Andreas Almgren is careful not to portray himself as the clear favorite to win the New York Classic Marathon. The winners of the past two years, Abdi Nageeye and Benson Kipruto, are also on the starting line, and the Swede is, after all, making his marathon debut.
But I still see myself as someone who could be in the mix, says the former middle-distance runner.
When Almgren won gold in the half marathon at the World Championships in September, he was ruthless on his way to the finish line in Copenhagen. Kenyan Nicholas Kipkorir didn't even flinch when the Tureberg runner started sprinting.
I should have a very strong finish compared with many others, but it's not just the fastest person who wins the sprint. You have to be persistent too, to be able to sprint. I know I can run a half marathon, but I don't know how I'll handle a marathon. There's a difference between sprinting after 42 kilometers and after 21, says Almgren.
Don't jump out of bed
In any case, there is no room for complaint about his preparations for the debut. The Swedish running star did have a bout of fever after the half marathon, but has since been able to train as planned at high altitude in Flagstaff, Arizona.
At the running mecca, his training volume has peaked at 230 kilometers a week, and Almgren has responded well to the training.
"Training a lot works for me, in short," he says.
How fun is that?
You are constantly tired, and it's not like you jump out of bed and feel "oh, now I'm going to seize the day" every day. Instead, it becomes a bit like a job. At the same time, it's when you can't run that you appreciate running the most. It was enough for me to get a little sick after the half marathon and then you immediately feel how much you want to run.
And even though not every workout is fun, I find it exciting to run a marathon training program and see how I react to it.
Visualizing New York
What are you thinking about during all those miles?
"What the hell am I doing?" Almgren says with a laugh.
Then he continues, more seriously:
On the easier runs, I usually listen to a podcast or something. When I'm running on the treadmill, I usually have some music on to switch off my brain as much as I can. Sometimes I meet up with one of the runners here in Flagstaff whom I already know, so we can run and talk. And right now, of course, I'm visualizing New York a lot. You're just trying to have your own strategies to make the time pass, simply.
The men's marathon starts in New York at 3:05 p.m. on Sunday, Swedish time.
