Paula Radcliffe Quotations

There's always going to be somebody who takes a dislike to you and you can't waste time worrying about it.

You see, with me, when I'm nervous, I smile and laugh.

You can wish as hard as you like but all that really matters is the shape you're in on the day of the race. I've always felt these really big races aren't necessarily won by whoever is the fastest. They're won by the athlete who is the smartest and in the best shape on the day.

It's important that athletes can compete on a level playing field. And youngsters coming into the sport can know that if they are working hard and training hard, they'll see a true reflection of where they stand and what they can achieve worldwide and not be swayed by people who are cheating.

Never set limits, go after your dreams, don't be afraid to push the boundaries. And laugh a lot - it's good for you!

You can be strong and true to yourself without being rude or loud.

I don't like going away from my children.

I've always been good at putting things behind me - I fall apart, do my crying bit and then put it away and move it.

I deliberately returned slowly to training after Raphael was born and everything, apart from being bitten by a dog whilst out training in Monaco at the beginning of the year, has gone pretty well.

I just want to be in the best shape I can be. Not to stand on that start line and say: 'Oh my God, I have this injury and that injury.' I just want to be able to go out and race.

I am not driven by any bitterness by what happened in Athens. I learnt a lot of lessons from it and probably came through it a stronger person in the end. There have been a lot of near misses, and that's taught me to keep persevering and that there is a chance it can come right.

If I start planning then that's dangerous because then I have a target that I'm blinkered towards and I won't listen to the warning signs quite so much. I'd rather be in shape and then look around and say there's a race next week and jump into that than have it planned.

At big championships it's not the fastest person, it's the person who gets it right on the day.

For an athlete, the biggest pressure comes from within. You know what you want to do and what you're capable of.

I apologise to people when I need to.

I've been to three Olympics and I don't feel I've ever quite achieved my best at any of them.

From my training I can get a good idea of what I'm capable of.

I would be happy with an Olympic bronze. What I don't have is an Olympic medal.

Every time I go out and race it's a goal to go out and run faster than I've done before.

I am not going to let Athens affect the rest of my life.

Plenty of people who are 38 have run really well in the marathon.

In the week before a race, I try to stay away from germ areas. I keep disinfectant wipes in my bag for when I have to use a supermarket trolley or something like that.

A half marathon is a good way to have a bit of fun and race against those girls and learn a bit more about them.The world half marathon is a world championship at the end of the day and it's important. I've win it twice and it's a quality event.

I have always loved running on the roads, ever since I used to take part in relays for my club when I was 12 and 13. I felt really at home on the surface.

I have not had the chance to go out there and do myself justice in an Olympic marathon yet. I have not been able to get to an Olympic marathon injury-free yet.

I took a lot of bad things after Athens. I just learnt to deal with it. The problem was beforehand I had this feeling where I was trying to please everybody - I wanted everybody to like me.

To represent your country at a home Olympics is something special and I'm over the moon to be selected for Team GB. I was pleased to get the qualifying time in Berlin earlier this year and my sole focus is getting in the right shape for London.

In my Olympic history I don't think I have achieved my potential as an athlete. That's what I want when I look back at my career. I want to be able to say I gave it my best shot.

I actually got a nice surprise about being a mother because I expected it to be harder and to have to make more adaptations.

I prefer just a women's race. It's a totally different game mentally.

Yeah, ideally, I'd probably wish to be more anonymous. But scrutiny and success go together. And I want to be successful.

As an athlete, there are advantages being with a team and getting regular physio.

I can swim I'm not bad, but not great.

I have always run as hard as I can. You are not going to run any harder with or without men. You are running on your own two feet.

I have been doing 120 miles a week, when normally I would do about 140.

Actually I don't choose to expose myself in public. I choose to compete; the other side just comes with the package.

I try not to worry about things that I can't control.

I'm confident of what I have to achieve in the buildup to London 2012.

The biggest danger is trying to put too much pressure on yourself, trying to get in too good shape.

An Olympic medal won't define my whole life, although it might look like it to onlookers. When I look back, I should have been able to get an Olympic medal.

If you look back at my marathons and ask whether I would swap one of them for my one balls-up, of course I would. But you can't choose. You have to make the best of it on the day.

It's totally different from last year because I came in with good shape with no health worries so it was about going out there and running well and enjoying it.

I have achieved a lot and I'm grateful for that - I'm just a bit greedy because I want to add the Olympics. It's once every four years - everyone wants it and very few people get it.

I set myself some specific goals, but the key one is just getting myself into as good a shape as possible for one day this year: the Olympic marathon.

