Moh Ahmed’s long-awaited debut in the half marathon is back on hold.
The Canadian distance runner was scratched from Sunday’s 21.1-kilometre race in New York City due to back spasms and adductor issues suffered this week in his final workout. Adductors are a group of muscles that bring the leg inward towards the body.
“He is deeply disappointed to not be able to line up against yet another fantastic field,” Ahmed’s agent, Dan Lilot of Aurum Sports Group, wrote in a statement to race organizer New York Road Runners. “[He] hopes to be invited back to the Big Apple in the future.”
Ahmed, 34, also withdrew from a half marathon in Houston 14 months ago after tweaking his hamstring/hip flexor in his last pre-race workout.
Last week, Ahmed’s longtime coach Jerry Schumacher told CBC Sports the St. Catharines, Ont., native was healthy and in great shape after a minor foot issue forced Ahmed to withdraw in January from the men’s indoor 3,000 at the Millrose Games in NYC.
Schumacher expects Ahmed to compete outdoors on the track this season, including the 5,000 and/or 10,000 metres in Tokyo at the World Athletics Championships in September, since he has met the qualifying times.
At the Paris Olympics last August, Ahmed’s appeal was rejected after he was tripped late in his 5,000 heat. The Canadian opened his fourth Olympics with a fourth-place finish in the 10,000.
WATCH | Paris 2024 Olympic 10,000m final:
But talk of the 2021 Olympic silver medallist making the transition to road racing has never been louder. Ahmed, who won the Ottawa 10K road race two years ago for his first Canadian 10K Championships title, has discussed the half marathon with Schumacher for six or seven years, but Ahmed either couldn’t fit the race in his schedule or was injured.
Three other Canadians were healthy and in fine form early Sunday morning, led by Ben Flanagan, who battled the fog, wet conditions and a bit of humidity to place seventh among elite men in 61 minutes 31 seconds on a challenging course in his first NYC half and fifth overall. His personal best is 61 minutes and he beat Woody Kincaid (1:03:00), a two-time U.S. Olympian with two national titles in the 10,000m.
“I’d like to think I’m in PB shape,” Flanagan told CBC Sports. “Main goal was to show fitness and get an indication the things [I’ve] been doing [in training] have been working. It’s definitely my best performance in nearly a year.”
More runners threatening Canadian record
Andrew Davies of Sarnia, Ont., was 16th (1:04:09) in his NYC Half debut, five weeks after lowering his PB by 14 seconds to 1:03:05 in the Vancouver First Half Marathon.
Tristan Woodfine, who hails from Cobden, Ont., went 1:04:32 for 20th. The 31-year-old was sixth (1:03:50) in NYC a year ago, a little over a minute shy of his 1:02:40 best, set in Boston in November 2023.
“We definitely missed Moh out there but you’ve gotta trust his judgment that it didn’t make sense [to race],” said Flanagan. “The number of Canadians that can run under 63, 64 minutes and getting closer to the Canadian record [held by Cam Levins at 1:00:18] is pretty cool.”
Flanagan, who has been working with coach Jon Green since December, had a goal of breaking 62 minutes.
“I thought on this course sub-62 minutes would be solid for where I was at [fitness-wise],” he said. “I’m really happy with the outcome. It was a tough course. It took a hard first few miles to get in a good position and have good guys to run with, so that paid off.
“The last 5K was a grind. When you get into Midtown Manhattan, it gets really hilly.”
Flanagan will take time off following the arrival of his daughter later this month, the 30-year-old’s first child with wife Hannah, before beginning an extended block of marathon training.
Flanagan, who made his Olympic debut last summer in the 5,000, is eyeing a fall marathon, including the Toronto Waterfront event.
“It’s definitely one I’m considering, obviously because it would be great to make the debut in Canada,” he said recently, adding New York, Chicago and the California International Marathon are also on the radar. “I remember when Cam Levins made his marathon debut [in Toronto in 2018] and set the Canadian record, so it worked out for him.
“My biggest goal with the marathon debut is to have a good experience. For track athletes, it’s easy to miscalculate how bad a marathon can go or how mistakes can cost you. I want it to go well and know I can improve.”
