I was leading with 300 metres to go.
In the end, Andreas Almgren had dropped to fourth place on 10,000 metres at the European Championship in Rome.
It's too poor, he says.
Long-distance runner Andreas Almgren was aiming for a higher medal when 10,000 metres were decided at the Olympic Stadium.
Instead, he ended up off the podium.
The 29-year-old was leading with 300 metres to go but was overtaken on the final lap.
The Swiss Dominic Lobalu won in 28:00.32 ahead of Yann Schrub, France, and the Spaniard Thierry Ndikumwenayo.
I thought I would have more strength left, as it felt very good with 300 to go. After 200 metres, I went kaput. I thought I would have another gear on the final lap, but it wasn't there, says Almgren, very disappointed.
Too much lactic acid
Almgren was well-placed in the field throughout the race. He says about the tactics:
If it was going slowly, I would go up with three laps to go, but the Brit (Patrick Dever) did it, and then it was just a matter of lying in his slipstream.
With 300 metres to go, Almgren went up to the lead.
He hasn't had time to train specifically to withstand lactic acid at the end, but thought he would manage on pure running strength.
But apparently, I get too much acid when I have to run fast between 300 and 100 to go. I have quite a few weeks to get comfortable with the pace, so hopefully, I can solve it by the time of the World Championship.
He's now heading to St Moritz, at high altitude, to train for the next seven weeks.
I'll try to improve until I can make it all the way to the finish.
In the World Championship, he will run both 5,000 and 10,000 metres.
"Too poor"
The race in Rome was Almgren's only second on 10,000 metres on the track, the first one he ran earlier this year. During the spring, he has set Swedish records on 1,500, 3,000, and 5,000 metres.
But the race at the European Championship in Rome is one he's really not satisfied with, neither the time, 28:01.16, the placement, nor the performance.
A fourth place when you're going for a medal, it wasn't like this I imagined the day. It's too poor, simply.
