Post by SheWolf on May 22, 2004 19:40:56 GMT 1
From Manchester Sport
LITTLE did Tracey Morris realise when she won the Salford 10k road race on Good Friday that her life was about to be trans- formed beyond all belief.
Certainly, the few hundred club runners participating in the event didn't know they had a future Olympian lining up alongside them.
But several weeks later after her astounding performance at the London Marathon, Tracey became the newest star in British athletics.
The 36-year-old Leeds- based optician booked her trip to Athens with a time of 2 hrs 33 mins 52 secs - five years after clocking 3hrs 39 mins as a fun runner.
Now, the anonymity she enjoyed on her last trip to the area has gone.
And more eyes will be on her in tomorrow's BUPA Great Manchester Run than defending ladies' champion Berhane Adere or Irish star Sonia O'Sullivan.
However, her rise to fame will be an inspiration to the thousands of joggers participating in Britain's biggest ever 10k road race.
"When I stood on the start line in London I never dreamed I would be going to the Olympics," says the Valley Striders athlete.
"Hopefully it will show to people that nothing is impossible. Never think you are too old.
"If you enjoy something, just keep doing it," enthuses Morris, still having to pinch herself she's racing now in such elite company.
"My life hasn't changed, it's just a bit different," she says with a grin. "And I think now I'm getting back to `Tracey Who?'
However, there has been a noticeable change in her life. For a start she is regularly recognised at work and instead of working five days a week, she's reduced that to two days.
"There's probably only one person a day who doesn't mention something about the marathon," she admits.
"Last weekend one woman came into the shop and said: `you look just like that British girl who did well in the marathon.'
"I started to smile and said I was that girl. She was so embarrassed and said `I thought you looked like her!'"
Despite the raising of her profile, Morris hopes there isn't too much expectancy on her tomorrow.
Her personal best of 33 mins 22 secs for 10k is almost two minutes slower than Adere's winning run of 03secs.
Ethiopian Adere's biggest challenge will come from London marathon ladies winner Margaret Okayo and O'Sullivan.
"I won't be up there with those girls," she says.
"The two are different races. This is a lot shorter and faster and I am just going out to enjoy the race and use it as a training run," adds Morris.
"There is no point in doing something stupid and jeopardising my Olympic preparation."
Kenyan Paul Tergat, in his last 10k before the Olympics, is favourite to retain his men's title.
But he, too, faces strong competition from Australian Craig Mottram, former Paris marathon champion Benoit Zwierchlewski and Irishman Cathal Lombard.
Mottram recently won the Bannister celebration four minute mile and the Balmoral 5k road race. Lombard has just set a new Irish 10,000m track record of 27 mins 33.53 secs while Tadesse Zersenay of Eritrea could also feature.
Twice an Olympic silver medallist, Tergat has had a sneak preview of the Athens marathon course awaiting him and Morris in August.
He describes it as "a killer. I am not sure what time the women run but by the time the men set off, the sun will have warmed up the tarmac and it will be like running on a frying pan.
"It's going to be very tough," added Tergat as Morris turned a whiter shade of pale.
"I think ignorance might be bliss," she added.
"All I want to be able to do is do as much training as I can in the next 13 weeks and run to the best of my ability on that day.
"But as any athlete will tell you, you can do all the right preparation, but on the day it just doesn't go right."
Morris may not beat Adere and Co, but she should be challenging the likes of Liz Yelling and Salford Harrier Bev Jenkins for the position as top Briton.
Jenkins, unlike Morris, has run with, and spoken to Paula Radcliffe during several international trips.
And the Manchester post woman will want to give a good account of herself in front of the BBC cameras.
There is a strong Salford contingent competing tomorrow including Tomas Abyu, the last winner of the Manchester marathon.
Race organisers had to reject 8,000 entries because the course couldn't take anymore runners for safety reasons.
However, they are looking at ways of expanding the field next year without taking away from the character of the event.
Among the celebrities taking part are Coronation Street stars Samia Ghadie (Maria) and Michael Le Vell (Kevin Webster) while Emmerdale are represented by Emma Atkins (Charity Dingle), Chris Chittell (Eric Pollard) and Tony Audenshaw (Bob Hope).
Sports Minister Richard Caborn, BBC presenter Gordon Burns, and European super bantamweight champion Esham Pickering are also competing.
The first event at 9.50 am is the wheelchair race followed at 9.55am by the Elite Women's race.
Due to the increased numbers this year, the rest of the field will go off in three waves. The first wave at 10am includes the Elite Men while the first runners are expected back on Deansgate about 10.30am.
