World record holder Paula Radcliffe will run her first marathon since 2011 at the London Marathon on April 26, and organizers say it will be her final 26.2-mile race.
“We are also absolutely thrilled that Paula has chosen London for her final marathon,” London Marathon race director Hugh Brasher said in a press release.
Radcliffe, 41, is the only woman to run a marathon under 2:18 (which she’s done three times), including the record of 2:15:25 at the 2003 London Marathon, one of her three wins in her nation’s capital.
Radcliffe’s Olympic experiences haven’t been as memorable.
1996 -- fifth in the 5000m
2000 -- fourth in the 10,000m
2004 -- DNF in the marathon, 10,000m
2008 -- 23rd in the marathon
In 2012, she pulled out before the London Olympic marathon due to a foot injury.
The London Marathon elite women’s field includes Kenyans Edna Kiplagat, Florence Kiplagat, Mary Keitany and Priscah Jeptoo, who combined to take up every first- and second-place finish in the race the last three years.
London Marathon men’s field includes last two world record holders