The 2008 edition of the New York Marathon proved to be a significant milestone in the glittering career of British distance running great Paula Radcliffe
Steve Jones is the last male British winner of the New York City Marathon, finishing first in 1988, while Paula Radcliffe completed a hat-trick in the women’s race 20 years later.
A dip into the AW archive shows that November 2, 2008 represents the last time the former world record-holder and world champion would enjoy victory in a major marathon. Having won New York in 2004 and 2007, she made it three victories in emphatic style.
AW Archive 2008
As Jason Henderson wrote in AW at the time: “Charging toward the finish line at the Tavern on the Green on the west side of Central Park, the Briton held a lead of almost two minutes.
“It was remarkable, given the fact that less than three months ago she cut a forlorn figure in Beijing, painfully limping to a disappointing 23rd place in the Olympic marathon.
“Every time Radcliffe comes to the Big Apple, it seems she is biting off more than she can chew. Every time, she proves her doubters wrong and demonstrates that she is still the world’s No.1 woman marathoner.”
Just as she had done four years previously, Radcliffe used New York to bounce back from Olympic disappointment. The race fell just 11 weeks after Beijing, but she was back training just five days after that blow in China and warmed up for New York with a UK 10-mile record in Portsmouth.
AW Archive 2008
In cold, windy conditions as AW reported she: “Carried out a true demolition job on her rivals, with a time of 2:23:56 to boot.”
Radcliffe said: “I knew I was away but did not know I had two minutes. Was I tempted to look back? No. It’s been something that’s been drilled into me from an early age. My dad used to say ‘never look back’ as it’s a sign of weakness.”
However, it wasn’t her last time racing through the city’s streets as in 2009 she competed in the marathon once again, finishing fourth in 2:29:27.
Earlier that year she also took gold in the New York City Half Marathon in 69:45, just two seconds off the course record.
Paula Radcliffe (Getty)
This year saw the New York City Marathon take place on November 2 as Kenya’s Sheila Chepkirui won the women’s title, finishing in 2:24:35 – 39 seconds slower than Radcliffe ran in 2008.
2024 New York City Marathon report
To celebrate the 20-year anniversary, you can find our original coverage from all three of Paula Radcliffe’s NYC marathon wins via the Athletics Weekly archive.
From the first ever issue in December 1945 through to the present day, current subscribers to our magazine are able to dip into this resource for free whereas non-subscribers can pay just £3.99 per month for full access.
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