Paula Radcliffe’s decision on whether to compete in the 10,000 metres on Friday is believed to be imminent, and David Powell, right, The Times’ athletics correspondent in Athens, thinks that although her participation is unlikely, she can’t be discounted from winning, should she choose to race.
Crucially, Powell suggests that the several days of training Radcliffe missed due to a niggling calf injury in the build-up to last Sunday’s marathon, touted as being partially responsible for her teary exit, may not impact upon her performance at the lesser distance.
“I don’t think she will run,” Powell said. “But I could be wrong. The common sense decision says that she wouldn’t after the drain of the last three days. However, if the blood tests come back all clear and she feels that she’s emotionally right, then she’s got a chance to redeem herself, and she’s proven herself so many times.
“We’re no nearer to knowing why she dropped out of the marathon; it could have been she had a virus, it could have been the pressure, it could have been the heat. If she was only at 95 per cent capacity after missing days of training, then in that heat that would explain why she failed to finish.
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“One interesting theory is the belief that the training she missed in the lead-up to the marathon will not affect her in the 10,000 metres.
Radcliffe is awaiting the results of medical tests before she decides whether to compete, but if there is nothing in the results that would help to explain why she pulled up three-and-a-half miles shy of the finish line, then would that make her more prone to bouts of self doubt on Friday?
“Possibly,” said Powell. “But I would need to know how many days of training she missed. What may have been too many for the marathon, could still mean she can run a quality 10,000 metres.
“It was only eight weeks ago that she won one of the best 10,000 metres races I’ve ever seen at Gateshead. The world champion isn’t here, so it could be the right decision to run. If the tests come back clear then there is a good chance that she could win.
“The pressure on her after the marathon performance won’t help or hinder her. She’s always said that the greatest pressure she ever feels is the pressure she puts on herself. In fact, there will be less pressure on her in the 10,000 metres than there was in the marathon.
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Denise Lewis, Radcliffe’s Great Britain athletics team-mate, has already publicly advised her not to run, saying: “If Paula Radcliffe was my sister, I’d tell her to come home - her heart was broken by Sunday’s disappointment in the marathon.”
Whether or not Radcliffe opts to run, the wide coverage of her marathon exit, followed by an emotional television interview the next day, has ensured that all of Britain is keenly awaiting her decision. It begs the question: is this the most eagerly-awaited decision in British athletics history?
“It’s certainly right up there,” admitted Powell. “The most comparable situation I can relate it to is when the British selectors agonised over whether to select Sebastian Coe in the 1,500 metres at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.”