RADCLIFFE BOWS OUT WITH A SMILE

THE distinctive head bob was still there and the white socks pulled up over the calves, but plastered across her face was something we are not used to seeing during Paula radcliffe’s races — a huge smile. When she set the world record of 2hr 15min 25sec in the London Marathon in April 2003, a time no woman has threatened 12 years later, there was no grinning until after she had crossed the line. similarly in 2005, when she recorded her third and final victory over the 26.2-mile course from Blackheath to The Mall, emotions were kept in check. But a time of 2:36:55 in her final competitive marathon is not to be sniffed at for a 41-yearold who described herself as ‘unprepared’ for the race. it is well inside 2:42:00, the IAAF qualifying standard for the rio Olympics next summer, but radcliffe maintained her elite career was now over. ‘My body can’t train at this level anymore,’ she said. ‘in Kenya for my winter training camp, i pushed myself too hard and i broke down. The magic of London helped me run faster than i should really have been capable of.’ radcliffe was due to give a BBC interview to Denise Lewis on Tower Bridge but the former heptathlete could not keep up. radcliffe said: ‘she (Lewis) ran with me for a little bit but i didn’t want to stop because i was worried i wouldn’t be able to start again.’ radcliffe began well, running at 2:30:00 pace for the opening 10 kilometres. ‘i ran the first mile in 5min 30sec, which was too quick, but every time someone shouted in the crowd it boosted me,’ she added. ‘As much as my body wanted it to finish, i didn’t want it to end.’ in the women’s race, Tigist Tufa became the third ethiopian to win the London Marathon, after Derartu Tulu in 2001 and Aselefech Mergia in 2010. Tufa finished in 2:23:22. Kenyan eliud Kipchoge won the men’s elite race in 2:04:42.