Pat Butcher
6 September 2000 – Berlin - Turning down an opportunity to run in the Olympic Games cannot be easy, but Fabian Roncero had no doubts. "I am a marathon man," he says. And that's why, instead of preparing for the 10,000 metres in Sydney, the Spaniard is running the Berlin Marathon on Sunday, on a course that has produced two world best marks in the last two years.
Roncero was one of four world class Spanish marathoners vying for Olympic selection. Although he is Spanish record holder, since two of the others were Abel Anton and Martin Fiz, who have won the last three world titles between them, his chances were limited. The selectors gave the third spot to Alberto Juzdado, and asked Roncero to run the 10,000, where he is also Spanish record holder.
"There's no point," he says, "the Olympic 10,000 metres is for speed merchants. The best any European could hope for is fourth, fifth, sixth, whereas in the marathon, there is still a possibility of winning".
So he turns his attention to the ultra-fast Berlin course, where Ronaldo da Costa of Brazil ran a world best 2hr 06min 05sec two years ago, and where Kenyan, Tegla Loroupe took four seconds off her own world mark, with 2.20.23 last year.
"I've always been on holiday at this time of year in the past," says Roncero, who is from Madrid. "But I've seen the times in Berlin. It's a flat, fast course, and I would hope to be able to run at least 2.06".
His national record is 2.07.23, but recent form bolsters that view. He won the Liverpool Half-Marathon in 61min 12sec on a difficult course a month ago, with the second man, a former winner five minutes behind.
