins achieved what had eluded Canadian marathoners for decades, breaking Jerome Drayton record that had stood for 43 years.īut he failed at three attempts to run the Tokyo Olympic qualifying standard before hitting it with a week to spare. Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia pulled away over the final kilometres to win gold in 2:05.36. The previous top Canadian finish was 10th by Peter Maher in 1993. The 33-year-old from Black Creek, B.C., ran two hours seven minutes nine seconds to crush the 2:09.25 he ran in Toronto in 2018. Canada’s Cam Levins never lost his self-belief.Īnd after nearly four frustrating years of disappointing finishes, dropouts, and the loss of his sponsor, Levins wrote a remarkable comeback story on Sunday, shattering his own Canadian record, racing to an historic fourth place in the marathon at the world track and field championships.
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