For the fifth consecutive year Paula Radcliffe will not compete in the London Marathon on 25 April. The 36-year-old, who won the event in 2005 and set the world record at the 2003 race, has missed previous years with a succession of injuries and through taking time out to give birth to her daughter, Isla, in January 2007.
There is no indication that Radcliffe is injured this year but after a frustrating 2009 that included missing the London Marathon, the world championships and the world half marathon championships, and a disappointing fourth place finish at the New York marathon in November, it is thought she may be taking time out for personal reasons and to reassess plans for London 2012.
In New York she was in tears at the finish line, frustrated at having lost her lead during the second half of the race after tendinitis in her left knee held her back. Radcliffe wondered afterwards whether the wear and tear on her body over the years might prompt the need for a pause in her career. "Maybe I need to take a long break now and just sort of recharge everything," she said, "but I don't feel my body is falling apart."
Radcliffe said that, injuries aside, her endurance levels are as strong as they have ever been and that she would have won in New York had she not been "running on one and a half legs" after 11 miles.
Radcliffe's catalogue of illnesses, operations, fractures, broken bones and strains have become a recurring theme in her career since failing to finish both the marathon and the 10,000m at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. A broken leg in May 2008, ahead of the Olympic Games in Beijing prompted another rehabilitation race against the clock as she attempted to recover in time to compete in the marathon in August. Radcliffe made it to the start line but broke down with cramp and could manage no higher than a 23rd place finish.
With just over three years to go before the next Olympic Games – the only event in which Radcliffe has thus far failed to win a medal – fine tuning her body to peak in the summer of 2012 will be a priority for the British runner. Taking it easy this year could be perfect timing for her with only the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games to compete in, events in which Radcliffe has already collected gold medals.
• This article was amended on 9 April 2010. The headline originally said Paula Radcliffe pulls out of London Marathon again. This has been corrected.
