‘Pinch-me moment’: Why two of the greatest ever Olympians are running in Sydney

Is there a collective term for a group of icons all in one spot?

It was a fair question to ponder at the official launch of the Sydney Marathon on Thursday, when a pair of all-time running legends sat serenely on the edge of Sydney Harbour, under the gaze of a famous bridge and opera house that will book-end the race.

Olympic champions Sifan Hassan and Eliud Kipchoge are in town as the star attractions of the Sydney Marathon on Sunday, which last year became the seventh World Major marathon; joining London, New York, Chicago, Berlin, Boston and Chicago.

The rise in status has seen a corresponding climb in entrants, with over 35,000 from around the world set to run and bumper crowds also expected along the course, which starts in North Sydney, crosses the Harbour Bridge and then winds through Sydney’s east before finishing back at the Opera House.

Most eyes will be on just two athletes, however. As a two-time Olympic champion, Kipchoge is regarded as the greatest marathoner to ever race, and is the only human to ever break two hours for a marathon.

But Hassan is one of a rare few who can claim to be his athletic peer. The Dutch runner won the marathon at the Paris Olympics in 2024 just two days after winning bronze in the 10,000m.

Having already won Olympic golds in the 5000m and 10000m at the 2021 Tokyo Games, Hassan became the first woman to claim a historic treble only ever achieved once before – by the legendary Emil Zatopek in 1952.

“Seeing Eliud here, it’s a pinch-me moment, just being on stage there thinking, ‘This is actually happening’,” Australian runner Jess Stenson said.

“The younger me would have just never imagined this. And to see Sifan again, she is just such an incredible athlete. I think there will be a few moments this weekend where I just stop myself and say, ‘This is actually happening’.”

Hassan, who was born in Ethiopia and moved to the Netherlands as a teenager, said she’d been wowed by the beauty and diversity of Sydney in this, her first visit.

“Some parts look like Europe … some like an Arab country - it is very diverse,” Hassan said. “I have never seen so much water. It is great. I don’t know much about the course. If I win, I will love it.”

While Kipchoge is now 40 and hasn’t won a marathon since 2023, Hassan is still in her prime at 32.

And, in a significant sacrifice, she revealed she had opted to prioritise the chance to make history by winning the first Sydney Major marathon over attending the World Athletics Championships in Japan, starting on September 13.

“It was so hard, this decision – since 2015 I have never skipped any world championships. And it is also in Tokyo, and I have great memories of there, after becoming Olympic champion,” Hassan said.

“But I really want to be part of the Sydney marathon because it is a first major marathon. Who doesn’t want to be part of that? I really wanted to be part of this because of, also, the history of having hosted the 2000 Games, an Olympic city. It was a very hard decision – but this was more exciting.”

Hassan’s victory in the Olympic marathon was astounding – not only because she’d run the 10,000m 48 hours earlier, but also because it came via a thrilling sprint finish in the last 200 metres. Stenson was in the field that day.

“It blew me away, but it also didn’t surprise me,” she said.

“When she competes, she is almost a performer as well. People love to come and watch Sifan race. I had that opportunity in Paris to race against her, and I only watched the race back for the first time two weeks ago. And that finish was something else.

“What she brings to Sydney is obviously a champion athlete, but a champion person as well.

“Sifan has her own unique way of inspiring. She has so much courage, and she loves, as she stated, to do things that are a bit outside the box, really pushing the norms.

“And I love her attitude towards it all. She is someone people will be coming to watch compete, and understandably so.”