BBC One: Day 9: 10.50-13.30

:00:26. > :00:32.Everywhere around the country, people hopped out of bed this

:00:32. > :00:36.morning thinking, right, which sport can I have a go at? We have

:00:36. > :00:40.won 14 gold medals, and we have been gripped by the dedication,

:00:41. > :00:44.commitment and talent of our Great Britain team. The message of this

:00:45. > :00:47.London Olympics has been to inspire a generation. There are children

:00:48. > :00:52.all over whose life choices will have been changed by what they have

:00:52. > :01:02.seen. But it is not just the younger generation. Have a look at

:01:02. > :01:02.

:01:02. > :02:15.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 73 seconds

:02:15. > :02:20.With many thanks to the residents of that house. The Opening Ceremony

:02:20. > :02:25.said, this is for everyone. At the BBC, we believe that, too. If you,

:02:25. > :02:35.or any of your relatives, want to have a go, make sure you take a

:02:35. > :02:45.

:02:45. > :02:51.photograph and share it with us. Great Britain are up to third in

:02:51. > :02:54.the medals table, but the world is bigger than just Great Britain. At

:02:54. > :03:04.the Aquatics Centre last night, the man with the most Olympic medals

:03:04. > :03:19.

:03:20. > :03:24.A special presentation to Michael Phelps. He was presented with a

:03:24. > :03:31.special award in recognition of his historic achievement - 22 medals in

:03:31. > :03:36.total, 18 of them gold, four of those here in London. He has won

:03:36. > :03:39.more than most countries. But also at these Games, he has shown his

:03:39. > :03:44.personality, his sense of humour, his love of competition, his

:03:44. > :03:51.respect for his fellow competitors. He was lovely with Chad le Clos,

:03:51. > :03:58.showing us how gracious he can be. Going around the pool last night,

:03:58. > :04:05.he stopped to pose for photographers who had spent so long

:04:05. > :04:12.chasing him. We hope this will become a fine day to see the sights

:04:12. > :04:16.for all of us, because the Marathon combines top-class sport with

:04:16. > :04:19.televisual sightseeing. The route is different from the London

:04:19. > :04:26.Marathon, and it gives the spectators more than one chance to

:04:27. > :04:33.see the learners, because they do laps. I cannot wait for it. But

:04:33. > :04:43.spare a thought for the athletes, those who wanted more than anything

:04:43. > :04:44.

:04:44. > :04:48.not to be watching, but to be there, running for Great Britain.

:04:48. > :04:58.A lot of my best thinking time is when I am running. It is just my

:04:58. > :05:05.

:05:05. > :05:12.time. That's me in my element. COMMENTATOR: Broken-hearted, Paula

:05:12. > :05:22.Radcliffe. It is not really about pooling of what went wrong. You

:05:22. > :05:39.

:05:39. > :05:49.COMMENTATOR: an absolutely scintillating run by Paula

:05:49. > :05:51.

:05:51. > :06:01.Radcliffe! This woman really is a phenomenon. A new world record, a

:06:01. > :06:22.

:06:22. > :06:31.fantastic performance. You have not let anybody down. Paula Radcliffe

:06:31. > :06:36.becomes the world champion at last. The it is happiness, but relief as

:06:36. > :06:41.well, because it had been a long time coming. It is a sad sight to

:06:41. > :06:51.see such an athlete struggling in such a way. There were never going

:06:51. > :06:57.

:06:57. > :07:01.to be any medals today. It was all about a personal battle. The

:07:01. > :07:04.Olympics has never worked out for Paula Radcliffe, but she is still

:07:04. > :07:09.the world record holder for the Marathon, and she has confirmed her

:07:09. > :07:13.career is not over. You can see the crowds lining the route for this

:07:13. > :07:20.Olympic Marathon. We have on our team this morning, two experts. Liz

:07:20. > :07:26.Yelling competed in Athens, and Tanni Grey-Thompson also has many

:07:26. > :07:29.Paralympic gold medals. We can join them on the Mall. About 1.5 hours

:07:29. > :07:33.ago, I was getting worried about the weather, because I thought it

:07:33. > :07:37.was going to be too warm. This is the strongest Women's Marathon

:07:37. > :07:41.field we have seen for a long time - whose do you think will be

:07:41. > :07:48.challenging? There is amazing depth of this year, we have got six

:07:48. > :07:58.people who have gone below 2.20. We have got 20 people who have gone

:07:58. > :07:58.

:07:58. > :08:04.below 2.25. It is immense. The best runners are looking to be right up

:08:04. > :08:09.there. Of course, you have got the Africans, both from Ethiopia and

:08:09. > :08:19.Kenya. But we have also got great runners from China, Japan and

:08:19. > :08:29.America. What about Britain? think we have got a great team. It

:08:29. > :08:36.

:08:36. > :08:40.is sad not to see Paula Radcliffe going, but the others will be great.

:08:40. > :08:44.I think Claire Hallissey could be a dark horse. Freya Murray coming in,

:08:44. > :08:48.she has got no expectations on her, no pressure. This will be her

:08:48. > :08:52.second Marathon, and I think she has got nothing to lose. We could

:08:52. > :08:56.see the British girls featuring in the top 15, definitely. We know it

:08:56. > :09:06.is going to be a tough and challenging race today. Over to our

:09:06. > :09:10.

:09:10. > :09:15.commentators, Brendan Foster and STEVE CRAM: Good morning to

:09:15. > :09:25.everybody, and we are already wet! But that will not matter to anybody.

:09:25. > :09:31.

:09:31. > :09:41.It is an intriguing race. The favourite I think will be Keitany.

:09:41. > :09:57.

:09:57. > :10:00.So, the Olympic Marathon about to Keeping them waiting... It is not

:10:00. > :10:05.as though they are going to be nervous, as you might be for a

:10:05. > :10:10.track race, but I think they want to get under way! Away they go. A

:10:10. > :10:15.huge roar goes up from the crowd which has gathered on the Mall.

:10:15. > :10:18.Brendan Foster, you and I have been having a bit of a chat, and it is

:10:18. > :10:24.pretty good weather for Marathon runners, not for the commentators,

:10:24. > :10:34.but we are not important. It is great, first of all, to see so many

:10:34. > :10:35.

:10:35. > :10:42.people here. It is an intriguing race in prospect - we have got a

:10:42. > :10:52.long way to go, obviously, but let's get your thoughts on the

:10:52. > :10:55.

:10:55. > :10:59.favourite, Keitany, would you agree with that? I would say the

:10:59. > :11:08.favouritism would land initially on the winner of the London Marathon,

:11:08. > :11:15.yes. But we're going to see London in all its glory, and we're going

:11:15. > :11:20.to see the Marathon being led by the defending champion, in the blue

:11:20. > :11:26.vest, in the middle. London has turned out for these Games in

:11:26. > :11:36.amazing fashion. There she is, the reigning champion, the surprise

:11:36. > :11:37.

:11:37. > :11:41.winner in Beijing, Dita. She ran away in the middle of the race in

:11:41. > :11:45.that one. Already, an athlete being carried off the course. That is a

:11:45. > :11:52.shock. She must have been carrying an injury. They have only been

:11:52. > :11:55.going about 150 metres. They go underneath Admiralty Arch. The army

:11:55. > :12:00.lining this part of the route. Haven't they done a brilliant job

:12:00. > :12:06.in the last few days in terms of security? The umbrellas are out,

:12:06. > :12:08.because the rain is still coming down. But Londoners are still

:12:08. > :12:15.responding to these Olympic Games responding to these Olympic Games

:12:15. > :12:20.in tremendous fashion. Two minutes they have been running, with almost

:12:20. > :12:27.2.5 hours to go. They have been waiting for this one, and next week

:12:27. > :12:31.we will have the Men's Marathon, but today's, -- today, these are

:12:31. > :12:37.very good conditions for Marathon running. Of course, this is very

:12:37. > :12:44.different from the London Marathon. It will be run in laps, which is

:12:44. > :12:48.the trend these days in the major championships. We will take you

:12:48. > :12:53.through the detail of the route shortly. It will be going along the

:12:53. > :13:03.Embankment, up towards St Paul's and the Tower of London, and back

:13:03. > :13:05.

:13:05. > :13:09.towards the Mall. But before that, they will do a short her lap. They

:13:09. > :13:16.will be coming into an area which you will be familiar with, if you

:13:16. > :13:19.watch the closing stages of the London Marathon. The course has

:13:19. > :13:25.been designed to try to show off some of the sights of London, which

:13:25. > :13:29.is great. Also, by having laps, it means that people can come out on

:13:29. > :13:32.the streets and not just see them going past once, they will see them

:13:32. > :13:36.three or four times, and get the chance to observe the Olympic

:13:36. > :13:43.Marathon up close. It is great to see that so many people have come a

:13:43. > :13:48.long, despite the weather. There's the first sight of Yamaguchi, on

:13:48. > :13:52.the far side of the picture. Our leading contender here. She was

:13:52. > :14:01.sixth in the Beijing Olympics. Their she is, on the right-hand

:14:01. > :14:09.side of the picture, just behind one of the great Marathon runners,

:14:09. > :14:12.Mikitenko. Just the other day, Freya Murray, who was at work last

:14:12. > :14:22.Thursday when she heard the news about Paula Radcliffe pulling out,

:14:22. > :14:25.

:14:25. > :14:28.that she was in the team. I think she was in ASDA! She is an engineer,

:14:28. > :14:34.she was in Newcastle when she heard the rumour, then eventually, she

:14:34. > :14:38.got the official fungal. Freya Murray, from Scotland, based in the

:14:38. > :14:47.north-east of England. Clare Hallissey, from Bristol, and

:14:47. > :14:51.married Yamaguchi, from Harrow. I spoke the other day to Clare

:14:51. > :14:57.Hallissey, and she said she was going into The Office to tidy up

:14:57. > :15:06.some outstanding jobs, and then she was going to switch on her computer

:15:06. > :15:10.to give a standard reply, out of office, to e-mails. I bet there

:15:10. > :15:20.were not many athletes who were at work last Monday, running in these

:15:20. > :15:22.

:15:22. > :15:26.of the distance athletes left work, but the boss, ran his race and then

:15:26. > :15:30.got the bus home again. It's changed a little bit these days.

:15:30. > :15:34.But we are hoping that the British trio can do quite well. I have to

:15:34. > :15:37.tell you may be not to expect too much. Yamauchi has been struggling

:15:37. > :15:47.with a heel problem. She's been receiving treatment up until the

:15:47. > :15:52.

:15:52. > :15:59.last minute and was in Portugal around here. Touch the lamp-post

:15:59. > :16:03.and back. This is just to make up the exact distance. People

:16:03. > :16:10.sometimes wonder how you measure a course. You start at the finish

:16:10. > :16:20.line and go backwards. This is the shot that Huw Jones, the course

:16:20. > :16:52.

:16:52. > :16:58.in all its splendour here. Through Westminster Square and then this is

:16:58. > :17:01.the more familiar part that people will be aware of. When the London

:17:01. > :17:05.Marathon is run proper, they come down Birdcage Walk once they've

:17:05. > :17:10.gone through Westminster Square and round to Buckingham Palace. That

:17:10. > :17:16.will bring them back into the more again and completing the short lap.

