Paula Radcliffe has been focussing on very little this year apart from the Beijing Olympics, particularly since missing the London Marathon with a toe injury. But now it appears that another injury may rule out her chances in China too. On Wednesday an MRI scan revealed a stress fracture in her left femur.
Radcliffe’s chances of running in Beijing seem unclear; at one time she says she is 90-100% sure she will be there, while commentators like BBC’s Mike Costello have described these chances as ’slim’. A case of positive mental attitude on Radcliffe’s part perhaps, but it doesn’t sound likely that she will be able to train enough to be going to the Olympics with a realistic shot of a medal.
On a personal level this is very sad news, not only was Paula Radcliffe one of Team GB’s best gold medal prospects on the track, but after the drama of the Athens Games there can be few people in the UK who did not wish her success in Beijing. It may be too early to say, but it looks like Paula Radcliffe may be joining Haile Gabreselassie on the marathon sidelines.
The Games’ organisers may also feel some sympathy for Paula, for not only was she a star-prospect for their event, but she has also been a vocal supporter of the Games, with regard to political protests and pollution.
I wish Paula a speedy recovery and really hope to see her in Beijing.
Hi All, does anyone have any idea how i can get in touch with paula, or her management team? We have a fantastic new product that we have used for similiar injuries with great success, and will mean she can still train at a very high level… (see http://www.hydrophysio.com to see for yourself) This is not a selling blog, I just want to be able to offer the treadmill to use for free, so we can see britains favourite female athete make the olympics… ANYONE with any information would be a great help
thks
Hope she does better soon.
Christian Loriau
Afraid Paula does not like failure and clearly is only in the sport for the financial rewards.