Marathon: Radcliffe triumphs again in London

World marathon record holder Paula Radcliffe put her Olympic Games trauma behind her on Sunday with a virtuoso display of solo running to win the London marathon for the third time in as many attempts.

The 31-year-Briton, who failed to finish either the marathon or the 10,000 in Athens last year, strode to victory in two hours 17 minutes 42 seconds, more than five minutes ahead of second-placed Constantina Tomescu-Dita of Romania.

Radcliffe's two world records of 2:15:25 and 2:17:18, set in London and Chicago, are the only two faster times in history and she also took her prize money for Sunday morning efforts past US$200,000 with a US$125,000 bonus for breaking her own previous best in a women-only race.

Kenya's former world half-marathon champion Martin Lel upstaged his more illustrious compatriots Paul Tergat and Evans Rutto to win the men's event in an official time of 2:07:26 ahead of world champion Jaouad Gharib of Morocco.

Pre-race favourite and world record holder Tergat, still to win the London race, faded to eighth place, two ahead of defending champion Rutto, who was rated as the world number one last year despite failing to win selection for Athens.

Despite her courageous win in last November's New York marathon, Radcliffe was under extra pressure to perform well in the 25th anniversary of what has evolved into the world's premier big city marathon.

The thousands of spectators on a perfect spring morning thronging a course that takes in some of London's more spectacular landmarks, and the millions more watching on television had an unwelcome rerun of Radcliffe's Athens nightmare when she suddenly veered off the road after 35km.

Radcliffe squatted briefly at the side of the road, clutching her right hamstring. But, unlike Athens, where she remained on the sidewalk sobbing inconsolably, this time Radcliffe was quickly back on the course and carried on with no apparent side-effects.

She later blamed stomach cramps for her temporary halt.

"I have got to apologise to the nation," she said. "I had to stop, I didn't know how far I was in front."

Kenyan pacemaker Leah Malot took a leading group of five, including Kenyan defending champion Margaret Okayo and her compatriot Susan Chepkemei, through 5km in a swift 15 minutes 47 seconds.

Radcliffe, wearing sunglasses and white gloves, ran easily alongside Malot with Okayo and Chepkemei tucked in behind the other pacemaker, Tanzanian Restituta Joseph.

The Briton took over from the pacemakers at 10km as the leaders approached the first of the historic landmarks, the 19th century tea clipper Cutty Sark where the crowds had gathered to cheer her on.

She stepped up the pace further to take a 20-km lead over Chepkemei with Okayo finding the fierce early pace too much to handle and dropping back into third place.

Okayo rallied to take over from Chepkemei and start the long, lonely chase after Radcliffe, who looked in supreme form as she passed the halfway stage just after Tower Bridge in 68 minutes 27 seconds.

It was then Okayo's turn to fade as Chicago champion Tomescu-Dita, who finished third last year, took over in second place and held on to follow Radcliffe across the line with Chepkemei a distant third.

In the men's race, the elite men bunched behind two Kenyan pacemakers until the halfway stage. Rutto moved twice to the front but it was Lel, the 2003 New York champion, who made the decisive break at 35km.

"I am very happy," he said. "I have been training so hard."

A record 35,680 people started Sunday's race.

- REUTERS