:17:16. > :17:21.Then we will be off. If you are organising a course in London and

:17:21. > :17:25.you start at The Mall, Steve, you said they are showing off the sides

:17:25. > :17:29.of London. To be honest, it's difficult not to show off the sides

:17:29. > :17:32.of London when you take the central London based. Doesn't it look

:17:32. > :17:41.fantastic? The atmosphere in London has been wonderful for throughout

:17:41. > :17:51.the week. I think we are looking at one of the Irish runners. We can't

:17:51. > :18:04.

:18:04. > :18:07.marathon, you do rely on a bit of technology with helicopters, etc.

:18:07. > :18:10.But when the cloud base is as low as this, it can sometimes be a bit

:18:11. > :18:20.difficult. But hopefully we'll be able to give you full coverage of

:18:21. > :18:38.

:18:38. > :18:42.big names already to the fore. Kara Goucher is in the red. From New

:18:42. > :18:46.Zealand, Kim Smith, who has been talking about how she's been

:18:46. > :18:49.preparing for this and looking forward to coming and competing in

:18:49. > :18:59.London. She thinks the course and weather conditions might help her

:18:59. > :18:59.

:19:00. > :19:09.if they were expecting sunshine or if it is just to keep the rain out

:19:10. > :19:12.

:19:12. > :19:16.of her eyes. At the moment it is weather. A bit of a chat going on

:19:16. > :19:22.between two of the Ethiopian is. Goucher making her presence felt

:19:22. > :19:32.there. Pushing through with the elbows. The fastest marathon runner

:19:32. > :19:34.

:19:34. > :19:40.in the field in the red top and blue shorts, just behind her,

:19:40. > :19:50.should recover. But the big names, the Kenyans, Keitany and her team-

:19:50. > :19:51.

:19:51. > :19:54.mates, they are sheltering behind side of the course from the crowds

:19:54. > :19:58.during these athletes on. I hope they don't get too carried away

:19:59. > :20:08.with that cheering, because they really need to settle down. We will

:20:09. > :20:10.

:20:10. > :20:20.try to give you some of the splits round soon. The first lap is just

:20:20. > :20:31.

:20:31. > :20:38.over two miles and then three eight kilometres, as they are showing on

:20:38. > :20:47.the bottom. Right in front of the Palace and all the way down The

:20:47. > :20:57.Mall. These crowds have been responding in glorious fashion.

:20:57. > :21:00.

:21:00. > :21:05.Still excited from what we saw last expect it to be at this stage. --

:21:05. > :21:09.the pace is not fast. But the noise coming from the streets, it's

:21:09. > :21:19.certainly going to lift these athletes. They will be used to run

:21:19. > :21:25.

:21:25. > :21:28.into many marathons with this sort city yet as such. Zhu has a lot of

:21:28. > :21:33.experience, the Chinese can always be reckoned to put in a decent

:21:33. > :21:38.performance. Straneo, she's found some form late in her career as

:21:38. > :21:45.well. Lots of women where age is not so much a factor. Constantina

:21:45. > :21:50.Dita, the defending champion who is in the race here, at 38. She went

:21:50. > :22:00.on and won the gold medal. Many women start to run their better

:22:00. > :22:26.

:22:26. > :22:30.times at the marathon into their great set-up here. It is. The two

:22:30. > :22:35.American training partners, Kara Goucher and Shalane Flanagan, they

:22:35. > :22:40.just run past us. The two of them in the red strip of the United

:22:40. > :22:43.States. Often the Americans were navy blue colours. I can see Freya

:22:44. > :22:47.Murray at the back of the leading group and Clare Hallissey just

:22:47. > :22:52.ahead of her. There is Benita Willis in the yellow and green of

:22:52. > :23:02.Australia. The green and gold famous colours in every sporting

:23:02. > :23:14.

:23:14. > :23:21.London before. We've seen two Olympic Games in London before. The

:23:21. > :23:28.marathon distance was established in London in 1908 as 26 miles 385

:23:28. > :23:33.yards. That is the distance that has become the marathon. In 1948,

:23:33. > :23:39.the Games were held here and the marathon finished in White City.

:23:39. > :23:49.Here today, the regal setting for the women's marathon, starting and

:23:49. > :24:15.

:24:15. > :24:25.finishing outside Buckingham Palace Arch, they will be greeted by the

:24:25. > :24:27.

:24:27. > :24:35.crowds in Buckingham Palace. What a We are getting better and better,

:24:35. > :24:40.which I know is not important but... It makes it quite tricky. I've got

:24:40. > :24:50.some friends from De la Salle who love a one-night say things like

:24:50. > :24:54.

:24:54. > :25:04.wetter and wetter. -- from down athletes, if not for those

:25:04. > :25:10.

:25:10. > :25:15.themselves out a little bit. Don't really expect anything to happen

:25:15. > :25:25.for quite a while. I'm not sure anyone will try to push things on a

:25:25. > :25:30.

:25:30. > :25:39.are. They've completed the first short lap. They will turn left

:25:39. > :25:49.along the Embankment. The previous time they took a right-hand turn.

:25:49. > :25:59.

:25:59. > :26:02.They get a good view of the London marathon runners have run miles and

:26:02. > :26:06.miles and miles in all sorts of conditions preparing for this. Some

:26:06. > :26:16.of them head off into the big city marathons where it is hot and humid.

:26:16. > :26:19.

:26:19. > :26:28.They also run many races where right at the back of that group,

:26:28. > :26:38.it's starting to spread about the little bit. The first FE station. -

:26:38. > :26:40.

:26:40. > :26:44.drinks, they are prepared the night before and put out on the course.

:26:44. > :26:48.Occasionally we see odd things happen in bed. The defending

:26:48. > :26:55.champion, no thoughts of her coming and defending her title but it's

:26:55. > :27:04.his good to see her here. It is. She's carried the mantle of Olympic

:27:04. > :27:07.champion very well. She has gone all around the world and entered

:27:07. > :27:11.races and has been opportunities all around the world to see the

:27:12. > :27:15.Olympic champion running. You see the flags at the side of the road.

:27:15. > :27:19.This race has been organised by the London Marathon team, who we know

:27:19. > :27:23.do a marvellous job organising a mass participation event we have

:27:23. > :27:29.here every year. The famous London Marathon. Here, the London Marathon

:27:29. > :27:33.team are organising, led by Nick Patel. They are organising an alley

:27:33. > :27:37.to race. They are giving as much position and detail in the

:27:37. > :27:40.organisation to the elite athletes as they do to the masses when it

:27:40. > :27:45.comes to the London Marathon itself. These athletes will be well looked

:27:45. > :27:50.after. They were warming up in the early stages, they all had tents

:27:50. > :27:54.and tables behind us in The Mall. They've been well prepared and well

:27:54. > :27:59.looked after. There is Kiplagat looking for her drink. Rushing

:27:59. > :28:09.across to the side. Jeptoo, the other Kenyan athlete, recognising

:28:09. > :28:16.

:28:16. > :28:21.to keep taking on the liquid and keep taking on your personal drink,

:28:21. > :28:31.energy, a small amount of carbohydrate and a electrolyte

:28:31. > :28:56.

:28:56. > :29:01.very bloodied, big puddles appearing on the road. -- very

:29:01. > :29:11.Flood it. It's a very flat course. No hills to speak of. They turn

:29:11. > :29:18.

:29:18. > :29:23.away from the Embankment and climb drop back down from the Tower of

:29:23. > :29:33.London on to the river front. It's more of a twisty and turning course.

:29:33. > :29:47.

:29:47. > :29:57.It will break up the rhythm in that at the front. You can see how many

:29:57. > :30:16.

:30:16. > :30:21.women now run and at 2.20. It used British contingent. Freya Murray

:30:21. > :30:24.was speaking earlier on, obviously she did not know she was going to

:30:24. > :30:34.be running, but I'm not sure Shias had this with his preparation she

:30:34. > :30:41.would have liked, but she was never going to turn down the opportunity.

:30:41. > :30:50.This young lady will be familiar to many athletics fans on the road, on

:30:50. > :30:56.the track and in cross-country of course, the Portuguese athlete

:30:56. > :31:00.Jessica Augusto. She looked like she was going to make a decent

:31:00. > :31:10.transition to the marathon, but she is a fair way off the leading pack

:31:10. > :31:14.

:31:14. > :31:18.at the moment. Heading towards Blackfriars. You can see Shalane

:31:18. > :31:28.Flanagan. The Americans had their trialled right at the beginning of

:31:28. > :31:31.

:31:31. > :31:36.the year. It is a different system to that operated by many teams. It

:31:36. > :31:38.is not a question of your personal best, how you perform in the big

:31:39. > :31:48.city marathons, that does not matter, it all comes down to the

:31:49. > :32:00.

:32:00. > :32:10.trial race for them. Again, big crowds here. Just looking on our

:32:10. > :32:14.

:32:14. > :32:20.computer, talking about the Americans, one of them has already

:32:20. > :32:26.dropped out, so their contingent is already down to two, following the

:32:26. > :32:31.withdrawal of Davila. MARK FOSTER: You get that, a couple

:32:31. > :32:39.of weeks before the race, problems occurring, like happened with Paula

:32:40. > :32:49.Radcliffe. We're getting split times, so we will be able to keep

:32:49. > :32:53.in touch. The Italian Straneo there. Barros of Portugal is in there. I

:32:53. > :32:57.can see Mikitenko in that group as well. It will be interesting to see

:32:57. > :33:05.how well she goes. She has run in the London marathon, she knows the

:33:05. > :33:15.atmosphere here. We can see where the leaders are. 35 kilometres to

:33:15. > :33:35.

:33:35. > :33:42.go. The crowds gathering towards St for the next two or three miles. It

:33:42. > :33:47.breaks up the rhythm a little bit. There has been talk about

:33:47. > :33:51.selections and having trials, but the Ethiopian has just pretty much

:33:51. > :34:01.went for their three quickest times, two of which were set in Dubai,

:34:01. > :34:03.

:34:03. > :34:07.very different conditions to this, of course. But there were others

:34:07. > :34:17.they could have chosen, whose style might have suited this particular

:34:17. > :34:40.

:34:40. > :34:44.course. We saw the wonderful sight of St Paul's, and there it is, a

:34:45. > :34:54.pretty good vantage point for everybody. St Paul's Cathedral

:34:55. > :34:55.

:34:55. > :34:57.features in the history of the Olympic Games, because it was in

:34:58. > :35:01.1908 when the Bishop of Pennsylvania gave a sermon, where

:35:01. > :35:07.he said, it is not the winning but the taking part which is important

:35:07. > :35:15.in the Olympic Games, and that motto has become one of the mottos

:35:15. > :35:20.of the Olympic Games. In those days, 1908, there was trouble and strife,

:35:20. > :35:27.arguments, between the Americans and the British about the rules of

:35:27. > :35:31.athletics, in particular. That sermon from the Bishop of

:35:31. > :35:35.Pennsylvania was an attempt to calm down the tensions. Well, you can

:35:35. > :35:38.say at these Olympic Games, there has not been any attention. It has

:35:38. > :35:41.been brilliantly organised. Our good friend Sebastian Coe must have

:35:42. > :35:46.been delighted last night. He did say he was not worried about the

:35:46. > :35:49.medal table for Great Britain, but he wanted great moments in sport to

:35:49. > :35:56.come from these Olympics Games. Well, he could not have written the

:35:56. > :36:00.script better. Seb Coe came round and said hello during the evening

:36:00. > :36:03.last night, and I bet he was jumping up and down when he saw

:36:03. > :36:08.three gold medals. It was a fantastic performance by Jessica

:36:08. > :36:16.Ennis, then a great long jump by Greg Rutherford, and then, to cap

:36:16. > :36:20.it all off, a first long-distance gold medal by Mo Farah. He would

:36:20. > :36:25.have been interested in the marathon, naturally, but I was just

:36:25. > :36:29.speaking to his physiologist, and Mo was busy recovering straight

:36:30. > :36:39.after the race, then having a massage and physio last night, and

:36:39. > :36:49.then an ice bath to cool down the muscles, then just an easy jog this

:36:49. > :36:53.

