World marathon record holder Paula Radcliffe withdrew from the London Marathon on Thursday because of a toe tendon injury, but is still expected to recover in time for this August’s Beijing Olympics.
Radcliffe said:
I am desperately disappointed that I have to pull out of this year’s race.
I love running in London and this race would have been the perfect test for me before the Olympic Games.
After injuring her right toe while altitude training at her base in Albuquerque, N.M., Radcliffe said:
In marathon training there are no short cuts and there is simply not enough time to be in the shape I want to be in to run well in London. Now I must concentrate on being as well prepared as possible for Beijing.
Fingers crossed for a speedy recovery. I know Paula is desperate to make up for dropping out of the marathon at the 2004 Athens Games, despite winning gold at the World Championships in Helsinki, Finland a year later.
Whoah, we must be on the same wavelength. I also recently posted an article about Paula’s withdrawal from the London marathon. (Insert “Twilight Zone” theme here. OK, so it’s probably not that much of a coincidence, considering it was a huge headline. 😉 )