•Competing in her third marathon after Amsterdam and Hamburg, Masai ran a course record of 2:22.16 in Toronto.
•She said her biggest motivators were former Commonwealth marathon champion Flomena Cheyech and former track star Sylvia Kibet.
Fresh from setting a course record at Toronto Marathon, former world cross country bronze medallist Magdalene Masai is keen to compete in the World Marathon Majors (WMM) next season.
Magdalene comes from the Masai family that also has former world 10,000m bronze medalist Moses, former world 10,000m champion Linet, former world junior champion Dennis and Alex, who runs for Hofstra University in the USA.
Competing in her third marathon after Amsterdam and Hamburg, Masai ran a course record of 2:22.16 in Toronto. " I am hoping to run in major marathons in the new season but I am still waiting for the confirmation from management," she said.
Magdalene said out of the three marathon she has competed, Toronto remains her favourite. “I know of London, Chicago, New York, Boston, Tokyo and Berlin but prefer to start in Boston because of the magical experience people talk about. I want to experience it first hand," she noted.
Her shift from track to the roads started in 2016 when she made a debut at Ostia Half Marathon, posting 67:30.
She said her biggest motivators were former Commonwealth marathon champion Flomena Cheyech and former track star Sylvia Kibet. In the family, Linet and Magdalene have ventured into marathon unlike their elder brother Moses who has been battling an ankle injury.
She said venturing on the roads was a personal decision and she didn't have to consult her family. “However, if it was not for Moses (Masai), we wouldn’t be running as a family. He changed our lives and corrected all of us. He is a pillar in the family and remains an inspiration to all of us," she added.
She said she has run with her sister Linet before and beat her to third place in the Great North Run with Brigid Kosgei taking the honours on the day .