IT is only right at the end that Paula Radcliffe can appreciate just how good she was.
Sunday will be her last London Marathon where the 41-year-old will be among the mass starters, rather than the elite field, for one final run along the course on which she set the world record of two hours 15 minutes 25 seconds in April 2003, a record that stands to this day.
Back then, at her peak, the only thing on Radcliffe's mind was getting faster every year.
And now her career is over it is almost as if even she herself can't quite believe what happened 12 years ago.
Radcliffe said: "I remember Dave Bedford, [the then race director] saying 'I am never going to see anything like that' and I was thinking 'that's not right, I can run faster next year'.
"I genuinely did think that I could, but in 2004 everything kind of fell apart, then getting into the shape again was harder.
"It is something that the longer it stands - and as I get older and the training gets harder - I appreciate a lot more than I did.
"Now when I look back at training times I just think 'oh my God'.
"I know how hard I worked for that. To be able to have everything come together, to get to that whole fitness level and mindset of being able to just go out there and attack it that day.
"Still I can look back and say - which is what I always wanted to do was finish my career and look back and say - I got the best out of myself that I was capable of doing."
Radcliffe has had to nurse her fragile body - an Achilles injury nearly scuppered her last hurrah after a long-running foot problem - to the start line and says she is stopping now so she can continue to run for fun.
She admitted: "If you said to me you could run another marathon hard and be competitive but you'll never be able to run again after that, I wouldn't choose that.
"I don't to do something that would jeopardise the health of my foot. To have got this far is more than the surgeons thought that I'd be able to.
"They say it's okay as it's getting stronger all the time so I'm not damaging it. I do want to be able to run with the kids if I want to and to run for me."
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