| Gold MedallistJONG, Song-Ok (PRK) |
| "Even when the leading group was still together at about two hours I was confident that I could break away successfully and take the gold. I imagined in my mind the image of our Korean leader, Kim Jong Il, and this inspired me today. This was the source of my power. Yes, I am a new marathon runner in the eyes of the rest of the world. Hopefully they will know me better in the future. What will I do with the 50,000 dollar prize money? That is a question for the future and not now." |
| Silver Medallist - Ichihashi, Ari (JPN) |
| "I wanted gold. However, though my face may have looked very confident inside I was tired and a little tense. I planned to follow Fatuma Roba throughout the race and though I was surprised such a large group was together so late on, I was pretty confident I could still get a medal. The Korean is a new name to me and when you don't know an athlete it is difficult to guess what their tactics would be. I am sure I will be very satisfied with my silver but I really did want the gold." |
| Bronze Medallist - SLAVUTEANU-SIMON, Lidia (ROM) |
"It was an unexpected race because I had thought the
second half would have been faster. It was a tough race in a way as there was a lot of
pushing and elbowing along the road, some of which was intentional, I think. I did have
slight stomach problems around the half way. It is something I have had earlier so it
didn't upset me but because of this I couldn't follow as the three picked up the pace.
Luckily I recovered and could speed up to capture the bronze."   |