Olympic Games – 3-12 August 2012
Kim Smith – London Olympic Marathon 2012
Kimberley Smith was disappointed with her 15th place in the marathon around a tight and difficult course in 2h 26m 59s.
“I just didn’t feel great today, the course I found really, really difficult. I was slipping, the cobblestones were really hard to run on, the turns were really hard. I’ve just never run a course like that before. I found it really tough going – the rain did not help at all, really hard on the calves which I already have problems with anyway.
“There was a little cramping going on it was a rough day.”
Smith said that she was hoping for a top six placing.
“That course really didn’t suit me – 15th was really not what I wanted at all.”
“It’s pretty tough,” she said emotionally.
“I mean I just felt terrible – I really struggled in those back parts with the turns. From the start I kept losing ground – even a few metres on those turns, it was just not good on this at all,” she said.
The only good part to the race was the crowd support.
“It was amazing it was unlike any other marathon I’ve ever done, that’s for sure. The screaming was just ringing in your ears the whole way – it was pretty cool. There was a lot of New Zealand support out there.”
Asked if she would have done anything different going into the race Smith said that she may have practiced the turns a little bit more.
“I mean I don’t know, sometimes preparation goes really well and you run poorly – but that’s the marathon, it is really unpredictable, it’s really tough and you just never know how it’s going to go.
“There’s always another marathon around the corner, I guess I can’t do anything about it now,” she said.
The 30 year old will compete in the New York marathon in November and prior to that a half marathon in the Boston series in October, and in three weeks time she is getting married in Maine to Patrick Tarpy.
“So I’ll just have to go back and plan for that now.”
Her placing fluctuated throughout the race from 15th at the 5km in 17m 21s to 12th at the half way in 1h 13m 14s to 17th at the 35km mark and then picking up two placings over the final 2km.
Tiki Gelana of Ethiopia won in a tight finish with Priscah Jeptoo of Kenya in 2h 23m 7s, five seconds ahead with Tatyana Arkhipova of Russia third in 2h 23m 29s.
Smith’s New Zealand record is 2h 25m 21s raced on a different London course in April 2010.
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