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Farah and Pavey win Bupa London 10,000, Radcliffe finishes third

Mo Farah and Jo Pavey on form in capital city, Radcliffe well beaten

Posted on May 30, 2011 by
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Mo Farah (Mark Shearman)

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Mo Farah and Jo Pavey took top honours at the Bupa London 10,000, while marathon world record-holder Paula Radcliffe did not quite make the winning return she had been hoping for, finishing a well-beaten third and calling the race a “disaster”.

It had been 18 months since Radcliffe last raced, finishing fourth at the ING New York Marathon in 2009. Since then the 37-year-old has given birth to her second child, Raphael, and has taken her time in returning, recently withdrawing from the Great Manchester Run with bronchitis.

The last time Radcliffe faced Pavey was nine years ago at the 2002 Commonwealth Games and had come out on top in all of their encounters in the past. But today it was the in-form Pavey who returned to the scene of her 2:28:24 marathon debut from last month to finish a clear winner of the women’s race, held on the roads which will form part of the 2012 Olympic marathon course.

The first sign that Radcliffe was not at full fitness came early on in the race. A regular front-runner, Radcliffe instead chose to let Pavey take an early lead. At the half-way mark Pavey continued to lead and looked comfortable, while Radcliffe was visibly starting to struggle.

Pavey pulled away in the closing stages and went on to win in 32:22, with Gemma Steel finishing second with a PB of 32:48. Radcliffe finished almost a minute behind Pavey, clocking 33:17. The last time Radcliffe was beaten by another British woman was at the 2008 Olympic Games when she struggled with a leg injury as Mara Yamauchi finished sixth.

“For me it was a bit of a disaster. We set off and I didn’t feel great and couldn’t stay with Jo. I was thinking ‘don’t panic’, but then at 4km I just started to go backwards.” said Radcliffe, who revealed afterwards that she has a torn disc in her back.

“It’s sciatic pain and I just lose power in my legs,” she said of the niggle. “It has meant I can’t go on the track, but I thought I was going to be fine on the road. I’ve beginning getting treatment on it and I thought I’d be okay. It wasn’t particular sore in the race, it just felt like I didn’t have any power out there.”

Farah, meanwhile, duly defended his title in the men’s race, winning in 29:15. It is the latest in an ever-growing list of high-profile victories this year, having won the New York Half Marathon, the European indoor 3000m title, the Bupa Great Edinburgh Cross, and the 5000m at the Aviva Birmingham Indoor Grand Prix.

Eritrean-born Londoner Mehretab Solomon finished second in 29:37, edging out Andrew Lemoncello by one second. The event doubled up as the UK 10km championships.

RESULTS

Men:
1. Mo Farah 29.15
2. Mehretab Solomon (ERI) 29.37
3. Andrew Lemoncello 29.38
4. Phil Wicks 29.41
5. Mark Warmby 29.50
6. Josh Lilly 29.52
7. Ben Tickner 29.53
8. Ben Whitby 29.56
9. Stephen Scullion 29.57
10. Kojo Kyereme 30.01

Women:
1. Jo Pavey 32.22
2. Gemma Steel 32.48
3. Paula Radcliffe 33.17
4. Justina Heslop 33.20
5. Hollie Rowland 33.58
6. Hannah Whitmore 34.07
7. Alyson Dixon 34.22
8. Getenesh Tamirat 34.48
9. Juliet Doyle 34.46
10. Susie bush 34.54

9 Responses to “Farah and Pavey win Bupa London 10,000, Radcliffe finishes third”

  1. Ty Holden says:
    May 30, 2011 at 13:19

    Its a big ask to expect Paula Radcliffe to comeback and win in 2012, she needs more races to gauge if it is a realistic target

    Reply
  2. ps says:
    May 30, 2011 at 14:44

    Mo moves from strength to strength. Radcliffe needs to start giving her competitors respect – I’m sick of reading articles quoting her where if she doesn’t do well it’s because of an injury, illness or head problem. Perhaps Jo was just a much better athlete today and she needs to applaud that and use it to motivate her.

    Reply
  3. Simon says:
    May 30, 2011 at 15:13

    Predictable results from Mo and Jo- both in great form at present. With regards Paula- she needs to get her body right and in one piece. She's had FAR too many injuries/illness's over the last couple of years- suggesting that her training just isn't working for her- maybe she's pushing too hard…? She needs to focus on getting healthy first before she has any ambitions of competing at the highest level again.

    Reply
  4. mick charman says:
    May 30, 2011 at 15:41

    I have heard Paula getting stick lately and I can't understand the English mentality of knocking their former heroes, Paula is probably the best all time female athlete,
    get off her back please.

    Reply
  5. John Barker says:
    May 30, 2011 at 18:05

    Any half decent runner would know that after 18 months out of racing, you have to ease back into racing. 33.17 is a good comeback by Radcliffe, only a minute behind a world class 5k performer in Pavey. The times by the other top runners suggest that it wasn't a fast course today, so on her next 10k outing, she'll be looking to break 32 and on the way back to world class. Judge her more in the autumn when she's got more background training and a few more races under her belt. Then hopefully Radcliffe will post a decent marathon qualifying time in the lead up to the olympics

    Reply
  6. cmb says:
    May 30, 2011 at 19:52

    I just want to say congratulations to Gemma Steel – a fantastic run from her and a massive achievement.

    Paula may be disappointed, but she needs to give both her body and her competitors respect. She needs to realise that whilst her exploits have inspired others in British distance running, they aren't going to be afraid to go steaming past her when she's struggling.

    It's a bit naieve to come back after having barely raced since 2004 when she's clearly not well and think she's going to have a stroll around London. It's only if she can treat her body right and treat her competitors – domestic or international – as equals that she will even get to run in 2012 – she's got to qualify ahead of two out of Jo, Louise, Mara and Liz and this was her first race, let alone marathon, for over a year and a half, and it's less than that until the Olympics. Given that, to race injured, particularly against people she's competing with for places, was a bit daft.

    Reply
  7. sw17 says:
    May 30, 2011 at 22:56

    In addition to those mentioned, there could well be several others knocking on the door of 2:30 in london next year. So its wide open who gets olympic places.

    Reply
  8. MIke says:
    May 31, 2011 at 10:46

    could be a cagey run by Radcliffe, she does not want to come out and win in a low 31min time because all people think is that she will win the olympics. she will be back to top form and it will be next year. she will run a sub 2.30 in the autumn but only just but she will be up for next year and be ready to take on the best and then she will retire. so much pressure on her even if she hasnt run for 18 monthes, her name is Paula Radcliffe and she is expected to do well.. she will have her day..

    Reply
  9. Rory Coleman says:
    July 7, 2011 at 07:49

    I’ve had a long career in running with over 680 marathons some with an L4 disc herniation. Paula at 37 is probably in the twilight of her career and a 34 min 10 is an AWESOME run. I wish I could do those times! Her problem is that she can’t train fast enough to run fast as her body breaks down. Hopefully she will look back at 2003 and say that was her best and possibly retire to help others at the games as she would be a good ambassador for the organisers. Sadly if she competes and doesn’t win, she will get slagged off and regret it for ever I believe. Rory Coleman.

    Reply

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