Sifan Hassan Reveals Bizarre US Training Scare That Almost Made Her Do the Unthinkable

When you talk about the legacy of distance running, leaving out Sifan Hassan is almost a crime. The Dutch sensation has redefined endurance athletics. From storming the track with claiming 3 gold and 3 bronze medals at the Olympics, to conquering the roads, her rise is nothing short of legendary. After dominating the track, Hassan set her sights on the marathon world, and in 2023, she made a jaw-dropping debut at the London Marathon, clinching victory despite mid-race setbacks. Since then, she has stacked marathon wins like trophies, with her latest triumph coming at the Sydney Marathon. But it was not all smooth sailing…

Behind the glory lies a brutal grind that nearly neutralized her. Her marathon training.

In a chat with The Female Athlete Project, when asked about her toughest session ever, Hassan instantly recalled Utah, where the blistering heat pushed her to the brink of collapse and nearly took her out. “The hardest session I have done, I think, was in Utah. I did a long run, about 38 km or 34 km, when the weather was 37°. I think that’s 92° in Fahrenheit, that’s like 30-something degrees. My coach was bringing water every 5k.”

She further added, “Okay, so he missed me, and I was just hot. I was somewhere in the village, feeling so toasty. I almost wanted to drink the river water, and I thought I was going to pass out. I was going to get heat stroke, and I told myself, “Oh my God, why? Why? What if I don’t run…” because I was doing it for marathon training, and that was the hardest one. I also did a long run during Ramadan, and I couldn’t drink because of fasting. I think that’s the hardest thing I’ve done.”

When Hassan says it’s hard, well, we know what to do… The distance queen has endured Tim Rowberry’s punishing mix, weeks of 120+ miles fused with track-style speed drills. Even so, her grueling sessions in Utah eclipsed the Paris Olympic marathon. The Paris Olympic course was brutal. At one point, athletes faced a steep 13.5% climb at the 30 km mark, but Hassan, battle-hardened from Rowberry’s training, handled it with composure. She let the pack surge uphill, then attacked on the downhill.

Discussing her training, Hassan’s coach, Rowberry, explained in a conversation with Marathon Handbook that he instructs her to approach the marathon as if she were running her usual 1500m race, a blend of speed and composure.

“The philosophy was an extreme approach,” Rowberry explained. “We combined marathon long runs with speed workouts that didn’t seem directly related to the marathon, like those for the 1,500 or 5,000 meters.” He continued, “The only reason people don’t balance extreme events is that they simply don’t train for it. If you think something’s impossible, you’re not going to train for it.”

Hassan’s incredible achievements stem from the brutal training regimen she endures under her coach—and it’s clearly paying off. However, at the recent Sydney Marathon, even the seemingly unshakable champion was pushed to her absolute limits.

“Learned a Lesson,” Sifan Hassan gave an honest confession about the Sydney Marathon

Sifan Hassan skipped the World Championships for the first time since 2015 to chase her new marathon dreams. After finishing third at the London Marathon in 2:19:00 behind Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa, she was hungry for victory. And Australia delivered.

At the Sydney Marathon, the 32-year-old blazed through the finish in 2:18:22 to claim the crown, but not without learning a valuable lesson. Close on her heels was Kenya’s Brigid Kosgei, finishing just at 2:18:56.

Later, she admitted to the media that she kicked into high gear far too early at the start, a risky move that nearly cost her the victory. “I pushed so hard in Paris; I thought, ‘I’m tired.’ I have never been this tired. Most of the time, I feel hard in the Paris 5K. I was so dead for the last 10 kilometers. I just killed myself. I started too hard, and I learned my lesson … This is the hardest race I’ve won without drama. I learn a great lesson every time I’m the first to win, and I’m so grateful.”

Hassan and Kosgei etched their names in history as the first women to break the 2:20 barrier on Australian soil. Under Tim Rowberry’s intense training, Hassan pushed herself to the edge, perhaps even too far. Translating a 1500m mindset to the marathon is no easy feat. In middle-distance racing, you explode from the start; in a marathon, it’s a 30–50 km grind where conserving energy for the final stretch is everything.