http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml;sessionid=LRUHCZHBDVWG1QFIQMFCM5OAVCBQYJVC?xml=/sport/2005/04/15/soknigh15.xml&sSheet=/sport/2005/04/15/ixsport.html&secureRefresh=true&_requestid=19400
By Tom Knight (Filed: 15/04/2005) It has been a long time since Paula Radcliffe had a genuine rival and no one is more surprised than Susan Chepkemei that she will fill that role in Sunday's London Marathon. Chepkemei and Radcliffe have been racing each other since they were juniors. Radcliffe holds a 16-5 advantage in race wins but their careers changed course over the final few miles of last November's New York Marathon. The two old friends ran stride for stride through Central Park and it was Radcliffe's drive for redemption following her Olympic failures that proved the decisive factor. The Briton produced a sprint over the last 200 metres to win by four seconds in one of the most thrilling marathon finishes ever seen. Victory may have made Radcliffe feel better but the race also fired Chepkemei. The 29-year-old has finished fourth and fifth in London and believes the New York experience has given her the confidence to beat Radcliffe. Chepkemei said: "I've raced a lot of marathons and I've never been as close to Paula as I was in New York. No one thought it would be me who was closest to her. It gave me a lot of motivation that I can do it. "I haven't won the London Marathon yet but maybe one day I will. Hopefully, that will be on Sunday." Chepkemei comes to London after a topsy-turvy winter that included victory in the Lisbon half-marathon but also a short-lived 12-month ban from the Kenyan federation for her late arrival at the national training camp. The federation were outraged that Chepkemei had chosen to race in Puerto Rico instead of travelling to Kenya for the camp which traditionally precedes the World Cross-Country Championships in March. She was banned from all competitions for a year and it was only after much negotiation that the penalty was waived. "It was all a misunderstanding," said Chepkemei, who has been training hard for London with a regime that included more speed work. She said: "I recovered very quickly after New York because I was so excited about the result. I realised that I did not have enough speed in my legs for the finish so I have been working on that." The problem for Chepkemei and the rest of the women's elite field on Sunday will be staying close enough to Radcliffe to make their finishing speed count. Radcliffe set her world record of 2hr 15min 25sec on the London course in 2003, when she was aided by two male pacemakers. This year, in a women-only race, she has asked for pacemakers to take her to halfway in 68min 30sec. Such a pace would put Radcliffe on target for 2-18-56, the women-only course record that could earn her bonuses of over £100,000. Chepkemei and Margaret Okayo, the defending champion, shook their heads at the thought of running so quickly for the first 13 miles. Benita Johnson, the Australian who won last year's world cross-country title, is looking for a massive improvement on the 2-38-04 she clocked in New York but admitted her halfway target would be nearer 72min. Much will depend on Radcliffe's tactics on a day when runners could have to battle the wind and rain. On paper, she is four minutes quicker than the rest of the field and, it is understood, the Bedford athlete has been training exceptionally hard for this London Marathon. Her aim was to improve her world record but those plans had to be modified when she was surprisingly beaten over 10km in New Orleans three weeks ago. That is why marathon organisers and Radcliffe have targeted the slower record of 2-18-56. Alan Storey, UK Athletics' technical director for endurance running, who was the London Marathon's general manager between 1992-2001, said: "Given the conditions, setting off at 68-30 is probably ideal and quick enough to get Paula clear of the opposition, but not that fast to cause her problems." It remains to be seen, however, if Radcliffe is in that sort of form and whether Chepkemei and the rest can raise their game. The unknown factor could be Sun Yingjie, the Chinese world half-marathon champion who was injured when she finished seventh last year. She is the second-quickest in the field with the 2-19-39 she clocked in 2003. The marathon lost one of its principal starters yesterday when Lord Coe, the chairman of London 2012, said he had to be in Berlin to present the city's Olympic bid at the Sport Accord Convention. ENDS
