Australia’s Genevieve Gregson looks set to qualify for a fourth Olympic Games after a remarkable personal best in the Valencia Marathon.
Gregson suffered a heartbreaking end to her appearance in the 3000m steeplechase final at the Tokyo Games, taken off in a wheelchair after rupturing her Achilles tendon, and has since been on the comeback trail while also becoming a mum for the first time.
But now the 34-year-old is eyeing a spot in the marathon team and, on Sunday night (AEDT), was one of four Aussies alongside Izzi Batt-Doyle (2:23:27), Lisa Weightman (2:24:18) and Eloise Wellings (2:25:47) to run under the Olympic qualifying standard of 2:26:50.
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Gregson slashed her PB down from 2:28:23 – already the second-fastest by an Aussie woman on debut – to a stunning 2:23:08, the third-fastest in Australian history. She finished eighth in the event.
Batt-Doyle also crushed her PB by over four minutes while Weightman, who has a personal best of 2:23:15, is trying to become the first Aussie to appear at five Olympic Games in athletics.
“Wowzers go the Aussies!!!! @GenGen_LaCaze just extraordinary,” Aussie athletics great Tamsyn Manou tweeted.
Sinead Diver, who has already beaten the entry standard at a previous event, set the Australian women’s record with a 2:21:34 in last year’s Valencia Marathon.
The 2024 Olympics take place in Paris, France from July 26 to August 11.
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