ATHLETICS: Olympic champion Sifan Hassan withdraws from New York City Marathon

Olympic champion Sifan Hassan has dropped out of the New York City Marathon due to a setback in her training, she said on Wednesday, months after an Achilles injury forced her out of the London Marathon.

Hassan, who won the Paris 2024 marathon and also picked up gold in the 5,000 and 10,000 metres at the Tokyo Games, has not competed since she last ran the five boroughs a year ago, finishing sixth.

"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 wrote on social media. "Sometimes, things just don’t go as planned."

Hassan was one of two high-profile names to drop out of the year's final marathon major on Wednesday. US Olympic trials champion Fiona O'Keeffe also withdrew due to injury.

-Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York;Editing by Toby Davis/Reuters