New York Marathon: New York Run No Risk for Radcliffe

Paula Radcliffe has claimed she is not taking any risks by running the New York City Marathon on Sunday only 11 weeks after her Olympic dreams were shattered.

The Briton decided to run here at 12 days' notice as she desperately seeks to banish the painful memories of Athens, where in the space of five days in August she dropped out of the marathon and the 10,000 metres.

Some critics have claimed a similar knee-jerk reaction that prompted those decisions is behind her surprise idea to run in the world's most high-profile race with 35,000 entries from 99 countries.

"This is definitely a sensible decision," said Radcliffe last night. "I don't regret doing the 10,000m [in Athens] - I don't care what people said. But that was about the heart. This is the head and the heart."

The world record holder, 30, is confident, after a series of medical tests, that she will not suffer a repeat of what happened in Athens. She has claimed that she was severely depleted as a result of medication she was taking to treat an injury.

"I've got my explanations, though I still have my disappointment," said Radcliffe.

She revealed the full extent of the problem only a few weeks after Athens. She has since spent 4 weeks in Flagstaff, Arizona, where she regularly ran 20 miles a day, so she is confident she is in good shape.

"I'm definitely coming here to win and race well," said Radcliffe. "It's something that happened. I have to live with it. Nothing is going to make up for it but it's not going to ruin the rest of my life."