:36:53. > :36:59.morning, before getting ready for the 5,000m later in the week.

:36:59. > :37:05.museum of London. We are almost on the edge of the business district

:37:05. > :37:14.area, heading back to St Paul's, then they will take a lead, and

:37:14. > :37:19.head up towards the Guildhall area. This is a pretty strong pace, it is

:37:19. > :37:29.not fast, but it is good enough. The Americans have been happy to

:37:29. > :37:30.

:37:30. > :37:40.push things along at the front. The Ethiopians have been very quiet,

:37:40. > :37:43.

:37:43. > :37:47.since we saw them coming to the front to get their drinks. Shalane

:37:47. > :37:50.Flanagan and Kara Goucher know each other so well. Kara Goucher

:37:50. > :37:57.announced herself at the Great North Run, when she beat Paula

:37:57. > :38:06.Radcliffe a few years ago. The Americans are going to have high

:38:06. > :38:10.hopes. We can go all the way back to 2004, may be a surprise medal on

:38:10. > :38:16.that occasion. I just wonder whether the Americans think they

:38:16. > :38:20.have got a chance of doing the same sort of thing here. The Americans

:38:20. > :38:25.are certainly trying to take hold of long-distance running. Last

:38:25. > :38:35.night, they got second behind Mo Farah. And now, these two in the

:38:35. > :38:44.marathon. Marut Yamauchi was in the second group, a fair way back

:38:44. > :38:53.already. But you can see three good Ethiopians all in that leading

:38:53. > :39:01.group. Three Kenyans, outstanding athletes, each of them, all in that

:39:01. > :39:07.leading group. It is quite interesting to see the East African

:39:07. > :39:12.stars. They are not really interested in the pace. The Olympic

:39:12. > :39:16.Games is all about position, the time does not matter. There are no

:39:16. > :39:21.pacemakers, as we are used to in the major city marathons. The field

:39:21. > :39:25.they have got assembled here for this Olympic Games marathon, it is

:39:25. > :39:28.absolutely terrific. You could not get a stronger field in a major

:39:28. > :39:33.marathon in the world than we have got here today. The London marathon

:39:33. > :39:43.over the years has had some fantastic athletes in it, and some

:39:43. > :39:48.

:39:48. > :39:50.fantastic performances. But Dave Bedford and Nick Patel, by the

:39:51. > :39:54.organisers of the London marathon, they would be thrilled to get a

:39:54. > :39:57.field together like this. But you cannot do it, because the athletes

:39:58. > :40:02.are looking towards the Olympic Games. Claire Hallissey of Great

:40:02. > :40:12.Britain coming through now. I am looking further down the field, we

:40:12. > :40:12.

:40:12. > :40:16.have not seen Freya Murray at. Brendan and I will be doing our

:40:16. > :40:24.best to keep you updated. I have to tell you, the water is getting in

:40:24. > :40:32.our workings here, the computer, so what you can see on your screen is

:40:32. > :40:42.the best we have got. But we will try to make sure that that is

:40:42. > :40:48.

:40:48. > :40:54.rectified. As Brendan was saying, you can see Mara Yamauchi. Clare

:40:54. > :41:04.Hallissey, just a bit further back. You might just see them. We are

:41:04. > :41:25.

:41:25. > :41:29.looking to see if we can see Freya favourite coming to the front. The

:41:29. > :41:35.pre-race favourite, for the first time coming to the front, probably

:41:35. > :41:43.for the drinks. There you go. Everybody bunches up through the

:41:43. > :41:47.feed station. You know what, they never practise this, do they? They

:41:47. > :41:53.never say, let's get 20 of us out there, we will practise running up

:41:53. > :41:57.to a table and grabbing a drink! You can see the three Kenyan

:41:57. > :42:06.athletes rushing up to the table, checking the names on the bottles.

:42:06. > :42:10.Mary has got her a drink, she is quite happy. There's Mara Yamauchi.

:42:10. > :42:14.She has had a bruised heel, I know she was not happy before she set

:42:14. > :42:18.off this morning. She said she wanted to give it a go. That's a

:42:18. > :42:23.real shame, because Mara Yamauchi has shown that she can compete in

:42:23. > :42:27.the big events, when she is fit, when she is healthy. And she has

:42:27. > :42:32.tried so hard, like Paula Radcliffe, to get herself ready for this. She

:42:32. > :42:38.wanted to give it a go, see what would happen. I think inevitably,

:42:38. > :42:44.you cannot run 26 miles when you're carrying an injury, really. But she

:42:44. > :42:50.will be so disappointed only to get to five kilometres. She is in tears.

:42:50. > :42:54.I don't know is she is trying to get some medical assistance. That's

:42:54. > :42:59.clever, the crowds were inside the leaden Hall market. That's where

:42:59. > :43:03.you would be, wouldn't you? It continues to pour down here. But

:43:03. > :43:13.the good news is that it helps the runners. It is good for the

:43:13. > :43:34.

:43:34. > :43:38.will be heading up towards the Tower of London, one of the

:43:38. > :43:44.familiar sight of the London marathon, that's where they will do

:43:44. > :43:51.their switchback. Constantina Dita, the defending champion, just going

:43:51. > :43:56.through the market. A long way behind the leaders, which is not

:43:56. > :44:00.unexpected. She stole a march in Beijing - they were all looking at

:44:00. > :44:08.each other, she took off at the front, and a lot of them thought,

:44:08. > :44:12.we will let her go, but of course, they never caught her. The silver-

:44:12. > :44:16.medallist thought she had won at one point, because she had not even

:44:16. > :44:20.noticed that Constantina Dita broke away, so she was shocked in the

:44:20. > :44:27.late stages when her coaches told her she was in second place. This

:44:27. > :44:31.time, they are running right across the road. Every other race they run,

:44:31. > :44:40.they have pacemakers, but they come to the Olympic Games, it is a race,

:44:40. > :44:44.the time does not matter, it is a completely different nature. In the

:44:44. > :44:51.big marathons, they run in single file, almost. Here we have 10

:44:51. > :45:00.across the road, with 10 kilometres gone. They are beginning to think

:45:00. > :45:10.about the race itself. 32 kilometres to go. Kara Goucher

:45:10. > :45:24.

:45:24. > :45:27.still in that group. The Italian there. Behind the leading group I

:45:27. > :45:31.can see Jessica Augusto, who won the Great North Run a couple of

:45:31. > :45:37.years ago. You would sense there's enough of them here that the metals

:45:37. > :45:47.are going to be sorted out from that group. There is the Tower of

:45:47. > :45:52.

:45:52. > :45:56.slower than the first five. Still a steady pace. That is why that group

:45:56. > :46:06.is so large, nobody wanting to push on a tour yet. This is where they

:46:06. > :46:22.

:46:22. > :46:25.embankment. The Shard in the start to stretch out along the

:46:25. > :46:29.Embankment, we are going to see athletes going in different

:46:29. > :46:35.directions. It can be a little bit soul-destroying when you can see

:46:35. > :46:40.the leaders a long way ahead of you. The first lap was two Miles and the

:46:40. > :46:50.other three laps are eight miles. They are halfway round the first of

:46:50. > :46:58.

:46:58. > :47:08.tickets. Lots of people didn't get tickets to watch the athletics, but

:47:08. > :47:13.

:47:13. > :47:16.here they are getting the chance of building. Particularly because the

:47:16. > :47:19.athletes from Great Britain have been doing so marvellously well.

:47:19. > :47:26.Third in the medal table. You couldn't have envisaged that years

:47:26. > :47:29.ago. It was the invention of the National Lottery, the National

:47:29. > :47:33.Lottery funding and governing bodies in UK Sport. Between them,

:47:33. > :47:37.the governing bodies, UK Sport and the National Lottery have

:47:37. > :47:42.transformed British sport in this country. And they've also supported

:47:42. > :47:46.the Olympic Games, and that whole thing was something we could never

:47:46. > :47:49.have imagined in 1980, when I remember we went to the Moscow

:47:49. > :47:54.Olympic Games and the government didn't want the British team to go

:47:54. > :47:57.there because there was a Russian invasion of Afghanistan. Over the

:47:57. > :48:02.years, the government attitude towards sport has become more

:48:02. > :48:12.serious, concerned and more helpful. Look at the benefits that the

:48:12. > :48:13.

:48:13. > :48:23.country is reaping from the London and watch the Olympic Games and say,

:48:23. > :48:27.

:48:27. > :48:32.I was there. It is going to be a government bodies to almost

:48:32. > :48:37.reinvent themselves. Winning medals is not something to be shied away

:48:37. > :48:40.from. Over the last 12 years, particularly since City, the

:48:40. > :48:46.programmes through sport have been making us better and better. You go

:48:46. > :48:49.back to that time when the lottery first came in. Great Britain were

:48:49. > :48:54.36 the in the medal table, won one gold medal at the Olympic Games in

:48:54. > :48:58.rowing. That was it. Now you see gold medal after a gold medal. They

:48:58. > :49:05.were brilliant in the stadium last night. Just to pick up on how that

:49:06. > :49:09.has even helped, because Marathon running, the London Marathon and

:49:09. > :49:13.the London Marathon itself has been part of the programme in UK

:49:13. > :49:17.Athletics. It's been contributing towards the insurance programme.

:49:17. > :49:21.Helping them said a big camps in Kenya at altitude, etc. It just

:49:21. > :49:25.shows you if you invest and give resource to particularly those who

:49:25. > :49:31.want to put the hard work in and the training and to support them

:49:31. > :49:36.with science and medicine, etc, you can reap the rewards. The whole

:49:36. > :49:40.attitude has changed. I remember back in the 70s and 80s, the

:49:40. > :49:44.British Olympic Association and the governing bodies of sport for

:49:44. > :49:49.almost an obstacle to success for the athletes and performers. Now

:49:49. > :49:53.they have become supportive of the whole area. That is exactly what

:49:53. > :49:58.has made the difference. We are all trying to help athletes get better.

:49:58. > :50:02.That wasn't the case back then. Look at the benefit to the nation,

:50:02. > :50:06.the response that the nation has given to these Olympic Games. You

:50:06. > :50:11.can't knock that and you can't argue with that now. It has been a

:50:11. > :50:19.fantastic vision that people have had to bring the Olympic Games to

:50:19. > :50:25.London. Look at what has happened - fantastic! This is Shigetomo, from

:50:25. > :50:30.Japan. Looking at the lead group, I can see off the back of it that

:50:30. > :50:35.Freya Murray and Claire Hallissey are still there. Mara Yamauchi has

:50:35. > :50:38.already had to drop out with an injury problem she had leading into

:50:38. > :50:45.this Olympic Games. She has been unable to overcome a bruised heel.

