The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Gold Coast finale: Simpson flies the flag for Scotland. The Score
Deesiderunnerbagssensationalbronze but exhausted team-mate Hawkins falters
Banchory’s Robbie Simpson admitted his Commonwealth Games marathon bronze medal was bittersweet following team-mate Callum Hawkins being taken to hospital after collapsing during the race.
Hawkins had a 41-second lead with a mile-and-a-half remaining when he tumbled exhausted to the ground and required medical assistance.
Team Scotland reported several hours later that he was conscious and speaking to his father and medical staff, while Simpson, who also battled through the 28-degree heat to take a sensational third, said he thought about stopping to check on his fellow Scot.
Australia’s Michael Shelley came through to take gold, with Uganda’s Solomon Mutai claiming silver ahead of Simpson.
The Banchory runner said: “It’s conflicting because Callum was here to win it and I know he could have won it. I wanted to stop and see if he was OK but I had just got into third place and had to keep going to the end.
“It’s about dealing with the conditions on the day and these things happen in the marathon. You have to make the most of it and he would have been disappointed if I had stopped and missed out on a medal.”
Hawkins was kept in Gold Coast University Hospital overnight for further observations but gave a positive message yesterday following the drama of the morning.
He said: “Thanks for all your messages of support today and to the Gold Coast University Hospital staff. I am now feeling much better.”
Hawkins was visibly struggling before falling and banging his head against a barrier. Once he was on the ground, it took several minutes for medical help to arrive.
Team Scotland’s statement said: “While Callum’s recovery is our clear priority, we are still reviewing the circumstances of yesterday’s race with Gold Coast Commonwealth Games
Corporation and the Commonwealth Games Confederation to ensure the continued health and well being of all athletes remains paramount.”
Simpson, primarily a hill runner who won the Inverness half-marathon in his final pre-Games warm-up event, worked his way through the field to claim bronze 18 seconds ahead of Northern Ireland’s Kevin Seaward.
Simpson said: “The target was to be in the top 10. I thought I’d let the pack go and run my own race; I was on my own most of the way until the turnaround and I’d thought I’d go for it. I was feeling really tired but at every single drink point I had some water and some energy drinks and kept pushing. There were more and more guys coming back and some of them looked pretty quick. Someone said I was in fourth and I could see third up ahead, so I sprinted up the next hill.”
Deeside Runners athlete Simpson took the final medal for Scotland at the Games, taking their tally to 44 and seeing them finish eighth in the medal table.
Scotland 400 metres hurdler Eilidh Doyle, the Team Scotland captain, said she was heartbroken for Hawkins but delighted for Simpson.
Television commentator Steve Cram said was critical of how it took so long for paramedics to attend to Hawkins.
In response, GOLDOC confirmed medical staff were posted at 500-metre intervals in the final kilometres of the course with radio communications.
Mark Peters, GOLDOC chief executive, said: “I like many others was distressed to see a wonderful athlete like Callum collapse. GOLDOC has put in place a wide range of measures to ensure athlete welfare and the response of medical staff was within agreed response guidelines and time frames.”
Going into the final quarter of the race Hawkins, who finished fourth in the world championships last year, was looking set to claim his first major medal.
He had a lead of 41 seconds before his fall, which denied him the chance of victory on the Gold Coast.
Namibia’s Helalia Johannes won the women’s marathon ahead of Australian duo Lisa Weightman and Jessica WWWW.
“Someone said I was in fourth and I could see third up ahead”