The British athlete smashed her half-marathon private finest on the weekend, regardless of coping with damage within the lead-up
Natasha Phillips had a powerful weekend on the Valencia Half Marathon on October 27, attaining a private finest and European under-20 file of 70:18.
At simply 19 years outdated, her efficiency not solely marked an enchancment of over a minute from her earlier finest (71:19) but in addition positioned her nineteenth in a aggressive subject.
The race was historic, with Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha setting a males’s world file of 57:40, whereas Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich claimed the second-fastest girls’s time in historical past at 63:04.
Phillips, who runs for Dundee Hawkhill Harriers, has now positioned herself fourth on the Scottish senior half-marathon rankings, an inventory led by Eilish and Liz McColgan.
Eilish McColgan’s scholarship program, Giving Again to Monitor, has offered important assist to Phillips over the previous couple of years.
Her success on the street has included successful the Nice Scottish Run twice, as soon as in 2023 and once more this October, together with claiming the Scottish half-marathon title in Inverness.
Callum Hawkins and Natasha Phillips (Nice Scottish Run)
Phillips has additionally made her mark in cross nation. Earlier this 12 months, she gained her first under-20 title on the Scottish Cross Nation Championships and completed third on the Inter-Counties Championships.
In March, she made her debut on the World Cross Nation Championships in Serbia, the place she represented Nice Britain and completed thirtieth.
Remarkably, Phillips solely started taking operating severely throughout the pandemic and determined to take up half marathons after battling iron deficiency.
With the announcement of the Commonwealth Video games set to happen in Glasgow in 2026, and with no street races set to happen, she is raring to compete within the 10,000m in entrance of a house crowd.
Glasgow 2026 will stage observe and subject however no marathons
Right here is our Q&A with Phillips beneath:
How did it really feel to run a PB in Valencia?
I’m over the moon with it. I used to be going into it concentrating on a private finest as a result of I actually wished to get one on the Antrim Coast Half Marathon in August however the climate was simply not on my facet.
I got here into Valencia a bit apprehensive as a result of I had most of September off with a tendon damage and I had not run in any respect that month. I had simply completed the Nice Scottish Run at the start of October and that was my first run the place I felt good and never sore.
The Nice Scottish Run gave me a little bit of confidence going into Valencia, however I used to be undecided if I used to be in the suitable form to run a private finest. I put that behind me and I considered the summer season months of actually good coaching and that’s received to rely for one thing. So I simply believed in myself.
I wasn’t anticipating to run such an enormous private better of simply over a minute. I believed perhaps a number of seconds could be good and even simply to dip underneath 71 minutes could be wonderful however to go underneath was actually thrilling.
Natasha Phillips (Valencia Half)
How did your damage have an effect on your coaching?
I wasn’t in a position to run for 3 weeks in September and I then spent every week constructing again up my mileage. I had about three to 4 weeks of my regular operating mileage earlier than Valencia, which was fairly useful.
It was good to have that buffer of three to 4 weeks beforehand as a result of once I began operating once more I’d get numerous blisters and my ft would harm as a result of they weren’t used to operating.
What was the environment like in Valencia?
I felt in awe that I used to be a part of that race. To have the ability to say that you just had been operating in a race that received the world file is wonderful. There was hardly a component the place there was no person to cheer you on.
I keep in mind operating behind Clara Evans, who I stored up with for the primary 3km, and I believed, ‘oh my god, I’m operating behind an Olympian.’ It was wonderful to have such a excessive calibre of athletes in a race, and to additionally witness the second quickest time ran by a girl in historical past.
How did you first get into operating?
I used to be a aggressive swimmer for almost all of my life up till simply earlier than the pandemic when I joined Dundee Hawkhill Harriers. I actually loved operating at college, I’d do cross nations and county sports activities so I believed I’d be a part of a operating membership, why not?
I did the cross nations for enjoyable, I used to run in actually outdated path footwear that will weigh two kilograms as a result of they’d refill with a lot mud. However I didn’t care as a result of I liked it.
Throughout the pandemic operating was the one solution to maintain my health up so I started operating 5km’s. As soon as restrictions lifted I did an invitational cross nation occasion organised by Scottish Athletics and from there I started to take it a bit extra severely.
Natasha Phillips (Bobby Gavin)
When did you resolve to start operating half marathons?
It got here from a interval of me being actually iron poor about two years in the past. I keep in mind nearly giving up as a result of I simply felt so horrible once I was operating. I began taking iron dietary supplements which made me really feel quite a bit higher, encouraging me to start out doing lengthy runs on a Sunday, round 17km or 18km, and I keep in mind actually having fun with them.
I nonetheless felt horrible, so I made a decision to enter a half marathon as a result of I had nothing to lose. I entered one in Glasgow [MoRun] in 2022 and I ran 75:58, I used to be in full shock. However sadly they didn’t have the right license and my time wasn’t official so I used to be decided to enter one other one.
I did one other one [Run Newcastle Half Marathon] in February 2023 and the identical factor occurred, so I needed to do a 3rd one to get an official time. I ended up operating the Scottish Half Marathon Championships in Inverness that 12 months and ran 71:53.
It’s a sequence of occasions that had been annoying however once you look again on it I’m actually grateful for it to have occurred as a result of it’s what received me into doing numerous them.
What has it been prefer to get assist from Eilish McColgan?
In 2022 I used to be awarded the journey and coaching scholarship which was wonderful as a result of quite a lot of these races I wouldn’t have been in a position to have completed with out her monetary assist. The next 12 months I used to be given one in every of her predominant students which was actually useful because it allowed me to journey to quite a lot of competitions in England, corresponding to trials.
It gave me an enormous confidence enhance to obtain assist off someone like Eilish McColgan, and to know that she believed in me and she or he felt just like the assist was value it. To be behind her on the Scottish all-time (half-marathon) listing is wonderful, I can’t consider it.
Natasha Phillips (Bobby Gavin / Scottish Athletics)
Will you be competing in cross nation this season?
I’m truly not. I made a decision to pay attention extra on the roads as a result of the distances for under-20s are fairly brief in cross nation. I’d somewhat consider what 10km races are developing till the distances get a bit longer. Once I transfer as much as under-23 I’ll do them, however not a lot this 12 months.
I’d do the Scottish Championships in February as a result of it’s some time away. I’ve some races deliberate round that point so it depends upon how nicely I can get well in between all of them.
What are your long-term objectives?
It’ll be the ten,000m for the Commonwealth Video games. Every little thing that I’m doing simply now could be getting me prepared for qualifying in 2026, which is basically thrilling and I can’t consider I’m saying that.
I’ll should get used to operating 25 laps on the observe as a result of I a lot desire street over observe. Monitor feels so alien as a result of I didn’t begin off as a runner and I didn’t do the graded meets at 10 or 11 years outdated. I by no means had that have but it’s one thing I’m simply going to should work on.
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