Brazilian runner Marilson Gomes dos Santos, who won the ING New York City Marathon on Sunday, said in a press conference in Sao Paulo on Wednesday that his next priority will be the Olympic marathon in the Beijing Games 2008.

 

The athlete said that he will start practicing specifically for the 42,195-meter marathon following the Pan American Games 2007, which will take place in Rio de Janeiro. In the 2003 edition of the Pan American Games, he received a bronze medal in the 5,000-meter run and a silver medal in the 10,000-meter, and now he will try two win both races in the 2008 Games.

 

He still has goals to achieve in that type of shorter race, said his coach Adauto Domingues.

 

Santos arrived in Brazil on Wednesday morning and immediately headed for the conference with the Brazilian press.

 

"My marathon is not over yet," said the runner, who has been attending interviews, social events and photography sessions since he came first in the race on Sunday. Santos admitted to longing for some rest at his wife's side, who he had not seen for while, as he spent 35 days training outside his hometown before going to New York.

 

Coach Domingues did not confirm Santos participation in the 2006 Saint Sylvester Race, traditionally held in Brazil on December 31, because he still needs to undergo some medical tests.

 

"My foot hurts now. I will be absent at some races in order recover 100 percent," stressed Santos, who won the Saint Sylvester Race in 2003 and 2005.

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 9, 2006)