I've had a lot of success over the years racing in New York, but the main point is that I feel the marathon is a different event, a lot more my event.

I have done everything possible to resolve the problem and get to the start line. I have to accept that the injury needs a short period of total rest.

I am excited about the announcement. It is a big step forward for the sport, the events and the athletes, that there has been this united stand from some of the major marathons. The results can be only positive and having experience of three of the events involved, I am convinced that their combined expertise will help the sport immensely.

I am really pleased that the IAAF has decided to recognize performances achieved on the roads as world records,

I am really disappointed to have to miss this year's event. The Flora London Marathon is something that is extremely important to me, and I have done everything possible to resolve the problem and get to the start line.

I am really disappointed to have to miss this year's event.

I have been getting back into it during the last four weeks or so when I have not been doing huge mileage,

From next week I can start building things gradually back up to normal.

I executed my race plan. It worked really well. I knew that, if I went out hard, then everyone would have to work really hard to stay with that.

I got a hard run, and that's what I wanted. I just didn't have the pace to stay with them.

I wouldn't be putting myself on the line if I didn't think I could go in and win both.

It is a challenge and I do think it fits together well.

Last year happened - I'm never going to be happy with it but I have moved on.

My training's been pretty good and I am happy with everything.

I thought I was in good 10k shape, but the weather was against front-running. It was just too windy, ... My legs feel OK, I just did not have the pace at the end in the last 1,000 meters.

The problem last year was that I knew things were falling apart in the last two weeks before the marathon,

This was for me. It was important for me to win this title because I knew I was capable of doing it and my team knew that too. I knew I was in good shape.

Boston is definitely a race I want to do at some point, but London is very special to me,

T his is totally different from Athens because I was on the start line with no injury worries and I felt 100% healthy. I knew I was in good shape and I just wanted to prove it.

It wasn't easy. It was my plan to keep a good pace going.

It was good to blow away the cobwebs. It was like a run-out doubling as a training session,

It was good to blow away the cobwebs,

For a while it felt as though I would never get over it.

It sharpened me up for the marathon, ... I got the run out of it that I wanted, and it was better than the run out I had before London earlier this year.

It's not a decision to double up, it's more a decision to use the 10k as preparation for the marathon, ... The marathon is still the main focus but I just felt I was in good 10k shape and wanted to build on that. I felt it could fit in without harming the marathon.

Sunday was like a run-out, doubling as a training session, I was not messing about but I knew I was not on for a world record time.

It's definitely very special - right up there with running the world record,

It's very special. It's right up there with running the world record. It's important as world record holder I also show that I can win major titles as well.

It went really well and should give me no more trouble. It just had to be removed as it would never have settled on its own. Now I have just had to tolerate a few days with my foot up.

Nothing will make up for what happened last year,

I knew I was running a good pace, so I just had to keep it up until the end,

I'm pleased to have won the race and win the championship, ... I knew I was well-prepared for this race.

I'm just pleased to win the race and win the championship because that's what I came here for. And it was important to do that, not just for me, but for everyone else that supported me as well.

I have never said I was doubling up for both titles,

I am very, very disappointed because Paris was my main aim for the year. I have had my preparations interrupted this year which has left me short of time and training.

A lot a things went wrong in Athens. I was a lot more confident here.

The idea was just to go out at a pace that was comfortable and decent,

I felt totally myself, nothing like the emptiness and horrible feeling I had then [pulling out the Olympics] - no dizziness.

I've always been good at putting things behind me–I fall apart, do my crying bit, and then put it away and move on.

I don't feel guilty in having pleasure!

I was thinking back to all the time in the gym, working hard, and that spurred me on [winning New York marathon just ten months after giving birth

I don't really have an explanation. I'm struggling myself to comprehend what has happened and find a reason for it.

The Olympics is not a race I want to watch on television and think 'I wonder what I could have done if I was there?

I think your body is just a little bit stronger after pregnancy.

It's good to be back, feeling like myself and enjoying it.

I can't imagine living and not running.

You can't magic yourself back 10 years.

Doing the long endurance stuff seems to have given me the strength to sustain the speed. I think my body is just a lot stronger (thanks to the marathon)... By increasing the long runs, I found that does not take anything away from the speed but increases the strength on the track.

In the marathon anything can happen

No one remembers who came fourth.

Go in any direction..seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs.

You can't become a winner overnight, or even in a couple of years-it takes time... You will lose races and you will have to accept that, learn from it and believe that you'll win the next one, knowing that you'll probably lose that as well. All the time you have to keep believing that one day you will win.

Today was not about times, it was about getting in there, enjoying the race, and enjoying the atmosphere