National Ladder leader Pavey wins Great South
UK National Ladder leader Jo Pavey (pictured alongside Olympic team mate Julia Bleasdale) regained the title she claimed in her first major international road race six years ago as she raced to victory in the Bupa Great South Run - an IAAF Gold Label 10 mile race - in Portsmouth yesterday (Sunday 28 October).
39-year-old Pavey, the leading non-African finisher in this summer's Olympic 5,000m and 10,000m finals, hit the front from the gun and won in 53:01 ahead of fellow Brit Jess Coulson (53:43) and Ethiopian Berhane Adere in 53:55.
The women’s race preceded the mass event which has a record 25,000 entries from 45 different countries and Pavey flew through the first mile in 5:17 opening an early 20m lead. By half way she had increased that to over 200m and her foreign rivals looked stunned.
"I just thought I would go off at a reasonable pace and plug away," said Pavey who was surprised she went unchallenged but delighted with her form before competing in next month's Yokohama Marathon. "I tried not to take off too quickly.”
"I like a flat course and this really suits me but the last two miles were very hard. That's because you're giving it your final effort as you can see the finish line in the distance ahead of you. They were hard but I knew what to expect.
"All you can see is a straight line but I loved the challenge of it. You need to add a bit of sharpness but it's always a worry going into a race when you're training for a marathon."
Pavey, who was forced to concentrate on the track after missing out on marathon selection for the London Olympic Games, made it plain she intends carrying on until at least the 2016 Rio Janeiro Olympics.
"The crowds were brilliant and I was really pleased how it went and I'd like to keep going," she insisted. "I'm getting older but still enjoying it."
The men’s race was won by South African’s Stephen Mokoka in 46:40 with Andrew Lemoncello - the first Brit home and currently 11th in the National Ladder - returning to form with a fifth place 47:08 clocking, the second quickest time ever by a Scottish athlete over the distance.
Follow the link to read a full report from the official event website.