Belfast City Marathon: Paul Pollock clinches dominant triumph in 2:16.13
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Pollock said that he almost pulled out of the race on Saturday night thinking that his partner Sophie might be about to give birth to the couple's second child
Irish Olympic athlete Paul Pollock clinched a dominant win in the Belfast City Marathon in a time of two hours, 16 minutes and 13 seconds.
Pollock was eight minutes and 44 seconds ahead of Conor Gallagher from the St Malachy's club in Belfast with Dundalk man Gary O'Hanlon taking third.
Pollock is due to become a father for the second time any day now.
North Belfast's Gladys Ganiel won the women's race ahead of St Peter's Lurgan athlete Gillian McCrory.
Irish international athlete Ganiel, who set her personal best of 2:36.42 in Dublin three years ago, took victory in 2:43.57 which left her over eight minutes ahead of McCrory as Pollock's Annadale Striders club-mate Natalie Hall completed the podium positions by clocking 2:53.58.
The men's winner said he had considered withdrawing from the race on Saturday night as his partner Sophie thought that she might be about to give birth.
But as Saturday's due date came and went, the 35-year-old opted to race and he reached halfway in just under 67 minutes which left him over seven minutes ahead of 47-year-old Gary O'Hanlon.
Women's winner Gladys Ganiel (centre) with other podium finishers Gillian McCrory (left) and Natalie Hall (right)
Despite slowing somewhat over his closing 13 miles, the Holywood man was never in any danger of being overhauled.
Pollock filed a late entry for the Belfast race after dropping out of the recent Rotterdam Marathon at around 30 kilometres.
His winning time was outside the European Championship standard of 2:14.30 while at this stage, he also looks unlikely to earn Commonwealth Games selection for Northern Ireland with the Birmingham standard 2:13.00.
Pollock set his personal best set of 2:10.25 at the Valencia Marathon in late 2019 which earned him selection for a second successive Olympic Games.
Tommy Hughes' hopes of becoming the first over-60 athlete to break two hours and 30 minutes for the marathon were dashed as he had to pull out of the event because of a groin injury.
1992 Barcelona Olympian Hughes, 62, already holds the age group world record after clocking 2:30.02 as a 60-year-old in October 2020.