Catherina McKiernan will have a potentially worldbeating new nemesis to overcome in the defence of her Flora London Marathon title next April, as Portuguese star Fernanda Ribeiro yesterday committed herself to the event.
Ribeiro's long-awaited marathon debut was confirmed at a press reception in London yesterday when McKiernan, who had just arrived from Antwerp after being fitted for special insoles in her running shoes, found out who shall face her.
In recent years, the powerful Portuguese athlete has been best known for her many duels with Sonia O'Sullivan. Now with O'Sullivan focusing more and more on 5,000 and 10,000 metres in track competition, her arch rival is about to expand her ambitions to the marathon.
It's a move which has been long anticipated for Ribeiro who captured the public imagination in outsprinting the Chinese runner, Junxia Wang in a dramatic finish to the Olympic 10,000 metres championship in Atlanta. Now she seeks to bring the same dynamism to road running and the outcome promises to be spectacular.
Her presence enhances a talented field, which is likely to make next year's race one of the most competitive of all London marathons. In addition to Liz McColgan and Joyce Chepchumba, both former winners who filled the minor placings last year, it includes the reigning European marathon champion, Manuela Machado of Portugal.
Also running will be the Mexican, Adriana Fernandez who surprised possibly even herself by opening a 90-second gap over the chasing pack after 16 miles in the 1998 race and the Korean, Kwon Eun-ju who, at the age of 20, ran her debut marathon in a time of two hours, 26 minutes and 12 seconds. Speaking at yesterday's reception, McKiernan laid heavy emphasis on the quality of the entry. "There will be at least four or five athletes in the race who believe that they are capable of winning it," she said.
"That doesn't happen too often in big marathon races and it's one more reason why I'll have to be in the best condition of my career to succeed. It's shaping up like the toughest of my marathons to date but I hope to be ready for it."
The London marathon, traditionally one of the most lucrative on the international circuit, will for the first time, carry a bonus for a new world best in a women-only race.
A supplementary prize of £90,000 will be on offer to any athlete bettering the time of 2:21.46, returned by the Japanese athlete, Naoko Takahashi during the Asian Games and now recognised as the official record for a women-only race. The move is in line with official thinking to discredit times recorded by women paced by men.
"Currently there is much concern about women gaining an advantage through being paced by men in mixed marathons," said Nick Bitel, the chief executive of the London marathon.
"We believe that to maintain the integrity of women's marathon running and to achieve consistency throughout competition, it is essential to recognise times set in women only races, with women pacemakers, as world bests."