:50:45. > :50:48.It's been bothering her for quite a while. But the other two British

:50:48. > :50:52.athletes still there. I know Claire Hallissey in particular has been

:50:52. > :50:58.doing very well. She is one of those for whom London 2012 has been

:50:58. > :51:08.a real inspiration, a target to aim at. She got herself into the team.

:51:08. > :51:14.

:51:14. > :51:17.There is a big, big group. Looking down the back of it, I can see

:51:17. > :51:25.Claire Hallissey just going through. I'm looking for Freya Murray. I

:51:25. > :51:35.know she's in that group because the statistics say that she was in

:51:35. > :51:43.

:51:43. > :51:47.about... There she is, about 23rd group comes Freya Murray, which is

:51:47. > :51:51.really good news for Freya. I have to laugh when I spoke to her the

:51:51. > :51:55.other day. She said her biggest concern on Monday was to put her

:51:55. > :51:58.out of office replied be gone to her computer, so that if anybody e-

:51:58. > :52:03.mailed her they would know she wasn't in the office this week,

:52:03. > :52:10.she's at the Olympics. What are you doing at the Olympics? Taking part

:52:10. > :52:14.in the marathon. Oh, lovely! good news is Hold the front page,

:52:14. > :52:19.there's something in the sky which looks like it might be the son.

:52:19. > :52:23.Over the years we joked about weather conditions. Steve has

:52:23. > :52:26.always been an extremely reliable weather forecasters. Today he got

:52:26. > :52:30.it absolutely wrong. He has admitted it, that's why we haven't

:52:30. > :52:35.had a big argument, because he admitted he drivers here to The

:52:35. > :52:40.Mall in the open air to get rained upon. Our floor manager at The We

:52:40. > :52:50.are soaking up the atmosphere. And soaking up the water, too! Where

:52:50. > :52:57.

:52:57. > :53:03.Two or three years ago, the Chinese looked as though they were really

:53:03. > :53:09.going to develop, really dominate in women's marathon running but

:53:09. > :53:14.it's fallen away a little bit. has. What has been amazing in the

:53:15. > :53:18.marathon has been the arrival of the East Africans. They moved

:53:18. > :53:21.through the events and eventually the Kenyans and Ethiopians started

:53:21. > :53:26.taking the marathon seriously. The reason for that is because they can

:53:26. > :53:30.earn a good living by running a marathon. They no training at

:53:30. > :53:36.altitude is a big advantage. They are very happy to take advantage of

:53:36. > :53:40.it themselves. They've got good training group in Addis Ababa and

:53:40. > :53:46.in the Rift Valley, where all the Kenyan athletes come from. Even to

:53:46. > :53:50.such an extent now that European teams are setting up training camps

:53:50. > :53:55.in Kenya to take their that -- best athletes there to train at altitude.

:53:55. > :53:59.Kenya is not only becoming the centre of African distance running

:53:59. > :54:02.and Kenyan distance running, it is becoming the centre of European

:54:02. > :54:10.distance running. Mo Farah spent months of Fair Trading for the

:54:10. > :54:20.Olympic Games. -- months out there training for the Olympic Games.

:54:20. > :54:22.

:54:22. > :54:32.the right-hand side, you can see pack. Claire Hallissey close by as

:54:32. > :54:37.

:54:37. > :54:43.of them can have a good performance here. They will not be amongst the

:54:43. > :54:53.medals. Weightman, of Australia. She has tailed away off this lead

:54:53. > :54:58.

:54:58. > :55:02.group now. Going back through the first five to 10K, they are

:55:02. > :55:12.running... For many, on a day like this, they would be quite happy

:55:12. > :55:19.

:55:19. > :55:24.with the pace. But it will change, Italian. She had a big operation a

:55:24. > :55:29.couple of years ago, removed her spleen and gall bladder. She said

:55:29. > :55:33.it has given her a second half of her career and since then she has

:55:33. > :55:37.run her best ever marathon. Kim Smith pushing and shoving around,

:55:37. > :55:47.the tall figure just behind the leaders. They are beginning to

:55:47. > :56:02.

:56:02. > :56:12.jostle again. They are coming up to care, right across everybody.

:56:12. > :56:38.

:56:38. > :56:42.not used to watching this, as to why on a day like this, I'm sure

:56:42. > :56:46.they don't even drink, well, they do. This isn't for now, it's for

:56:47. > :56:49.later. Just trying to keep yourself topped up. I've a pre-prepared

:56:49. > :56:55.drinks, they all have their different concoctions which they

:56:55. > :57:01.prefer to have. It may well be just water for some, but usually they

:57:01. > :57:06.make sure they don't just take any old string from any body. The team

:57:06. > :57:11.and support group making sure that they get exactly what they've

:57:11. > :57:15.prepared beforehand. Kibet, the former Kenyan who has won all

:57:15. > :57:25.Netherlands for many years, as indeed has a Kiplagat, not to be

:57:25. > :57:47.

:57:47. > :57:51.she knew in the crowd there just the athletes enjoying their Olympic

:57:51. > :57:55.experience. If it is not going to be about medals for them, it's

:57:55. > :58:05.going to be about enjoying their opportunity to be part of what has

:58:05. > :58:07.

:58:07. > :58:11.already been a fantastic London point. Steady pace. It will change,

:58:11. > :58:14.somebody will pick it and start to make a bit of a Porsche. The

:58:14. > :58:17.Kenyans are absolutely not interested, except when there is a

:58:17. > :58:27.drink station near by. They will be happy to stay well away from the

:58:27. > :58:53.

:58:53. > :59:03.Eye this morning of everything that whether we will have the same sort

:59:03. > :59:09.

:59:09. > :59:19.Brendan? I've taken my raincoat off and put my sunglasses on. We are

:59:19. > :59:27.

:59:27. > :59:30.getting all seasons in 14 the summer. So far at these Games,

:59:30. > :59:40.I don't think anyone has complained about the Gharib shower or

:59:40. > :59:41.

:59:41. > :59:51.thunderstorm, except you, so far! We are sitting pretty here. We have

:59:51. > :00:13.

:00:13. > :00:19.got a umbrellas, plastic coats, all the Time Trial, and the men's road

:00:19. > :00:23.race, in the cycling, I just wonder if Paula Radcliffe had been a

:00:23. > :00:26.contender, coming into these Games, with respect to the other British

:00:26. > :00:35.women, I just wonder what the crowds Mode have been like. There

:00:35. > :00:45.are plenty of people out there, however, as they go through nine

:00:45. > :00:48.

:00:48. > :00:53.miles. 50 minutes, or thereabouts. BRENDAN FOSTER: The coaches, as you

:00:53. > :00:58.know, will be thinking about getting to the halfway point,

:00:58. > :01:03.putting yourself in a position, and they have all done that. They have

:01:03. > :01:09.all run steadily, all the athletes who we think are going to feature

:01:09. > :01:13.in this marathon. It is a big group, nobody has tried to do anything or

:01:13. > :01:20.set any particular pace. They come round in front of Big Ben, where

:01:20. > :01:28.the crowds are enormous. They are heading back towards the Mall, to

:01:28. > :01:35.complete the first eight-mile loop. There's Freya Murray. I think she

:01:35. > :01:40.is not far behind that leading group. We will get a split shortly,

:01:40. > :01:50.to see what the GATT is, but it is breaking up just a little, that

:01:50. > :01:50.

:01:50. > :01:54.group, now. You just get a sense that a couple of the Japanese

:01:54. > :02:02.athletes might be moving through. There is Freya Murray, getting good

:02:02. > :02:09.support from the British public. Sher removing quite nicely. Her

:02:09. > :02:13.best, to point 28. Really very inexperienced still at the marathon.

:02:13. > :02:17.I think she's going to get better and quicker, as she gets to grips

:02:17. > :02:22.with the event. BRENDAN FOSTER: This is only her

:02:22. > :02:27.second marathon. The other one was the qualification race, where she

:02:27. > :02:32.finished just outside, and was selected as a reserve. Because of

:02:32. > :02:35.the demise of Paula Radcliffe, she got in. She was telling me the

:02:36. > :02:39.other day that Paula Radcliffe rang her to tell her that she was not

:02:39. > :02:45.going to be able to run, to give her a chance to get herself

:02:45. > :02:50.prepared. Obviously, being a reserved is different in terms of

:02:50. > :02:54.preparation. But I think Freya Murray was so thrilled to have the

:02:54. > :03:01.opportunity to go in the Olympic Games, she did not turn it down. I

:03:01. > :03:09.am thrilled for her as well. There you can see the splits, that was

:03:09. > :03:16.the quickest five kilometres - sorry, it was not the quickest, it

:03:16. > :03:26.was quicker than the previous one. So, the pace remains the same. But

:03:26. > :03:27.

:03:27. > :03:37.if it stays at this kind of pace, then even those with a PB of 2.26

:03:37. > :03:41.will start to struggle. It is still a large group, up to 40 athletes

:03:41. > :03:51.within 10-12 seconds of the lead, some moving much more comfortably

:03:51. > :03:54.

:03:54. > :04:04.than others. There she is, about 20 seconds down now. In about 53rd

:04:04. > :04:06.

:04:06. > :04:13.place. I think the last thing they want just now is a sponge filled

:04:13. > :04:23.with water. Would you like one of those? Simon, a great career she

:04:23. > :04:27.has had over the years. One or two names in here for whom I guess the

:04:27. > :04:37.chance just to be here is the most important thing, their best

:04:37. > :05:08.

:05:08. > :05:14.performances in the marathon being Olympic marathon, reaching one of

:05:14. > :05:19.its most familiar spots, right in front of Buckingham Palace. This

:05:19. > :05:28.time, when they turn into the Mall, they will have two big laps left,

:05:28. > :05:34.16 miles of running left. Of course, the area's members of the Royal

:05:34. > :05:43.Family have been enjoying getting around the venues. It has been

:05:43. > :05:49.great to see the support they have shown. That would not be a bad

:05:49. > :05:59.place to be sitting in Buckingham Palace, good views, nice and dry as

:05:59. > :05:59.

:05:59. > :06:04.well. The first of the eight-mile laps almost completed. Mikitenko,

:06:04. > :06:07.who led the runners along the Mall on a couple of occasions in the

:06:07. > :06:13.London marathon, now finds herself in the leading group in the Olympic

:06:13. > :06:16.marathon. The spectators are able to see on the big screen the

:06:16. > :06:24.information that we are getting from the course, from the timing

:06:24. > :06:31.systems, giving you the intermediate times. They are

:06:31. > :06:41.encouraging them and us here in the Mall. It is a great place to be. --

:06:41. > :06:43.

:06:43. > :06:49.the runners. Smith of New Zealand in the leading group. We have seen

:06:49. > :06:55.some celebrations in the Mall in recent weeks, with the Jubilee,

:06:55. > :07:03.then the bicycle road races, and now, the Women's Marathon. When you

:07:03. > :07:09.look at it, with Buckingham Palace behind, and you think about 1948,

:07:09. > :07:13.when the women were allowed to run 200m. 800m, they were not allowed

:07:13. > :07:20.to run that, because that was too far for them. Now, they are running

:07:20. > :07:28.the marathon, and the world record for women is two hours 15 minutes,

:07:28. > :07:34.held by for a backer. -- held by Paula Radcliffe. At the time, those

:07:34. > :07:44.kind of times had not even been run by a man. We have got seven or

:07:44. > :07:44.

