“I always like a challenge and always like a new thing to try and achieve. In 2019, I was looking for a challenge and that was three events [1500m, 5000m and 10000m] and I did that [winning world championship gold in the 1500m and 10000m],” Hassan said

“After the Tokyo Olympics, then I thought, ‘Ok, what now?’ In 2022, I just had no motivation, and I don’t know if I was scared of the marathon or not, but I thought, ‘Ok, one day I am going to do it’. I never thought I would be good at it.”

She needn’t have worried. After initially “really overtraining” – Hassan asked a fellow marathoner how they survived the 300km training weeks only to be told 160-180km was more than enough – the Dutch athlete won her first ever 42.195km race in the London Marathon in 2023. Then she won the Chicago marathon as well.

In 2024, Hassan’s new training load probably cost her the chance to defend her 5000m and 10000m golds, but her peerless grit still saw her claim bronze in both finals.

Less than 48 hours after the 10,000m final, and with two 5000m runs also in the last week, Hassan lined up in the Olympic marathon, which was run in sapping heat and over a brutally hilly course. She’d barely slept.

“Physically and mentally I was already tired, and the Paris course, it was very difficult,” Hassan said. “When I think about it, I get the shakes. It makes me scared. So it wasn’t just the marathon, the course was very hard.”

Hassan dropped off the lead pack mid-race and looked out of contention, but fought her way back and, using her track skills in a memorable sprint finish over the last 400m, jostled with then-world record holder Tigst Assefa and won gold in an Olympic record time.

Hassan was named World Athletics female athlete of the year, but – despite not having many competitors for the title – disputes that she is the greatest women’s distance runner of all time.

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Hassan, who has held world records in the mile, the 10,000m and the 5km on road, has a personal best in the marathon of 2:13:44 – which is a few minutes behind the extraordinary world record of 2:09:56 set by Kenya’s Ruth Chepng’etich in Chicago last year.

As a relatively tough undulating course, the Sydney Marathon likely won’t be a place for Hassan to challenge the world record. But for someone who relishes dificult challenges, Sydney will suit Hassan down to the ground.