http://www.iaaf.org/news/Kind=2/newsId=29133.html
Thursday 14 April 2005 London - Susan Chepkemei's epic tussle with Paula Radcliffe in November's New York City Marathon has thrust her into the role of chief danger to the British No.1 when they renew acquaintances in Sunday's Flora London Marathon. The 29-year-old Kenyan finished just four seconds behind Radcliffe in New York and has been working on her speed in case they again have to battle in the closing stages on Sunday. New York revenge for Chepkemei? Chepkemei, who has run a scorching 65:44 for the half-marathon - on a Lisbon course that drops 40m in elevation - now hopes to make a big name for herself at the marathon. She said: "I had a good battle with Paula in New York but I realised my speed was not good enough. I have been working on it so hopefully on Sunday I will be better prepared for a sprint finish, although ideally I'd like to break away from Paula before the end." Chepkemei was due to run the World Cross Country Championships but was suspended by the Kenyan Federation for failing to attend a training camp, and initially banned until the end of the year which would have ruled her out of Sunday's race. The ban was reduced and she insists it did not affect her preparations, saying: "I was in very good shape for the World Cross Country Championships, but it was not to be. But you will see on Sunday that I am running very well." Okayo eager to defend her title Chepkemei's compatriot Margaret Okayo is the reigning champion and she is back in London hoping to retain her title. She has a best of 2:20:43 and would love to go under 2:20 for the first time on Sunday, but winning is more important. She will surely have to run faster than the 2:22:35 with which she won last year but she arrives in determined mood hoping to make up for the disappointment of failing to finish the Olympic marathon in Athens. She said: "I've spent half my time training in Kenya and half in Italy, and I feel I am in good shape. I will try to go through halfway in 69:30 and then try to run a good second half and hope it's enough to win." Radcliffe is looking to run through 13.1 miles in 68:30 while Chekpekmei has stated a preference for 69:00, but there will surely be others in the equation. World Half Marathon champion Sun Yingjie also in the field Sun Yingjie of China has run 2:19:33 and is the reigning World Half Marathon champion, but she has yet to prove herself in marathons outside Asia. Thirteen of her 20 marathons have been in China, and while she ran superbly on the track at the 2003 World Championships in Paris she has yet to do the business when travelling to marathons. Lyudmila Petrova of Russia is 36 but only began racing seriously 10 years ago. She has become a consistent marathoner and was second to Okayo last year. Her biggest win was in New York in 2000 and her best time of 2:22:33 came two years later in London when she placed third. Constantina Dita of Romania is another Eastern European who has made a name for herself in London, but sometimes for the wrong reasons. She tends to go out at a blistering pace and has been known to open up a big lead, but she often pays for her early exuberations. That was never more evident than at the 2003 World Championships when she was 32 seconds clear after just 5km but she was reeled in and later failed to finish. Training partners O'Sullivan and Johnson aiming at new PBs Two athletes set to smash their personal bests are Benita Johnson and Sonia O'Sullivan, who are training partners and potentially team-mates at next year's Commonwealth Games in Australia. O'Sullivan, the double World Cross Country champion in 1998, hopes to run for Australia in Melbourne although she insists she will continue to compete for Ireland in other competitions. She said: "I certainly plan to improve my visa situation. When I'm in Australia I have to leave every three months which isn't ideal when you've got children in school. I want to get permanent residency and I would then consider citizenship, and if they asked me to run for them in the Commonwealth Games I would definitely be interested. "I live just a stone's throw from the stadium being used for the Commonwealth Games and it would be great to compete, although it wouldn't affect my status with Ireland as it doesn't come under the IAAF. It would just be a one-off." O'Sullivan has run two marathons to date and neither have shown anything like the form she has produced over other distances. The former World best holder over 10 miles said: "I ran my first in Dublin in 2000 and didn't prepare for it other than running for two hours a week before, and I ran 2:35:40. "Then I trained really hard for New York in 2002 and only ran three minutes quicker (2:32:06) so I've gone in between this time. I feel I've done enough training, but not too much." As for her expectations, she laughs: "I've given myself a window of times to aim for and it's very wide. I guess anything between 2:15 and 2:32 would be good! "London will tell me if I have a future at the marathon, although I certainly haven't closed the door on the track. It's still good to be involved in fast races on the track." O'Sullivan's training partner Benita Johnson ran 2:38:03 on her debut in New York last year, but that clearly isn't an indication of her ability at the distance. The Australian is a former World Half Marathon bronze medallist and won last year's Great North Run in Newcastle in 67:55. Having won Britain's biggest half-marathon, she would love to now run well in the country's top marathon, especially as she spends much of the year in London. Although failing to retain her World Cross Country title, finishing seventh, she insists she is in good shape. She said: "My focus during the winter was the World Cross Country Championships, but I was still running 100 miles per week. "I was disappointed to finish seventh in the World Cross Country, but I still felt I had a great race - just not good enough. I had great runs over the half-marathon and even though it's another half-marathon on top of that I am confident. I am in great shape and will look to go through halfway in 71-72:30 and take it from there." Former champions Tegla Loroupe and Joyce Chepchumba are back in London, while home favourite Liz Yelling is hoping to improve her 2:30:58 personal best set on her debut in Berlin. Bob Frank for the IAAF ENDS
