Kim Smith, 28, has been a top runner since she won four NCAA titles in only two seasons at Providence College. Since her college success, the New Zealand native has continued to collect National Records and Olympic and World Championship performances. She stands in her country’s record books as the fastest woman in the 3K, 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, and – after the 2010 Virgin London Marathon – the Marathon. Along with her 30:35 10K PR and 14:39 Indoor 5K PR (the fastest non-Ethiopian time in the Indoor 5,000m), Smith added a 2:25:21 marathon PR (8th place in London) to her already long list of accomplishments.

Smith kicked off her 2010 campaign racing on the heels of Berhane Adere in the New Orleans Half Marathon. Her 1:07:55 was the third fastest time by a woman on U.S. soil.

After a strong showing against a stacked field of experienced marathon runners in London, Smith is setting her sights on the 42K distance, and she hopes to run even faster this fall. You can read our Pre-London Interview with the New Zealand record holder here.

EliteRunning: First of all, congratulations on such an awesome run in London (Smith set a New Zealand National Record)! How did you feel during the race? Was there any point that you questioned your pace or had to stick out a rough patch?

Kim Smith: The pacemaker was going out at 71 through the half so I either had to go out in 71 or run by myself the whole way as the other group was going out at 2:38 pace. I would have preferred a little slower, but it was fine; I still felt pretty comfortable. I think the hardest part was between miles 18-23 as it still seemed so far until the end. And then I felt like I started feeling better for the last 5km.

ER: Before the race, you mentioned that you were not sure if you wanted to focus on the marathon because you had yet to experience the full 26.2. Now that you have one under your belt, do you feel differently? Do you think your best shot at a medal in 2012 is the marathon?

KS: As soon as I finished the race I knew I really wanted to do another marathon. I saw my agent right after and told him right away I wanted to do a fall marathon. I can’t wait to try and run faster next time. It was a very painful race but wasn’t quite as bad as I expected. I think I had built it up in my mind that I was going to be in extreme pain and that I would probably want to walk or throw up or something, but I didn’t feel like that at all. I have more confidence with the distance now.

ER: Given your track speed and half marathon speed, what is your ultimate time goal for the marathon?

KS: I would love to be close to running 2:20 one day, but I know that that is an extremely tough time to run. Not very many women have run that fast, but I think my speed over shorter distances helps.

ER: How is the recovery going? How different is this recovery so far from other distances that you have raced?

KS: Right now I’m on a break for a couple of weeks. The first few days I had a lot of trouble walking. I felt like I was 90 years old but my muscles seem to be feeling pretty good now. I hurt my foot a little during the race so that is the only problem I’ve had. It’s probably good my foot hurts because I won’t be tempted to run while I’m meant to be resting.

ER: What do you have planned next on your running schedule?

KS: I’m not too sure but I’ll probably do a few shorter road races in June. I’m not sure I’m going to get on the track this season. I’ll definitely miss it and be jealous when I see the race results of Europe but it’s also nice to have a year off the track. I think it’s a good year to do something different because it’s a non-championship year. It will make me more excited for the track next year. I’ve been lucky with not getting injured so I’ve never missed a track season – so a break from track may be good.

ER: So you’re definitely considering a fall marathon?

KS: I’m definitely considering a fall marathon. It would be nice to do one of the U.S. marathons. It’s something I will have to talk about with my coach and agent and make a decision about.

View Original Post at eliterunning.com

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