COFFS Harbour marathon runner Leah Fitzgerald is again sporting gold in the gruelling sport, finishing first woman across the line and seventh overall in the Noosa Runaway Marathon.

With a time of 2 hours 50 minutes and 15 seconds, Leah outpaced the field early on and finished a comfortable five minutes ahead of Jessica Willis in second place.

Crediting her training in the lead-up and good conditions on the day, she said everything just fell into place.

“I actually led from the start so in the last ten kilometres I thought I would win or place.

“It’s a nice, flat course and that last ten kilometres got a bit hot which is expected in Noosa, but I’m really happy to come away with the win.”

It’s been a long time between races for Leah, who hasn’t competed since the 2019 Chicago Marathon due to Covid cancellations.

“It’s been really tough mentally because we had a lot of close starts, I actually made the NSW marathon running team at the Gold Coast, but three days out they cancelled event.

“That was probably the hardest hit.”

Putting those disappointments behind her, she is now looking forward to her next challenges.

“I’m going to race in Berlin on 25 September, and then I do London a week later.

“I’m really excited because Berlin’s one of the marathons I’ve always wanted to run, and I’m going to try and get a personal best.”

 

By Sam PARKER