:07:45. > :07:49.eight women in this race today who have gone under two minutes 20.

:07:49. > :07:59.STEVE CRAM: The two British athletes enjoying great support out

:07:59. > :07:59.

:07:59. > :08:05.there. Keitany has been picked out by the camera, she looked very

:08:05. > :08:10.comfortable, and so she should be. BRENDAN FOSTER: Keitany has run

:08:10. > :08:15.four marathons, two of them in New York, which she did not win, and

:08:15. > :08:19.two in London, which she won. She is a favourite to this race, and

:08:19. > :08:22.she is running a conservative race, which will be to her liking. She

:08:22. > :08:26.will be incredibly quick in the second part of this race, which

:08:26. > :08:30.will be the challenge for these athletes - can they stay with Mary

:08:30. > :08:37.Keitany? She did 67 minutes for the second half of the London marathon,

:08:37. > :08:44.which is a fantastic time for a half-marathon anyway! And there's

:08:44. > :08:49.Lornah Kiplagat, born in Kenya, married to a Dutchman, lives in

:08:49. > :08:53.Holland now, but did the training camp in Kenya, where a lot of the

:08:53. > :08:59.British athletes spent a lot of time training. Wreckage has been a

:08:59. > :09:08.very good athlete in her time. -- Lornah Kiplagat. These pictures are

:09:08. > :09:13.being shown all over the world. But the pictures look great. The

:09:13. > :09:23.commentators look terrible, actually!

:09:23. > :09:23.

:09:23. > :09:30.STEVE CRAM: Speak for yourself! 17 kilometres completed. There is

:09:30. > :09:40.still a group of about 40 athletes, within three seconds of each other.

:09:40. > :09:43.

:09:43. > :09:53.And after that, they are spreading out over 15 seconds or so. As they

:09:53. > :10:00.

:10:00. > :10:04.come back down Northumberland Mall. There is a big screen, where

:10:04. > :10:09.they can see the race progressing. There are big scoreboards, with

:10:09. > :10:16.intermediate times being shown. In fact, they're coming through on the

:10:16. > :10:24.big screen quicker than they are on our computer, Steve. It would help

:10:24. > :10:34.if you knew how to use the computer! 52.20, for Freya Murray.

:10:34. > :10:37.

:10:37. > :10:44.I am going to start using the big screen now, Steve.

:10:44. > :10:51.STEVE CRAM: I am looking for Clare Hallissey, actually. When they came

:10:51. > :10:58.past us... She is 66th on the big screen, Steve. You got there before

:10:58. > :11:01.I did. Still at the front, the Italian Straneo. She is very happy

:11:01. > :11:11.to be pushing things along. Clare Hallissey, more than a minute

:11:11. > :11:16.

:11:16. > :11:20.behind the leaders. Again, coming through the feed station. Dibaba

:11:21. > :11:30.moves across, and it seems as though it is the turn of Jeptoo to

:11:30. > :11:34.collect the drinks for the Kenyans this time. Jeptoo comes across,

:11:34. > :11:42.joined by Kiplagat and Keitany. Every single time, it is stressful.

:11:42. > :11:49.Could it be getting stressed for them. -- I am getting stressed for

:11:50. > :11:59.them. The Americans, happy in that group. A little bit more spread out

:11:59. > :12:07.now. Mikitenko looks comfortable, just taking a drink. Just watch

:12:07. > :12:14.this again, every time, Kiplagat, coming in... Got it? Just about.

:12:14. > :12:18.You're making me nervous now. Because of now, these are crucial.

:12:19. > :12:24.It is so important, the way these athletes have trained and prepared,

:12:25. > :12:31.that they actually do get their own drinks. There's plenty of athletes

:12:32. > :12:38.who, for whatever reason, like Mara Yamauchi, carrying an injury, are

:12:38. > :12:43.dropping out. But they decided to take the risk, but it is not the

:12:43. > :12:48.sort of event where you can just kind of hope to get through it. A

:12:48. > :12:56.little bit of jetting between Kiplagat and Jeptoo. Looking very

:12:56. > :13:01.relaxed, as they should be. As we get a few rays of sunshine. I would

:13:01. > :13:10.not exactly say the weather is turning. But it has been pretty

:13:10. > :13:15.good for these athletes. Just avoiding that one big puddle, I

:13:15. > :13:19.think that is the only area where there is a lot of water on the road.

:13:20. > :13:29.Straneo has been up front for much of it, but for the first time, she

:13:30. > :13:42.

:13:42. > :13:46.looks as though she is just picking drinking Technic there. Here we go,

:13:46. > :13:51.Straneo put in a bit of pressure on at the front for the first time. So,

:13:51. > :13:57.they stretch out, a couple of them thinking, do we go with this? We

:13:57. > :14:02.saw the Kenyans having a bit of a conversation just a bit earlier.

:14:02. > :14:10.Zhu has decided to follow the Italian. Mikitenko nicely tucked in

:14:10. > :14:19.on the inside. And here come the Kenyans on the outside. Kiplagat

:14:19. > :14:25.and Jeptoo, with Keitany as well, just happy to let others mess

:14:25. > :14:33.around with the pace a little bit. They are not going to be concerned

:14:33. > :14:43.about the Italian, I don't think. You can see Xueqin Wang at the back

:14:43. > :14:51.

:14:51. > :14:59.of the group. Zhu is the most it is starting to get a move on at

:14:59. > :15:03.the front of this Olympic marathon. I notice the three Kenyans, led by

:15:03. > :15:06.Mary Keitany, as soon as there was a sense that some of the better

:15:06. > :15:14.athletes were gathering towards the front, they decided they would take

:15:14. > :15:24.a bit closer order. On the right- hand side there, Jeptoo and Keitany

:15:24. > :15:37.

:15:38. > :15:46.go under the underpass. The Blackfriars area. Then they will

:15:46. > :15:56.take their left turn again. Start the twisty section around St Paul's

:15:56. > :16:05.

:16:05. > :16:15.starting to take its toll, all this plastic I'm wearing! Is that what

:16:15. > :16:17.

:16:17. > :16:27.the greenhouse effect means? everything, I'll do the science,

:16:27. > :16:32.

:16:32. > :16:42.little inclined -- incline. A long Queen Victoria Street. Then they

:16:42. > :16:46.

:16:46. > :16:51.will turn round the back of St interesting. This is the part of

:16:51. > :16:56.the race, approaching halfway, Brendan was saying earlier, get to

:16:56. > :17:00.halfway and the race really starts to develop. I just wonder whether

:17:00. > :17:05.every -- anybody wants to make an early effort to get away or at

:17:05. > :17:15.least to break up this fairly steady rhythm. Mary Keitany knows

:17:15. > :17:33.

:17:33. > :17:38.London so well. She has won the we'd seen the best of her, but she

:17:38. > :17:42.looks fairly comfortable today. She looks nice and fresh, well prepared.

:17:42. > :17:47.I'm a bit surprised to see her there, too, Steve. Her best days

:17:47. > :17:51.certainly are behind her. She's not going to run faster than she's run

:17:51. > :18:01.before. But she's got herself ready and competitive. It's a fairly

:18:01. > :18:02.

:18:02. > :18:07.competitive pace, they are not even outside 70 minutes. Lots of these

:18:07. > :18:13.athletes have run faster than 2.20 for the marathon, so they should be

:18:13. > :18:23.comfortable at the halfway point. They are halfway round the second

:18:23. > :18:31.

:18:31. > :18:41.Embankment. There is St Paul's Cathedral again. The bells are

:18:41. > :18:48.

:18:48. > :18:53.including that 100m tonight. Usain Bolt. If last night was anything to

:18:53. > :18:58.go by, tonight will be amazing when the great Usain Bolt steps into

:18:58. > :19:01.that Stadium and lines up for the start of the 100m. The starter,

:19:01. > :19:06.Alan Bell from the north-east of England, he was the man who

:19:06. > :19:10.disqualified Usain Bolt in Daegu, and he is as nervous as we are. He

:19:10. > :19:14.hopes he doesn't have to disqualify him tonight. I saw him earlier in

:19:14. > :19:21.the week, before the Games started. I don't think he is going to be

:19:22. > :19:31.doing the men's 100m. But he has been part of the team, making sure

:19:32. > :19:38.

:19:38. > :19:43.everything has gone smoothly in the course, but not by much. Straneo is

:19:43. > :19:49.the leader, but there's still a big pack their. All the main contenders

:19:49. > :19:59.in that pack including the Ethiopian and the Kenyans and the

:19:59. > :20:08.

:20:08. > :20:12.City of London. Will be rejoining the marathon shortage. On BBC Three

:20:12. > :20:16.at the moment, the route has closed on Centre Court. Later on BBC One,

:20:16. > :20:20.we'll be live for the men's gold medal match, Andy Murray against

:20:20. > :20:26.Roger Federer. Coverage about to start on BBC Three of the women's

:20:26. > :20:29.gold medal match, the Williams sisters in action against the Czech

:20:29. > :20:37.Republic pair. These are the shop from Weymouth. The wind blowing

:20:37. > :20:40.strongly. At 1240 the sailing starts, the Star and in races. Ben

:20:40. > :20:47.Ainslie going for a gold medal, Andrew Simpson and Iain Percy also

:20:47. > :20:51.going for gold. Various options on your red button. This is Nick

:20:51. > :20:55.Skelton on Big Star, jumping his second round for the team, first

:20:55. > :21:02.round for the team, second round for the individual competition. He

:21:02. > :21:12.went clear yesterday and again he jumped clear today. Good news of

:21:12. > :21:15.

:21:15. > :21:19.Ben Maher on Tripple X, he also had also in the team. Cycling at the

:21:19. > :21:26.velodrome. Victoria Pendleton has qualified fastest for the women's

:21:26. > :21:30.sprint. Coverage of that tomorrow night. The omnium continues tonight,

:21:30. > :21:34.Ed Clancy in that. The velodrome has been one of the really big hits

:21:34. > :21:39.in terms of venues of these Olympic Games. Tickets for that are very

:21:39. > :21:43.hard to get hold of, whereas with the marathon Eakin line the streets

:21:43. > :21:47.without paying for a ticket at all. And if you are brave enough to take

:21:47. > :21:50.the chance on the weather, or even if you live somewhere on the route,

:21:50. > :21:56.now is the time to get out there because the sun is coming out and

:21:56. > :22:06.we are getting towards the crucial stages. We rejoin our commentary

:22:06. > :22:10.

:22:10. > :22:14.by in order to get out to watch them now. It wouldn't be any good

:22:14. > :22:18.if you lived in Newcastle, you wouldn't get here in time!

:22:18. > :22:22.doesn't matter where you are, hopefully people on the course

:22:22. > :22:25.getting good information about what's happening. The race is

:22:25. > :22:31.starting to warm up a little bit. The group is being whittled down.

:22:31. > :22:41.Freya Murray proved 20 K, as they are about to go through the halfway

:22:41. > :23:02.

:23:02. > :23:09.point, she was in 53rd place. 50 kilometres, not short - not far off

:23:09. > :23:13.the halfway point back up. Straneo in first place at the moment, Zhu

:23:13. > :23:23.in second. But a lot of the athletes we figure will feature

:23:23. > :23:30.

