Do you think that Paula Radcliffe is the Real Champion of the Women's Marathon for ?

Question

competing against insurmountable odds with injury

Answer 1

I actually hoped she wouldn't run, as anyone with that bad an injury can only make things worse. That's not to say i don't have the utmost admiration for her.

Answer 2

I couldn't agree more, dunrobin. The fact is this prima donna can't hack it at the highest level. Her performance at the Athens Olympics was as dismal as her excuses (warm weather) and her use of personal male pacemakers at the 2003 London marathon was a disgrace. Although this was later banned, it should never have been allowed in the first place, and her prize money should have been returned.

Anna123 - your suspicions are also correct - invitational marathons do no independent drugs testing.  

Answer 3

Paula Radcliffe treats this games with the same contempt she treated the last games.

She didn't take part in the opening ceremony (arriving only 48 hours ago) she is staying in a luxury hotel instead of mixing with the other athletes in the Olympic village and she is jetting off before the closing ceremony.

She only wins races where there is an invited field and she has pacemakers and gets paid an appearance fee.

Answer 4

At least she tried and getting in shape despite her injuries and a baby is tremendous.  

Answer 5

so let me see, she wins one marathon once upon a time, and she is then heralded as the great british hope in athletics and what has she done since ? The most she has accomplished at this Olympics is to keep another athlete from competing. If she was injured then she just should have never came.

The British athletic team is non-exsistant, any hope of medals have soon dissappeared. Maybe the funding should be withdrawn from athletics and given to sports that are showing growing potetial like cycling, swimming, sailing, rowing and shooting.

Answer 6

23rd?  did she stop for a massive dump?

Answer 7

Anna...........no its because the cash comes from the likes of winning the London Marathon.....the Olympics is just about self promotion which gets u the invitations and the start money for the commercial events

Answer 8

I always think it's odd how she does so well at most marathons but does so bad at olympics. Is it because the drug testing is better at the olympics? Or is that just paranoid?  

Answer 9

What? No. You get the gold for winning, not simply for having a go.

Full respect to her, and so forth - but, no.

Answer 10

No, the champion and gold medal winner is the Romanian.  But, Paula Radcliffe is to be commended for giving it her all, pushing herself to her limits and in obvious pain as she finished.  

Answer 11

I would agree.

They have been showing that commercial on TV, the man in that Olympic race who pulled a hamstring and came in dead last?

THAT is a champion.