After EM Gold, Andreas Almgren Considers Skipping Olympic Distance for Marathon

Fresh off a dominant European Championship gold medal in the 10,000 meters, Swedish runner Andreas Almgren is embarking on a new phase of his career. This autumn, the 31-year-old will make his marathon debut at the New York City Marathon on November 1. If this debut proves highly successful, Almgren indicated he might re-evaluate his strategy for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

"It has always gone very well when I have stepped up in distance," Almgren stated, reflecting on his consistent success when moving to longer race categories. The hype surrounding Almgren has intensified significantly since his commanding EM victory, attracting considerable media attention both in Sweden and internationally. He described the period as a "perfect storm" of his EM win and the subsequent announcement of his marathon participation.

Almgren has been met with widespread public admiration and congratulations during his recent appearances in Stockholm. He noted that the attention is on a different level compared to after his World Championship bronze medal last year, with strangers expressing how he has inspired them and even offering him free coffee. This surge in popularity is partly attributed to his impressive performance in Birmingham, where he lapped all but six competitors in the 10,000-meter race.

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It has always gone very well when I have stepped up in distance.

Despite the substantial prize money from his EM win, the interest in his upcoming marathon debut appears even greater. Almgren shared that his Instagram post about the marathon announcement received over 50,000 likes, surpassing the 30,000 likes for his EM gold medal post. He feels that "people have been longing" for this next step in his career.

While Almgren will be a newcomer to the marathon distance in New York, he harbors high ambitions. He hopes to compete for a leading position at the finish line in Central Park. However, he also acknowledged the possibility of "hitting the wall" and finishing further back, emphasizing the inherent difficulty in predicting outcomes for a debut marathon.

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It was a huge impact. If you are going to compare, when I made a post about the EM gold on Instagram, it got around 30,000 likes. The marathon debut got over 50,000. People have been longing, it feels like.