Margaux Sieracki storms to a stunning eighth place at the Amsterdam Marathon
© Marathons.comAfter two setbacks over the marathon distance, Margaux Sieracki delivered a breakthrough performance at the Amsterdam Marathon on Sunday. Her 2:25:47 makes her the sixth-fastest French woman of all time. No Frenchwoman in history has ever run faster on her marathon debut. Here is the story of an unforgettable morning, live from the Olympic Stadium.
It was probably the finest gift she could have given her mother. «Her birthday was yesterday. We haven’t celebrated yet». Voice trembling, Margaux Sieracki waves enthusiastically to her biggest supporter from the track at Amsterdam’s Olympic Stadium. «She paces me on an e-bike, and she’s a metronome at 3:28 per kilometre. She knows how much I’ve struggled for the past two and a half years», she reveals. Even in her wildest dreams, the French half-marathon silver medallist, who ran 1:10:14 behind Alessia Zarbo’s 1:09:53 at Auray-Vannes on September 14, could never have imagined clocking such a breathtaking time, 2:25:47, in the Dutch capital.
«It’s huge. I was expecting 2:27 or 2:28. But not under 2:26», she says. After two difficult attempts at the distance, first derailed by a stress fracture at six kilometres and then by missed aid stations, the Coureurs de Fond du Cateau athlete has recorded the fastest marathon debut ever by a Frenchwoman. «I was in the third women’s pack. I paid for a pacer. A proper pacer. He took me to 35 kilometres, Pierre Denays. After that, I finished on my own. Everything went well. I stayed calm.»
Coached since January by Stéphane Valenti, the 2021 French masters cross-country champion, whose «methods she really appreciates», the Hauts-de-France 10K record-holder, who ran 31:49 in Rotterdam on September 6, delivered an almost flawless race. «We went through halfway in 1:13:27. It was perfect. Then we ran a negative split». She covered the second half in 1:12:22, earning a remarkable eighth-place finish among the women and taking top honours among the Europeans. «When I was at the Fontainebleau training centre, Thierry Choffin immediately saw that I was made for the longer distances». Expert insight.
Set to race the 10K at the Marathon Vert de Rennes next Sunday, the 2024 winner of the Adidas 10K Paris in 32:18 is «a little lost» when it comes to her next targets. «We only found out two days ago that there would be a marathon at next year’s European Championships, in Birmingham on August 16, 2026». It is a race that could appeal to her. The athlete, who trains in Mouscron, Belgium, also plans to chase a major half-marathon time, aiming to break 1:09:30.
You could almost forget to ask her how it feels. «Actually, it’s strange. It’s as if I still haven’t taken it in. But when I see her, my mother, it’ll sink in. I just want to enjoy it with her». Her Sunday afternoon was unlikely to be a quiet one.
At 26, Margaux Sieracki continues to move up another level. From the 1500m to the marathon, the athlete from northern France, originally from Croix, has confirmed her status as one of the leading names in French athletics. After her outstanding performance in Amsterdam, her times over the marathon distance will now be watched closely. Very closely.