Like Mo Farah, many of us are probably feeling a bit bruised and battered today after a long run – a final one for many – in the pre-marathon period. Poor Mo – the expectation on him ahead of next month's London Marathon is immense. Where the rest of us just hope to get around, and maybe beat our own records, he's expected not only to sail around his first marathon but – by many, at least – to win it. The reality is, as he said himself some time before yesterday's New York half marathon, that he is very much the underdog. An underdog who will, whatever position he finishes in, cross that line in a time that would have the rest of us casual runners gobsmacked. He'll have time for a shower, cup of tea, bite to eat and sit down while many of us are still crossing Tower Bridge. Mine's white with one sugar, Mo.
So, did you have a bit of stumble, like Mo, or fly around like Mutai? I am writing this from a horizontal position having picked up a whole new fresh injury, for which I entirely blame gardening. I will never try it again. Since I can't currently walk, odds of running any time soon are not good. Trying not to wallow in self-pity, but to channel my inner Mo and live to fight (well, run) another day.