:23:30. > :23:36.here, we can see Keitany, the is going to be quicker. That is a

:23:36. > :23:39.good size group. Now the halfway... Half of the marathon is behind them

:23:39. > :23:43.and now its concentration time, its tactics time and it's who's going

:23:43. > :23:46.to be brave enough and strong enough and who is prepared to

:23:46. > :23:51.strike out early enough. There's a variety of options here. I'm

:23:51. > :23:59.looking at the Kenyans running as a team. There's a couple of Ethiopian

:23:59. > :24:03.is in there. They all run under 2.19. They is Shobukhova, the

:24:03. > :24:07.fastest marathon runner in the field. She is detached from that

:24:07. > :24:11.group. That's a surprise. She was one of the favourites coming into

:24:11. > :24:15.this race. We expected her to run well and be in contention all the

:24:15. > :24:19.way. She is off the pack. I don't quite know how far behind it is but

:24:19. > :24:29.she wouldn't be in that position through choice. She'd rather be in

:24:29. > :24:35.

:24:35. > :24:38.this group. There's the group going the moment. That is a surprise.

:24:38. > :24:44.That's not where she wants to be. There's no reason for her to be

:24:44. > :24:46.back there other than she is going through a tough time. She's the

:24:46. > :24:50.second fastest marathon runner after Paula Radcliffe's world

:24:50. > :24:56.record. She's won the last three Chicago marathons, she's won here

:24:56. > :25:00.in London before. She was an athlete who you would certainly

:25:00. > :25:04.figure, certainly expect to be at least on the rostrum. That is the

:25:04. > :25:14.first surprise of this women's marathon. Shobukhova of Russia

:25:14. > :25:22.

:25:22. > :25:25.hasn't run a marathon this year and off to the big city marathons and

:25:25. > :25:31.produce the fast times. It's another when you have to prepare in

:25:31. > :25:41.a completely different way for the Olympic marathon and all that that

:25:41. > :25:52.

:25:52. > :25:57.down. Another pass by the water station. It's easier to negotiate

:25:57. > :26:03.this now with less people in this group, less people to cut across.

:26:03. > :26:06.Zhu grabbing her drink. You just feel as though it's down to

:26:06. > :26:11.business now. A bit more concentration on the faces of most

:26:11. > :26:18.of these athletes. Kiplagat coming right across again. Keitany, the

:26:18. > :26:28.same. Everybody anxious to make sure they are taking the right fuel

:26:28. > :26:32.

:26:32. > :26:39.point you can really pay for it later on. There is Shobukhova.

:26:39. > :26:49.She's moving all right. Not able to produce the sort of performance

:26:49. > :26:55.

:26:55. > :27:00.that she would expect, for whatever marathon running. To see an athlete

:27:00. > :27:10.has been so prominent in the world marathon Major's. The lead athletes

:27:10. > :27:28.

:27:28. > :27:33.going through Leadenhall Market now. was one of the Ethiopians. I'm not

:27:33. > :27:39.sure who tripped her up, but from the back it was a bit of a club. I

:27:39. > :27:43.was tempting fate saying that some point, it was Gelana who has gone

:27:43. > :27:51.down. There is a shiver Cover. She seemed to be moving all right and

:27:51. > :27:55.all of a sudden now she's had to stop completely. They have to be

:27:55. > :28:00.something wrong, didn't they? The Russian, one of the pre-race

:28:00. > :28:06.favourites... Do you know what I find strange there? She still have

:28:06. > :28:09.to stop her watch before she stopped running. That is just a

:28:09. > :28:13.habit. You know the Olympic marathon is the one they all

:28:13. > :28:16.trained for, the one they all work excessively hard for. Some of them,

:28:17. > :28:20.as we've seen today, have found this a race too far. They come into

:28:20. > :28:26.the race and they've decided to run because it is the Olympics. In

:28:26. > :28:29.normal circumstances, Yamauchi wouldn't have run this race. It

:28:29. > :28:33.looks like Shobukhova wouldn't have run this raced if it wasn't the

:28:33. > :28:41.Olympics. You've got to give it a shot but unfortunately her body was

:28:41. > :28:47.unable to hold it together. She will be very disappointed. And our

:28:47. > :28:57.own Yamauchi. There is Shobukhova, she is in tears and holding her

:28:57. > :29:00.

:29:00. > :29:06.away as you can from the finish. They get picked up along the route.

:29:06. > :29:10.Anyone who does drop out will be picked up and brought back. Now we

:29:10. > :29:15.start to see the Kenyans moving to the front of the field. The

:29:15. > :29:25.Ethiopian who took a tumble, there she is, back up and running

:29:25. > :29:51.

:29:51. > :29:56.smoothly. You can just tell the them is off the group there. You

:29:56. > :30:06.can see the effect it is starting to have, getting stretched out

:30:06. > :30:07.

:30:07. > :30:11.behind. The two Japanese athletes not able to stay with this. As they

:30:11. > :30:17.head up towards the Tower of London once more. The next time they come

:30:17. > :30:23.back here, they will be starting to turn towards what will be the

:30:23. > :30:33.finishing stretch really of this Olympic Marathon. Still 1.5 laps to

:30:33. > :30:35.

:30:35. > :30:39.go, really. That group is getting smaller all the time.

:30:39. > :30:46.BRENDAN FOSTER: It is now just over 20 athletes in that group, and one

:30:46. > :30:56.by one, they are falling away from it. The Tower of London, a great

:30:56. > :31:10.

:31:10. > :31:16.nothing short of stunning already. I'm sure there will be more to come

:31:16. > :31:20.in the stadium tonight and elsewhere. Today, there will not be

:31:20. > :31:29.any British success in this Women's Marathon. That's not to say it is

:31:29. > :31:34.not an enthralling race. You can see Kara Goucher, and Tim Smith, in

:31:34. > :31:44.that group. I was just wondering whether Shalane Flanagan was still

:31:44. > :31:47.

:31:47. > :31:57.there. I cannot see her in that group, the other American. No, I

:31:57. > :32:01.

:32:01. > :32:06.don't think she is there. I have just seen Augusto, from Portugal,

:32:06. > :32:13.entering that group now. She is a former winner of the Great North

:32:13. > :32:23.Run. Kara Goucher on the outside, looking into the group. The three

:32:23. > :32:38.

:32:38. > :32:43.trying to work out where the gap is, because all of a sudden, this group

:32:43. > :32:53.of about 15-20, are putting a bit of distance between themselves and

:32:53. > :32:58.

:32:58. > :33:04.those chasing. The pace really is on now. Coming back past Monument.

:33:04. > :33:06.London Bridge on their left. I think there are one or two athletes

:33:06. > :33:12.between the leading group and the chasing group, but nonetheless, the

:33:12. > :33:15.gap is getting bigger all the time. 22 seconds, that gap, at the moment.

:33:15. > :33:19.I don't think there's anyone in that chasing group who will have

:33:19. > :33:25.any effect whatsoever on the race. So, this is where it is all

:33:25. > :33:30.happening. You can see people dropping off the back. These are

:33:30. > :33:40.the athletes who are starting to be the players at the business end of

:33:40. > :33:41.

:33:42. > :33:50.this race. There's a shot of the Monument to the Great Fire of

:33:50. > :33:56.London. The athletes coming past there. The winner and the medalists

:33:56. > :33:59.are definitely going to come from that group. There is no reason to

:33:59. > :34:09.be anywhere other than in that group. The pace has not been

:34:09. > :34:12.

:34:12. > :34:21.excessive. You can see that Augusto has now joined that group, along

:34:21. > :34:24.with Barros, also from Portugal. And there, the beginnings of a move

:34:24. > :34:28.from Kiplagat, looking over her shoulder. The world champion from

:34:28. > :34:32.Daegu last year. The Kenyans had so many to choose from, but they

:34:32. > :34:36.decided to go for major Championship form in selecting

:34:36. > :34:44.their team. They did not just go for major marathons around the

:34:44. > :34:50.world. And now, the race is on for real. In response to that, Gelana

:34:50. > :35:00.of Ethiopia moved up quickly, and Edna Kiplagat has now decided it is

:35:00. > :35:01.

:35:01. > :35:05.time to make a move. STEVE CRAM: Approaching 25

:35:05. > :35:15.kilometres, I would be very surprised if this did not turn out

:35:15. > :35:33.

:35:33. > :35:37.to be the quickest five kilometres Kiplagat has obviously decided she

:35:37. > :35:46.would like to get the group cut down a bit more. You can see the

:35:46. > :35:52.group breaking up. Others deciding, we cannot go with this. Clara

:35:52. > :35:56.through are making a real effort to try to stay with it. But now, these

:35:57. > :36:06.six have it between them, three from Kenya, three from Ethiopia, a

:36:07. > :36:09.

:36:09. > :36:14.familiar story. Flanagan and Clara coucher are watching that gap grow.

:36:14. > :36:18.I suppose for them, they have got to think, let's keep going steady,

:36:18. > :36:27.you never know, but there are 6 very good athletes now in this

:36:27. > :36:37.leading group. Five of them have gone under two hours 20, which is a

:36:37. > :36:43.sign of real class. So, the race, as we have seen on the track and on

:36:43. > :36:53.the roads many, many times, the might of East Africa - three

:36:53. > :36:54.

:36:55. > :36:59.Ethiopians, who had all gone under 2 20, and the three Kenyans as well.

:36:59. > :37:05.Keitany, the London marathon winner from this year is amongst them. And

:37:05. > :37:11.Kiplagat, the world champion. Now, Keitany drifts to the front. This

:37:11. > :37:17.is going to be a war of attrition now. Just over halfway round the

:37:17. > :37:21.third of these eight-mile loops. Kiplagat looks comfortable on one

:37:21. > :37:31.side of the road. Keitany has chosen to take the other side of

:37:31. > :37:31.

:37:31. > :37:36.the road. The two of them beginning to make the race happen. One

:37:36. > :37:40.athlete setting off in pursuit of this group of six, trying to break

:37:41. > :37:45.away from the chasing group. Well, that previous five kilometres was

:37:45. > :37:49.the quickest, as we suggested. Actually, most of that was in the

:37:49. > :37:52.last two or three kilometres. It is only going to build from here.

:37:52. > :37:56.Mikitenko trying to hang on to this chasing group. They will be hoping

:37:56. > :38:02.that something happens at the front, but given the way the race has gone,

:38:02. > :38:06.I cannot really see anyone from that group coming back. It would

:38:06. > :38:11.only be if they start looking at each other, which may be they are

:38:11. > :38:17.doing at the moment. Flanagan trying to get back on to that group

:38:17. > :38:27.of six, as they had along the Embankment again. It is only still

:38:27. > :38:33.

:38:33. > :38:40.a steady pace. Amazingly, within a couple of hundred metres, five of

:38:40. > :38:50.the six athletes find themselves at the front of the race. Gelana is a

:38:50. > :38:52.

