My mum is one of Great Britain’s greatest ever athletes – now I’m out to beat her last remaining record
EILISH McCOLGAN plans to run her first marathon next year – and finally take down one of her mum’s best times.
The Dundee runner, 33, may not have won the same Olympic or world medals as mum and coach Liz, 59, did during a glittering career.
But she has run quicker in her household over multiple distances between 1500 metres and the half marathon.
McColgan had planned to compete for the first time at the London Marathon in April but was ruled out with a knee complaint.
Her plans for the Paris 2024 Olympics will depend on the coming months and whether her body can cope with 10,000 metres on the track or 26.2 miles on the road.
If that is not possible, then she will look to partake in one of the Berlin, Chicago or New York marathons later in the year.
Currently recovering from spinal surgery in August, she told a new BBC Scotland documentary: “One by one, I started taking all of my mum’s records.
“I’ve broken every Scottish record of hers from 1500 metres, 3,000 metres, 5k, 10k, all the ones on the road as well.
“I only have one of my mum’s times now to beat. The marathon is the only outstanding one.
“There’s no rivalry between us. She’s part of the reason I’m breaking them now.
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“Jumping into the marathon will not be all rainbows or unicorns, it will be tougher than that but my team think I can do it. They have more belief in me than I do.
“From a very young age, my mum told me I’d be better than her.
“When I was growing up, people expected me to win everything purely because of my name.
“It’s a remarkable story and journey that my mum has been on.
“Somebody with her on a council estate in Dundee wouldn’t have thought my mum would be destined for any greatness. Yet she proved a lot of people wrong along the way.”
Liz, the 1988 Olympic 10,000 metres silver medallist and a former world champion, ran a PB in the marathon of 2:26:52 in London in April 1997.
But she added: “I saw her, as a little girl, what she is capable of doing.
She is definitely her mother’s daughter.
“Eilish has really, really struggled with confidence and dealing with the family name.”
McColgan attended her stepfather John Nuttall’s funeral last Friday, which was held in Preston with the wake taking place at Deepdale.
Qatar-based Nuttall – a former middle-distance athlete and coach – suffered a fatal heart attack on Thursday November 9. He was 56.
McColgan said: “I didn’t see my mum and John a huge amount over the past five years because my boyfriend and I have travelled a lot.
“But because I was injured, it was quite unusual that we spent two weeks in Portugal with them.
“And then we all had six or seven weeks at their home in Qatar. It was nice we had that quality time all together.”
Eilish McColgan: Running in the family, BBC Scotland, Thursday, 10pm