Moh Ahmed half marathon debut delayed again in NYC due to injuries

Moh Ahmed's long-awaited debut in the half marathon is back on hold.

The Canadian distance runner was scratched from Sunday's 21.1-kilometre race in New York City due to back spasms and adductor issues suffered this week in his final workout. Adductors are a group of muscles that bring the leg inward towards the body.

"He is deeply disappointed to not be able to line up against yet another fantastic field," Ahmed's agent, Dan Lilot of Aurum Sports Group, wrote in a statement to race organizer, New York Road Runners. "[He] hopes to be invited back to the Big Apple in the future."

Ahmed, 34, also withdrew from a half marathon in Houston 14 months ago after tweaking his hamstring/hip flexor in his last pre-race workout.

Last week, Ahmed's longtime coach Jerry Schumacher told CBC Sports the St. Catharines, Ont., native was healthy and in great shape after a minor foot issue forced Ahmed to withdraw in January from the men's indoor 3,000 at the Millrose Games in NYC.

Schumacher expects Ahmed to compete outdoors on the track this season, including the 5,000 and/or 10,000 metres in Tokyo at the World Athletics Championships in September, since he has met the qualifying times.

At the Paris Olympics last August, Ahmed's appeal was rejected after he was tripped late in his 5,000 heat. The Canadian opened his fourth Olympics with a fourth-place finish in the 10,000.

WATCH | Paris 2024 Olympic 10,000m final:

But talk of the 2021 Olympic silver medallist making the transition to road racing has never been louder. Ahmed, who won last year's Ottawa 10-kilometre road race, has discussed the half marathon with Schumacher for six or seven years, but Ahmed either couldn't fit the race in his schedule or was injured.

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