:38:52. > :38:59.very good athlete. They have got some titles between them. Mergia

:38:59. > :39:04.won in Dubai, running two hours 19. Shalane Flanagan, the bronze-

:39:04. > :39:10.medallist from 2008 in the 10,000m. Kiplagat, the world champion,

:39:10. > :39:15.leading. Those three have all won big races. Shalane Flanagan has

:39:15. > :39:22.only run a couple of marathons, but she is a tough cookie. She trains

:39:22. > :39:31.extremely hard, she is prepared to hurt herself. Zhu of China moves

:39:31. > :39:34.alongside her, and then Augusto, the Portuguese. There are going to

:39:34. > :39:40.be some changes in the chasing pack, but you have got to bet at this

:39:40. > :39:45.point that the gold-medallist, and probably the podium athletes, will

:39:45. > :39:49.come from this leading group. Here we are at the feed stations. It is

:39:49. > :39:54.a little bit easier now, with a smaller group. The Kenyan coach

:39:54. > :39:59.determined to make sure it happens. Make sure you do it properly this

:39:59. > :40:07.time. You do not have to cut across people. Mary Keitany gets a drink,

:40:07. > :40:12.the others get theirs. Job done. One more time - let's see if they

:40:12. > :40:16.can do it for the last time. Interestingly, Zhu has just about

:40:16. > :40:23.got onto the back of that group. I think they are slowing at the front.

:40:23. > :40:28.Flanagan doing her best to get up with them. Mikitenko, still in with

:40:28. > :40:34.a chance. They are hoping that this group might break up, but six has

:40:34. > :40:39.become seven, and could shortly become eight or nine here. You can

:40:39. > :40:43.always tell when they are running side-by-side, nobody wanting to

:40:43. > :40:47.push on. Kiplagat had a go at doing it. Keitany is in the lead at the

:40:47. > :40:57.moment, but they are not pushing on. They have just dropped the pace

:40:57. > :40:58.

:40:58. > :41:05.again. She was lucky there. should have thrown that further

:41:05. > :41:10.away. But remember in the World Championships last year, Kiplagat?

:41:10. > :41:17.She fell at the feeding station. quite a late point in the race as

:41:17. > :41:27.well. There, the Italian athlete. And Kara Goucher also setting off

:41:27. > :41:28.

:41:28. > :41:32.to catch up with the leading group. So, two Americans up and amongst it.

:41:32. > :41:42.We said a few minutes ago that maybe the six had it between them,

:41:42. > :41:44.

:41:44. > :41:50.but they have slowed, they have allowed Zhu, Flanagan, Augusto but,

:41:50. > :42:00.and Kara Goucher to catch up. Smith has not been able to catch up,

:42:00. > :42:00.

:42:00. > :42:10.however, which is a bit of a pity. Barros from Portugal, in that

:42:10. > :42:14.little group which is maybe 15 seconds behind the leading athletes.

:42:14. > :42:21.Well, it was a disappointing start, really, to the day, for the British

:42:21. > :42:27.team, with Mara Yamauchi, with the injury she had before she started,

:42:27. > :42:30.having to drop out inside 10 kilometres. Let's get her thoughts.

:42:30. > :42:37.Obviously, disappointment that you have to drop out, but you gave it a

:42:37. > :42:42.go with your injury... Yes, I had a bruise on my heel, I was managing

:42:42. > :42:50.it, it was not the best situation, for the Olympic Marathon, but I was

:42:50. > :42:56.confident I could give it a go. I started off, but on the second

:42:56. > :42:59.corner, it started hurting. I did my best. It is not a good place to

:43:00. > :43:07.be, to drop out of the Olympic Marathon in your home Games, but I

:43:07. > :43:10.gave it my best. I did not want my Olympic journey to end like this, I

:43:10. > :43:14.am sorry for everybody who has supported me and encouraged me and

:43:14. > :43:18.come out in the pouring rain to support me today, but I am still so

:43:18. > :43:22.grateful for their help. So many people have really helped me,

:43:22. > :43:30.especially the Visio and medical staff at UK Athletics, and all my

:43:30. > :43:34.friends and family. I am so happy to have been part of this historic

:43:34. > :43:39.home Games in London. I know how determined you were to get on to

:43:39. > :43:43.the starting line. I saw you at the training camp in Portugal, and you

:43:43. > :43:48.said you were physical fit, apart from this injury. Yes, I have been

:43:48. > :43:52.doing lots of cross-training, so why was confident that in

:43:52. > :43:57.cardiovascular terms, I was fit. And I had been able to run on my

:43:57. > :44:05.foot. I thought about withdrawing beforehand, but I decided, no, it

:44:05. > :44:12.is not that bad, I can run, I can do the race. I had high hopes, but

:44:12. > :44:17.sadly, it was not to be. Life goes on, I will recover, and get back. I

:44:17. > :44:21.just need to rest it now and get it better. Now, when you come back for

:44:21. > :44:29.treatment, what is The Feeling amongst the people who have been

:44:29. > :44:33.helping you? They are incredibly professional and helpful, they have

:44:33. > :44:38.worked so hard all along to help me. Today, they have been incredibly

:44:38. > :44:48.helpful. I am sorry for them that their hard work did not pay off,

:44:48. > :45:04.

:45:04. > :45:08.but very grateful to them. Thanks already knew there, her heel

:45:08. > :45:17.couldn't stand up to the test today. The crowds are really building up

:45:17. > :45:24.in Westminster Square. One or two little changes happening. This was

:45:24. > :45:30.Gelana asking, where is my drink? One of her compatriots, Mergia, the

:45:30. > :45:37.winner of the Dubai marathon, is struggling. Augusta just went past

:45:37. > :45:44.her. Flannigan trying to hang on to this group, as indeed is Zhu. But

:45:44. > :45:49.the Kenyans are now dictating this. If it was a team race you'd be

:45:49. > :45:56.putting your bet on the Kenyan team. But it's an individual race and a

:45:56. > :46:06.race for medals. On the left-hand side, Jeptoo, with the strange are

:46:06. > :46:17.

:46:17. > :46:24.flicking of her right leg style. off the group, so now there's three

:46:24. > :46:28.Kenyans, two Ethiopian and the chasing group. Zhu of China,

:46:28. > :46:34.Flannigan working hard in the chasing position. Jessica Augusto

:46:34. > :46:44.of Portugal chasing hard. These five beginning to run a breast,

:46:44. > :46:44.

:46:44. > :46:49.beginning to run strongly. Then they come down The Mall. One 8

:46:49. > :46:53.macro mile lap to go. That will decide the future in a Lebid terms

:46:53. > :46:59.for these athletes. Keitany, the smaller figure. The athlete who

:46:59. > :47:06.we've seen already run brilliant. This is her favourite place, this

:47:06. > :47:13.is where she wins marathons. Can she win it again in London today?

:47:13. > :47:19.The two Ethiopia's, Dibaba and Gelana, are there for company. Her

:47:19. > :47:23.two team-mates, world champion Edna Kiplagat and on the other side,

:47:23. > :47:28.Priscah Jeptoo, the runner up in the championships. There's no

:47:28. > :47:33.shortage of talent in this leading group. If you can catch that group,

:47:33. > :47:43.if Zhu can catch them or if Shalane Flanagan can catch them, this is

:47:43. > :47:44.

:47:44. > :47:49.flicks up to the side. That's why occasionally she gets in trouble.

:47:49. > :47:53.That action with the full swinging up to the right, sometimes you come

:47:54. > :48:00.into a collision with another athlete. There is Mergia struggling

:48:00. > :48:03.now. Mergia won the Dubai marathon and there were one or two

:48:03. > :48:08.suggestions that the fast times in Dubai this year, the course was a

:48:08. > :48:12.little bit different and a couple of questions about the fast times,

:48:12. > :48:16.but the Ethiopian stuck with it in terms of selection. 30 made, Dibaba,

:48:16. > :48:23.who was third behind her, she is running much better. I think it is

:48:23. > :48:33.just Mergia having a bad day to day. Bronze-medallist three years ago at

:48:33. > :48:34.

:48:34. > :48:44.the World Championships. She's not try and keep them at least within

:48:44. > :48:55.

:48:55. > :48:59.which, for so many thousands of people, is such a welcome sight

:48:59. > :49:03.every year in the London Marathon. I wouldn't say these guys are

:49:03. > :49:13.getting sick of it now but next time round it will be the last time

:49:13. > :49:22.

:49:22. > :49:27.for them. It is a good course, marathons, it is Nick Patel and his

:49:27. > :49:32.team. They've done it brilliantly once again. Everything is arranged

:49:33. > :49:39.for the comfort of the athletes and the spectators. They are now

:49:39. > :49:46.delivering the Olympic marathon in London. That is a real tribute to

:49:46. > :49:56.this organisation. Jeptoo may be finding this a little bit hard work

:49:56. > :50:02.

:50:02. > :50:07.diminutive figure of Dibaba bear. And Gelana, as they come right in

:50:07. > :50:17.front of us here in The Mall. Approaching 30 kilometres. One more

:50:17. > :50:25.

:50:25. > :50:32.lap to go, eight Miles are still to whether 80 files can shake this

:50:32. > :50:36.group of. His Jeptoo going to be able to stay with them? She looks

:50:36. > :50:42.OK now. She was a metre or so adrift, but she's running alongside

:50:42. > :50:46.the leaders. Look at Shalane Flanagan. She's really working hard,

:50:46. > :50:51.she has overtaken Zhu and is working in the sixth position.

:50:51. > :50:56.There is Jessica Augusto coming back as well. 17 seconds down on

:50:56. > :51:06.the lead. Down the road I think I saw Kara Goucher, about 10 seconds

:51:06. > :51:08.

:51:08. > :51:10.going to come between them. Eight miles to go, the many miles of

:51:10. > :51:16.training, the many miles of competition, the many titles these

:51:16. > :51:20.people have won, and one of them, only one of them, is going to come

:51:20. > :51:30.out on top. Which one will it be? Keitany looks controlled and looks

:51:30. > :51:42.

:51:42. > :51:47.Running next to her his Arkhipova or. A very good steeplechase runner

:51:47. > :51:51.with medals at Europeans and the World Championships. She has made a

:51:51. > :52:01.fairly successful move up into the marathon in recent years. Having a

:52:01. > :52:06.

:52:06. > :52:12.other pre-race favourites, Shobukhova, she dropped out. Just

:52:12. > :52:18.beyond halfway. Mara Yamauchi had to pull out with injury,

:52:18. > :52:22.representing Great Britain in the first nine kilometres. Just

:52:22. > :52:28.watching for Freya Murray to come in front of us. She was about a

:52:28. > :52:38.minute and a half ahead of Claire Hallissey last time. She was in

:52:38. > :52:47.

:52:47. > :52:57.the splits coming. This race with lots still to happen. None of this

:52:57. > :53:09.

:53:09. > :53:16.five in particular have tried to kilometres. 16.21. That was by far

:53:16. > :53:23.the quickest. That is fast running. These women have been able to break

:53:23. > :53:29.that group up. Flannigan is having to watch as the Russian moves away.

:53:29. > :53:36.It was a real, brave effort from the American champion. Zhu also

:53:37. > :53:44.looks as though her Evatt is starting to Peter away. -- her

:53:45. > :53:52.effort. The Russian, about eight or nine seconds behind this group.

:53:52. > :53:57.Right in front of us, Freya Murray just moving through on The Mall.

:53:57. > :54:02.She has got to stick to her task now. She's got to work at it. She

:54:02. > :54:12.went off quickly by her standards. She's only run one marathon before.

:54:12. > :54:30.

:54:30. > :54:35.The Russian, Arkhipova, chasing that group. Now the gaps are

:54:35. > :54:43.beginning to show him the leading group in the women's marathon. Mary

:54:43. > :54:50.Keitany getting a drink from the side. Jeptoo and Kiplagat likewise.

