“Keep exercising, keep training, keep pushing, keep believing, and always remember that no dream is too big,” the track and field legend had once remarked. The runner has traversed difficult terrains to secure numerous medals and awards. Following her mind-blowing performance at the Paris Olympics with 2 bronze and a gold medal, the Dutch runner is training her body and mind to tackle the London Marathon, her next big challenge. She appeared on the CITIUS MAG podcast’s latest episode to discuss everything about running. The 32-year-old offers a peek inside her mind when she is running, and it is not what you expect.

Even though Sifan Hassan seems to achieve it all with great comfort and ease, that is far from the truth. Hard to believe as it may be, she gets easily distracted during the first half of running. As she reveals on the podcast, “First 5 km, 6 km, my brain is everywhere. I hear my name. This always happens to me.” However, as the end nears, it is a different story, “The last couple of kilometers, I can focus like crazy. So I was focusing so much in the last mile, I don’t think about winning or losing.” This unwavering focus and determination ought to play a big role in her success.

And it did, and her Paris Olympics run is a testimony to that. Hassan had claimed the final athletics gold medal of the summer Olympics as she won the marathon in an Olympic record of 2:22:55, holding off Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa in a sprint finish to complete an impressive medal treble. Prior to this, she had already bagged the 5000m and 10,000m bronze medals.

Moreover, this brilliant athlete has trained her brain to listen to her. Her brain overcomes fatigue to propel the Dutch star to victory, “I am so angry at myself. I was really punishing myself. So I think my brain is so scared of me, like ‘oh she gonna kill me, she gonna punish me, I have to win.'” Sifan’s mastery over her brain is commendable. Such a mindset has enabled her to shine brightly on the Olympic stage, like in Tokyo, where she bagged two gold medals in the 5000 m and 10,000 m and a bronze in the 1500 m. Soon, the world will witness this runner in her full glory again.

The 32-year-old Dutch is all set to run in the London Marathon on April 27 this year. London occupies a special place in the runner’s heart, as she won her debut marathon in the course of 2:28:33 there in 2023. “This is where I ran my very first marathon and began my journey in this incredible distance. London is also where I learned to be patient, to trust myself, and to keep pushing even when it feels impossible. It is a place where I grew, not just as an athlete, but as a person,” shared Hassan after the race organizers confirmed her inclusion.

We are confident this phenomenal athlete will exceed our expectations at the London Marathon. After all, what is it that she cannot do?

Sifan Hassan on doing the impossible

Sifan Hassan has continued her winning streak beyond the Olympics. In December 2024, Hassan earned the prestigious Dutch honor, Sportvrouw van het Jaar! Leaving all controversies aside, earlier that very month, she was named World Athlete of the Year. The runner expressed her elation on Instagram, “I am so honored. Being named World Athlete of the Year among such incredible athletes, and on such a year, means the world to me.” We can safely say that she deserves every bit of this love and attention. But the question remains: how does she conquer her fear to emerge stronger than ever?

The runner’s curiosity is her weapon. She takes up challenges out of sheer curiosity. “Like if you told now go back to do, I will get scared because back then I was scared, but it’s like the challenge you don’t know, you are just curious about it,” stated Sifan Hassan candidly while sharing her experience of running in the London Marathon for the first time. Moreover, she believes in pushing herself far beyond her comfort zone.

Nothing new and spectacular is achieved by confining yourself to familiar environments, so she believes in pushing herself and taking risks. The 32-year-old’s idea is to keep going, no matter what. “When I know that things even I know that impossible, but still if you keep going, it’s possible,” shared the Dutch runner. Her words are inspiring, and we hope to inculcate this prudence in our lives. After all, Sifan Hassan’s mantra is bound to be foolproof, right?