Two weeks before the New York City Marathon on November 1, Sifan Hassan said that she would pull out of the race because her training build was impacted by sickness.
In a message posted on social media on Wednesday, Hassan did not specify the nature of her ailment but admitted that her current build-up to New York would not have her prepared in time.
“I was so excited to come back stronger, but a sickness slowed down my training and I’m not where I wanted to be,” Hassan said in her message. “Sometimes, things just don’t go as planned.”
Hassan was expected to compete in a stacked women’s field that included defending champion Hellen Obiri, Sheila Chepkirui, Gotytom Gebreslase, Viola Cheptoo, Edna Kiplagat and Mercy Chelangat.
Obiri surged to a 2:19:51 course record win in last year’s race but will not face the unpredictable closing speed of Hassan in the last major of the year.
Meanwhile, Hassan’s season saw significant setbacks this year after an Achilles injury forced her to withdraw from the London Marathon in April. She won her debut in London in 2023 and would battle her way to a dramatic win the following year in Paris in the Olympic marathon.
“I am disappointed because this race means so much to me but right now my Achilles is holding me back and I’m not ready to be at my best,” Hassan said in March after announcing she would skip London. “I wish everyone racing an amazing day out there!”
Hassan was injured on a treadmill while training for London and has been largely quiet this year and has not competed, a stark contrast to a busy 2025 when she raced in three marathons.
She took third in 2:19:00 in last year’s London Marathon, won the Sydney Marathon in 2:18:22 in the first year of the race being upgraded as a major and took sixth in New York in 2:24:43.
New York will also be without Fiona O’Keeffe, who revealed yesterday that she underwent surgery in Colorado last week to repair a hamstring injury.
“An MRI at the end of September showed that the old partial tear I got leading into Boston had turned into a fully retracted tendon tear on the left side, so surgery was the next logical step,” O’Keeffe said in a message posted on social media. “I’m grateful to all the medical professionals and my team for helping me access the best care. It’s going to be a long road back, but I’m looking forward to the small milestones along the way. Thanks to all my family & friends who have been in my corner all this time.”
