\n<\/p>\n
“I’m excited and also quite nervous.<\/p>\n
“Last year I came second for the British women, so I already knew at that point that I probably wouldn’t be able to run with the masses and with the men again. So I knew I’d be making that step up into the women’s only race.<\/p>\n
“It was a shock last year when I came in second because I didn’t start with the elite women. I didn’t know I was in second, I only found out when I crossed the line that some of the elite women had dropped out.”<\/p>\n
With Olympic qualification for this summer’s Games out of reach and question marks over the future of the Commonwealth Games, Hodgkinson’s competitive aims have been pushed to the distant future.<\/p>\n
“I’m not going to make the Olympics this year but they come around every four years so why not go again and have a shot?” she added.<\/p>\n
“The Commonwealth Games is in question at the minute and may or may not happen. I’d like to represent England as I haven’t done that, but that’s generally some shorter distance stuff and speed is not necessarily my strength. I’m an endurance runner but we’ll see.<\/p>\n
“I could easily go down the ultra running line and step up to 50km or 100-milers.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n