PAULA RADCLIFFE insists her injury-affected return to action in the Bupa London 10,000 on Monday is not the beginning of the end for one of the world’s finest distance runners.
The 37-year-old, hampered by a torn disc in her back, could only finish third on her long-awaited comeback following an 18-month absence, beaten in the 10 kilometre road race by winner Jo Pavey and Gemma Steel, a 25-year-old who has never represented Britain in a track or road race.
The injuries become harder to recover from with age, but Radcliffe is determined to bid for an elusive Olympic gold in the marathon on the streets of London next year, and retains her belief she can still compete with the best.
“The time comes when you can’t do it any more, but hopefully this isn’t it,” said Radcliffe, who had to delay her return earlier this month because of a bout of bronchitis.
“It’s not like I’m sitting here wondering what happened. I know what the problem is, I’ve just got to let it heal. It is more common than I thought. A lot of runners have had it and it has healed pretty well.
“I know deep down if I’m healthy I can still get in (to contention), but I also know deep down I’m not going to – and I’m not trying to – run 30 minutes 20 seconds for a 10km race again (her world record for the distance, set in 2003, is 30mins 21secs).
“But I don’t need to, I want to run a marathon.”
