Ellie Pashley finishes 23rd for Australia at the Olympic marathon in Tokyo

The former Albury schoolgirl faced punishing conditions in Sapporo, with temperatures in excess of 30C forcing the race to be brought forward an hour.

But Pashley, 32, dug deep and clocked an impressive time of 2:33.39.

She was the second Australian home behind Sinead Diver, who finished 10^th in 2:31.14, while Lisa Weightman was 26^th in 2:34.19.

It was a Kenyan one-two at the head of the race, Peres Jepchirchir taking gold after making a late burst to see off the challenge of her compatriot, Brigid Kosgei, the world record holder.

Pashley, who started running at Little Athletics in Albury and went on to win the Nail Can Hill Run three times, came in just over six minutes behind the winner.

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