Shalane Flanagan will return to the scene of her greatest triumph this weekend when taking to the start line in Staten Island to defend her title at the New York City Marathon.

The Bowerman Track Club athlete has had a low-key year so far, coming home sixth in dire conditions at the Boston Marathon in April, the last race she completed. But the 37-year-old is confident of a stout title defence this weekend.

“My fitness is good, I couldn’t ask for better,” said Flanagan, who admits she has made no career plan beyond this Sunday. “Over the past two years I’ve acted as if each marathon is my last, not knowing where it’s going to take me. Until I cross the finish line, I honestly don’t know.”

In an interview with Runner’s World, Flanagan revealed she expects to be in contention with the leading elites, who include Vivian Cheruiyot, Mary Keitany and fellow American Des Linden.

“I feel like I can take big risks this year. That’s the beauty of being the defending champion. I’ve already accomplished what I really wanted, so now I have the ability to really do whatever I want,” Flanagan said. “I don’t feel the panicky desperation to win—I am calm and calculated, but also willing to do big things.

“If I have a presence and I’m a factor in the race, that to me is a winning scenario. I really just want to be an ultimate competitor up front.”

Shalane Flanagan is set to return to the scene of her greatest triumph by competing in this year’s New York City Marathon.

The 37-year-old will line up in the Big Apple on November 4 ready to take on the world’s best once again.

On what proved a gruelling day for all competitors, Kimbia athletes Andrew Bumbalough and Shalane Flanagan battled to strong performances at the Boston Marathon today, Bumbalough turning in a superb performance to finish fifth in 2:19:52, less than four minutes behind race winner Yuki Kawauchi and just over a minute off a podium finish.

Flanagan, meanwhile, endured a rough time in the conditions, with freezing temperatures, driving rain and a constant headwind hammering the runners throughout. In a race won by fellow American Desi Linden in 2:39:54, Flanagan battled to seventh place in 2:46:31.

“It was basically the nastiest conditions you could imagine running in,” said Bumbalough. “I made the decision early not to go with the lead group, it just felt a little quick for the day and we had a nice solid group of guys that stayed together for a long time. I’m really happy with the decision I made to run a pace I knew I could run for the day and see what that got me. I never anticipated how much the front group would blow up but I made the exact decision I wanted to.

“We run in pretty tough conditions in Portland, but it’s never like this. This was a deluge, an atmospheric river. I knew it was going to be tough. I didn’t realize it would be as tough as it was, but I was ready.”

It was Bumbalough’s first time cracking the top five at a major marathon. “Fifth place is great, I beat dudes I had no business beating,” he said.

His interview with Letsrun.com afterwards:

In the women’s race, reigning New York City Marathon champion Shalane Flanagan endured a tough day at the office, the Marblehead native forced to make a quick pitstop early in the race to use the portable bathroom. She soon rejoined the lead pack, but when the field began to splinter in the latter of the race, Flanagan was soon detached. Nonetheless, on a day where more than half of the elite fields failed to finish, Flanagan drew on all her resolve to reach the finish at Boylston Street.

Linden had told Flanagan early in the race that she planned to drop out, but she nonetheless helped Flanagan to rejoin the pack after her bathroom break. “She said: ‘I’ll help you get back to the pack,'” said Flanagan. “I like Des and I don’t mind talking to my friends when I’m racing. I think she wanted me to know if she could help me out, if she was going to drop out, she was willing to help me.”

On her end result, Flanagan said: “It was good, but not what I wanted. Boston is known as being a magical place, but you never know what you’re going to get. There’s nothing easy about Boston.”

Men’s result 

Women’s result

As she prepares for Monday’s Boston Marathon, Shalane Flanagan says she is in similar shape to last November, when the Bowerman Track Club athlete memorably claimed victory at the New York City Marathon.

Flanagan told Letsrun.com that her training has gone well and she believes she’s prepared to make a bold bid for her first victory in the race.

“Good, yeah, no complaints,” she said, when quizzed about her shape. “I did some sessions that were a little bit hillier to get ready for the course in Boston. It went really well so I feel safe to say I’m in similar shape to New York.”

Asked whether it will be her last marathon, Flanagan said: “I don’t know. I think it’ll probably be my last Boston, but I don’t know if it’ll be my last marathon.”

Flanagan’s life became a whirlwind in the immediate aftermath of her victory in New York, but the Marblehead native has since returned to normality as she’s laid down a heavy training block in preparation for Boston.

“After New York, I was really fatigued doing a lot of extracurricular activities and I was still running and trying to train at the same time,” she said. “And it’s really exhausting trying to do both. I was more fatigued going into this buildup because I didn’t really get a break or rest or Sanything.”

Monday’s weather is set to prove suitably adverse, with cold temperatures, rain and a headwind set to greet runners at the start in Hopkinton.

“I don’t see it as a disadvantage,” said Flanagan. “I train in conditions that are pretty similar in Oregon to what the forecast is. In general I like to have races where it’s as fair as possible, but I’m not opposed to this weather. I’m totally fine with it.”

In the men’s race, Andrew Bumbalough will be the sole representative for Kimbia, the 31-year-old bringing a PB of 2:13:58 to the race. He ran that in Tokyo in February 2017, and followed that up with a 13th place finish in Chicago last October. If things fall right for him on Monday, a top-10 finish may well be on the cards.

Shalane Flanagan had another impressive showing at the UW Invitational in Seattle, Washington on Saturday afternoon, the 36-year clocking a season’s best of 8:43.28 to finish second in the women’s 3000m behind Dutch middle distance star Sifan Hassan, the reigning world indoor 1500m champion.

Flanagan has recently begun preparations for the Boston Marathon in April, where she will seek to win her first title at the race to add to her historic victory in New York last November. A fortnight ago she opened her 2018 campaign with an 8:55.11 clocking for 3000m to win in Seattle, and today she carved 12 seconds off that time, something that will leave the Bowerman Track Club athlete high on confidence as she returns to heavy mileage ahead of Boston. Both Hassan’s time of 8:34.45 and Flanagan’s were under the previous meeting record.

Also in action in Seattle was Lopez Lomong, who finished fifth in the men’s mile in 3:59.75. That carved more than four seconds off his previous season’s best, which he ran in Seattle in his opener a fortnight ago.