Most marathons provide more than their fair share of heroes and heroines who provide great examples. The London Marathon in April 2005 provided one or two especially heroic examples. The competitors have much to teach about achieving goals.
On Sunday 17th April 2005, Paula Radcliffe was running in the London Marathon and had to stop for a call of nature. Instead of running off the course and possibly losing the race, she decided to answer the call close to a drinks table at the side of the road.
She knew that this might well be filmed and broadcast to millions but was determined not to stop for longer than necessary. I am more impressed by her answering the call of nature in public than by the fact that she won the marathon. Her priority was to win and not to save herself embarrassment. Her sheer guts and determination have never been more obvious.
Some really ignorant person wrote in to complain that Paula’s behaviour was disgusting. She clearly had no idea what running a marathon can do to your body. The organiser offered the critic a place in next year’s marathon to provide a chance to find out!
Paula stopped 5 miles from the end of...