Olympic star to use Port Douglas marathon as Commonwealth Games tune-up
MARATHON FESTIVAL
AUSTRALIAN Olympic star Jess Trengove will look to next year's Tropical Journey's Great Barrier Reef Marathon Festival to fine-tune her preparation for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
The distance gun, who is an ambassador for the popular Port Douglas marathon event, said she will prepare for the full marathon in 2017 as a lead in to the Gold Coast Games.
More than 1900 runners took to the course yesterday in Port Douglas which organisers have hailed the most successful event in its seven-year history.
"We still need to find out what the qualification criteria is for the Commonwealth Games, but then I'll gear my preparations towards that," Trengove said.
"An event like this in Port Douglas would be an ideal lead in event to the Games given it's in November, so that's something I might look at down the track."
Trengove bolted home to win the women's 10km yesterday, just one of the many event categories offered throughout the Festival.
She said she was determined to compete in the next Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020, but preferred to set shorter term goals with her eyes firmly fixed on the Commonwealth Games beforehand.
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"I have completed in Japan a few times and they take their running very seriously over there, so the Olympics are going to be amazing," Trengove said.
"But right now, I'll try and set my sights on the Gold Coast."
The Tropical Journey's Great Barrier Reef Marathon Festival raised over $55,000 which will be poured into research of Whale Shark numbers on the Great Barrier Reef.