LITTLE did Tracey Morris realise when she won the Salford 10k road race on Good Friday that her life was about to be trans- formed beyond all belief.
Certainly, the few hundred club runners participating in the event didn't know they had a future Olympian lining up alongside them.
But several weeks later after her astounding performance at the London Marathon, Tracey became the newest star in British athletics.
The 36-year-old Leeds- based optician booked her trip to Athens with a time of 2 hrs 33 mins 52 secs - five years after clocking 3hrs 39 mins as a fun runner.
Now, the anonymity she enjoyed on her last trip to the area has gone.
And more eyes will be on her in tomorrow's BUPA Great Manchester Run than defending ladies' champion Berhane Adere or Irish star Sonia O'Sullivan.
However, her rise to fame will be an inspiration to the thousands of joggers participating in Britain's biggest ever 10k road race.
"When I stood on the start line in London I never dreamed I would be going to the Olympics," says the Valley Striders athlete.
"Hopefully it will show to people that nothing is impossible. Never think you are too old.
"If you enjoy something, just keep doing it," enthuses Morris, still having to pinch herself she's racing now in such elite company.
"My life hasn't changed, it's just a bit different," she says with a grin. "And I think now I'm getting back to `Tracey Who?'
However, there has been a noticeable change in her life. For a start she is regularly recognised at work and instead of working five days a week, she's reduced that to two days.
"There's probably only one person a day who doesn't mention something about the marathon," she admits.
"Last weekend one woman came into the shop and said: `you look just like that British girl who did well in the marathon.'
"I started to smile and said I was that girl. She was so embarrassed and said `I thought you looked like her!'"
Despite the raising of her profile, Morris hopes there isn't too much expectancy on her tomorrow.
Her personal best of 33 mins 22 secs for 10k is almost two minutes slower than Adere's winning run of 03secs.
Ethiopian Adere's biggest challenge will come from London marathon ladies winner Margaret Okayo and O'Sullivan.
"I won't be up there with those girls," she says.
"The two are different races. This is a lot shorter and faster and I am just going out to enjoy the race and use it as a training run," adds Morris.
"There is no point in doing something stupid and jeopardising my Olympic preparation."
Kenyan Paul Tergat, in his last 10k before the Olympics, is favourite to retain his men's title.
But he, too, faces strong competition from Australian Craig Mottram, former Paris marathon champion Benoit Zwierchlewski and Irishman Cathal Lombard.
Mottram recently won the Bannister celebration four minute mile and the Balmoral 5k road race. Lombard has just set a new Irish 10,000m track record of 27 mins 33.53 secs while Tadesse Zersenay of Eritrea could also feature.
Twice an Olympic silver medallist, Tergat has had a sneak preview of the Athens marathon course awaiting him and Morris in August.
He describes it as "a killer. I am not sure what time the women run but by the time the men set off, the sun will have warmed up the tarmac and it will be like running on a frying pan.
"It's going to be very tough," added Tergat as Morris turned a whiter shade of pale.
"I think ignorance might be bliss," she added.
"All I want to be able to do is do as much training as I can in the next 13 weeks and run to the best of my ability on that day.
"But as any athlete will tell you, you can do all the right preparation, but on the day it just doesn't go right."
Morris may not beat Adere and Co, but she should be challenging the likes of Liz Yelling and Salford Harrier Bev Jenkins for the position as top Briton.
Jenkins, unlike Morris, has run with, and spoken to Paula Radcliffe during several international trips.
And the Manchester post woman will want to give a good account of herself in front of the BBC cameras.
There is a strong Salford contingent competing tomorrow including Tomas Abyu, the last winner of the Manchester marathon.
Race organisers had to reject 8,000 entries because the course couldn't take anymore runners for safety reasons.
However, they are looking at ways of expanding the field next year without taking away from the character of the event.
Among the celebrities taking part are Coronation Street stars Samia Ghadie (Maria) and Michael Le Vell (Kevin Webster) while Emmerdale are represented by Emma Atkins (Charity Dingle), Chris Chittell (Eric Pollard) and Tony Audenshaw (Bob Hope).
Sports Minister Richard Caborn, BBC presenter Gordon Burns, and European super bantamweight champion Esham Pickering are also competing.
The first event at 9.50 am is the wheelchair race followed at 9.55am by the Elite Women's race.
Due to the increased numbers this year, the rest of the field will go off in three waves. The first wave at 10am includes the Elite Men while the first runners are expected back on Deansgate about 10.30am.