Distance runner improves her own British 10km record to 30:18 at the Great Scottish Run

After delaying her London Marathon debut until April due to fuelling concerns, Eilish McColgan took to the roads of Glasgow on Sunday (Oct 2) instead and took a second off her British 10km record with 30:18.

Racing on home soil at the Great Scottish Run, she won in style to end a memorable year that has included British records at 5km and half-marathon plus Commonwealth 10,000m gold.

McColgan began her summer with 30:23 for 10km at the Vitality London 10,000 and then improved that mark to 30:19 at the Great Manchester Run in late May before making a further improvement in Glasgow.

“I thought I’d be tired doing this but I actually felt okay” she said. “I found the course very tough. That first mile and a half, even up on to the motorway – it’s quite deceiving.

“Every bridge does get you. But it helped having a couple of lads to chase down. The first half I was on my own. The second half I could see people and was trying to chase them and then I had a little bit of a sprint finish at the end. But I got excited when I saw the clock. It was a nice way to round out the season.”

It was a day dominated by London Marathon but the Great Scottish Run was one of several high-class events around the UK. The British record also gave organisers the task of trying to arrange a doping test so the record could be ratified.

Her time has also been described as a European record, although Lonah Salpeter ran 30:05 in Tilburg in 2019. To add to the confusion, Salpeter runs for Israel, which is geographically part of Asia but is one of European Athletics member nations (and Salpeter has run in the European Championships).

McColgan even said on her own Instagram page that her run was “possibly a European record, but it’s a little confusing with what is ratified”. However, Salpeter was born in Kenya before moving to Israel to become a nanny, so McColgan can at least describe herself as the fastest-ever European-born athlete at the distance on the roads.

The 31-year-old will now enjoy a well-deserved end-of-season break before setting her sights on London in the spring.

Lewis Hannigan won the men’s race in 29:56 ahead of Callum Tharme, who crossed the line alongside McColgan in an overall field of about 20,000 runners.

In the accompanying half-marathon, Callum Hawkins showed further signs of returning to his best when he won in 63:35 ahead of Adam Craig (64:17) and his older brother Derek (65:32).

The women’s half-marathon was won by Michelle Finn in 72:33 ahead of Lily Partridge (72:56) and Fionnuala Ross (73:25).