:54:50. > :54:56.The two Ethiopian, Gelana and Dibaba. Gelana you would have

:54:56. > :55:06.thought would be a danger here. The world champion Kiplagat and the

:55:06. > :55:07.

:55:07. > :55:10.world championship runner up jet to run together. -- Jeptoo. Once again,

:55:10. > :55:14.Dibaba for was the drink straight to the floor. That can cause an

:55:14. > :55:21.accident because those robust plastic bottles, the athletes can

:55:21. > :55:30.and do trip over those bottles. Shalane Flanagan working so hard to

:55:30. > :55:40.get back to this group. Zhu of China getting rolled on along the

:55:40. > :56:00.

:56:00. > :56:05.by Arkhipova. It looks like there's a little bit of a break-up in the

:56:05. > :56:08.leading group, a little bit of a move. We look at Shalane Flanagan

:56:09. > :56:13.heading towards that leading group. Arkhipova looks as though she's

:56:13. > :56:23.running so strongly. Things are going to change him the lead party.

:56:23. > :56:46.

:56:46. > :56:51.This group of five is going to we enter the last seven miles or so.

:56:51. > :56:58.Clare Hallissey has passed through the finish area. Heading out on her

:56:58. > :57:02.last lap as well. Not looking as comfortable as Freya, who is still

:57:02. > :57:07.moving reasonably well. But at the front, these five now, have they

:57:07. > :57:12.got it between them, can the Russian take advantage of them?

:57:12. > :57:22.It's a gap of about six or seven seconds. Maybe one or two more.

:57:22. > :57:45.

:57:45. > :57:49.She's looking very comfortable and if you are a 2.25 or 2.26 runner

:57:49. > :57:52.you feel comfortable for a while, but when you pick up a couple of

:57:52. > :57:56.five Kay, that's when it starts to break up. That's why the Russian

:57:56. > :58:06.has done a pretty good job of that because she's not have fast times

:58:06. > :58:11.

:58:12. > :58:18.runs when you are running flat out all the way mean one thing. As we

:58:18. > :58:24.look at Dibaba, the Ethiopian athletes, now just fallen off the

:58:24. > :58:27.pace. It is easier to run a fast and even pace. It is obviously

:58:27. > :58:36.easier to run a fast time when you've got a pacemaker. But now

:58:36. > :58:40.we've got a race, the first part of it was steady. The second half is

:58:40. > :58:45.obviously quicker. As we look at Arkhipova, who is roaring through

:58:45. > :58:50.the field, going faster and faster. It looks as though, to me, she's

:58:50. > :58:53.going to catch that leading group. They are certainly not racing each

:58:53. > :59:03.other in the front yet, but this is a very impressive performance by

:59:03. > :59:04.

:59:04. > :59:08.the Russian. Former steeplechase runner. 9.9 her best. If she was

:59:08. > :59:11.running 9.9 at these Olympic Games, she'd have a good chance in the

:59:11. > :59:14.steeplechase. They are going to have a bit of a shock when they

:59:14. > :59:17.look over their shoulder. These four probably not expecting

:59:17. > :59:22.somebody from the pack to come and join them, but that's what's going

:59:22. > :59:25.to happen. She looks very comfortable. Quicker than that lead

:59:25. > :59:29.pack because she is catching them, but I'm wondering whether or not

:59:29. > :59:32.when she gets there, whether she's going to settle their or maintain

:59:32. > :59:37.this sort of pace. She might just feel if she keeps going, she might

:59:37. > :59:43.be able to break this group of. I have a feeling that once she is on

:59:43. > :59:49.to them she would just sit and watch a bit. It looks as though the

:59:49. > :59:53.pressure is on in this group as well. The gaps are now starting to

:59:53. > :59:58.appear. The Russian is perhaps starting to take advantage of that.

:59:58. > :00:03.Keitany is at the front and is putting her foot down a little.

:00:03. > :00:06.There were five, then there were four, now there's five again.

:00:07. > :00:16.will be a shock when they look over their shoulder and see it is not

:00:17. > :00:27.

:00:27. > :00:35.the other Ethiopian athlete, Dibaba, champion. Jeptoo looks behind to

:00:35. > :00:39.see where her team-mate is. Three or four metres and it is the

:00:39. > :00:47.Russian who can now maybe sense there could be something for her

:00:47. > :00:54.here. I'm a little bit surprised. It was a risk from the Kenyan

:00:54. > :01:04.selectors. Big-match temperament was something they went for, but

:01:04. > :01:11.

:01:11. > :01:15.quickly. Mary Keitany has done nothing wrong yet. Settled with the

:01:15. > :01:20.leaders. Aware of everything going on. Back in the pack in the early

:01:20. > :01:30.stages with her team-mate, Kiplagat, the world champion who we are

:01:30. > :01:30.

:01:30. > :01:35.looking at. But Keitany, who we've seen run extremely quickly in the

:01:35. > :01:40.second half of the London Marathon, running quicker in the second half

:01:40. > :01:49.of this race today than they did in the first half and that will bring

:01:49. > :01:53.them home closer to two minute -- 2:20. 73.13 through the first half.

:01:53. > :01:57.That pressure is now being applied by Keitany for the first time. The

:01:57. > :02:03.Russian, having got herself involved, finds that the impetus

:02:03. > :02:10.she has provided from behind has forced the issue. For around St

:02:10. > :02:15.Paul's for the last time for the lead group. Up into Paternoster

:02:15. > :02:25.Square. I think the crowds have responded to Clare Balding's

:02:25. > :02:33.

:02:33. > :02:40.way. Going for medals in the Olympic marathon in London. Keitany,

:02:40. > :02:45.the tiny figure of Mary Keitany. The Russian close that gap. Once

:02:45. > :02:51.again we are looking at Shalane Flanagan. Working hard. She will

:02:51. > :02:55.keep working hard all the way, but as soon as the Russian joined this

:02:55. > :02:59.group, Mary Keitany decided she didn't want any company, she didn't

:02:59. > :03:03.want too much company, she was happier running with the group she

:03:03. > :03:08.has been running with. A little injection of pace. Maybe for pace

:03:08. > :03:12.the Russian was going up to catch them, she looks a bit slower. She

:03:12. > :03:20.has settled down a bit. Maybe she was just making that effort, but

:03:20. > :03:24.the group is now back to five. Kiplagat, the world champion, who

:03:24. > :03:32.looked to be in trouble a few hundred metres to go, accelerates

:03:32. > :03:38.and joins the group. Now the Ethiopia and, Gelanar, the

:03:38. > :03:42.Rotterdam winner, takes over. Dibaba must now be in 6th place.

:03:42. > :03:50.That is a big gap as well. She is going to come under pressure from

:03:50. > :03:59.those chasing her. Three Kenyans, one Ethiopian and one Russian as

:03:59. > :04:04.they move around the Museum of London. Almost 360 degrees turn

:04:04. > :04:09.around the roundabout to go back on themselves. They will head towards

:04:09. > :04:19.the Guild Hall. Eventually up towards the Tower of London. You

:04:19. > :04:19.

:04:19. > :04:26.can see a gap of 31 seconds. Gelanar keeps looking across. She

:04:26. > :04:32.has nobody to chat to. Maybe the chatter has stopped between the

:04:32. > :04:36.Kenyans. He felt as though Keitany had had and it will nibble at the

:04:36. > :04:40.front. Kiplagat fell off the back, it looked like the Russian was

:04:41. > :04:50.going to struggle, but Keitany has settled back again and then the

:04:51. > :04:53.

:04:53. > :04:59.group got together and now it is maybe Jeptoo's turn. Jeptoo, with

:04:59. > :05:04.that action, with hardly any money left. It is not always a bad thing

:05:04. > :05:10.for marathon runners. Some of the track runners who moved to the

:05:10. > :05:14.marathon, particularly people like Haile Gebrselassie, spend time

:05:14. > :05:18.training to know it at the knee left. I remember going for a run

:05:18. > :05:22.with car Stella, the great Australian, and I wondered what he

:05:22. > :05:26.was doing, he was shuffling. He ran about eight minutes for the first

:05:26. > :05:36.mile on the training run. I don't think his feet came off the ground.

:05:36. > :05:51.

:05:51. > :05:56.He got faster after that, mind you! the four had from Russian. She is

:05:56. > :06:02.having a great race. -- forehead. I would not have put her in with a

:06:02. > :06:08.medal chance beforehand. Should be covert was the one everybody was

:06:08. > :06:18.looking to. A former steeplechaser who is trying to mix it with this

:06:18. > :06:24.

:06:24. > :06:30.looking quite as relaxed as she had been. Is she under pressure? The

:06:30. > :06:36.Ethiopian looking very relaxed. Winner of the Rotterdam Marathon.

:06:36. > :06:45.This is a little further back. We were on about the chasing group. A

:06:45. > :06:52.good gap back to Makarovar, the other Russian, who was running

:06:52. > :06:57.strongly a couple of miles back. She is going to have a good strong

:06:57. > :07:07.finish, but she will not finish near these guys. You can see

:07:07. > :07:20.

:07:20. > :07:26.Shalane Flanagan behind Dibaba in looks tired now. As indeed does

:07:26. > :07:31.Augusto. Big gaps between -- behind that leading group. Almost two

:07:31. > :07:38.hours of running behind them. Jessica Augusto worked hard to get

:07:38. > :07:48.through to that leading group. She still looks strong, she looks like

:07:48. > :08:00.

:08:00. > :08:10.about pushing on a little bit. Keitany on the far side, Jeptoo on

:08:10. > :08:21.

:08:21. > :08:25.Championships 10,000m. Xiaolin Zhu was carrying the flag for China.

:08:25. > :08:30.She was with the group earlier on. A valiant effort from her. She is

:08:30. > :08:40.struggling now as well. Maybe others have paced things a little

:08:40. > :08:48.

:08:48. > :08:56.better. That is Dibaba and Flanagan. people on the streets. This is one

:08:56. > :09:00.of the free events at these Olympics. Just trying to see but a

:09:00. > :09:05.duck Kiplagat is struggling. As soon as there's a bit of pace at

:09:05. > :09:12.the front, she can't go with it. The pace is not consistent at the

:09:12. > :09:20.front. Nobody is really making a move yet. Two hours of marathon

:09:20. > :09:28.running behind them. 20 odd minutes left. And the Russian, who has come

:09:29. > :09:36.from a long way back, now takes the lead. Quickly followed by the

:09:36. > :09:41.Ethiopian and then a gap to Mary Keitany and Jeptoo. A tight turn.

:09:41. > :09:47.The two are locked in battle. Is this a move? Will Mary Keitany be

:09:47. > :09:54.able to do respond? They go through the leaden Hall market. The

:09:54. > :09:59.drumming band keeping the crowds entertained. Four of them now. Look

:09:59. > :10:05.at that gap. I think every time they get to a feeding station, the

:10:05. > :10:09.Kenyans don't move through it as smoothly. A still think Keitany is

:10:09. > :10:19.not as comfortable as she was a little while back. Flanagan moves

:10:19. > :10:24.past Dibaba. Moving into 6th place now. She will start to have her

:10:24. > :10:29.eyes on a tiring end. Kiplagat is 20 seconds ahead of Flanagan at the

:10:29. > :10:34.moment. Still around four miles of running left in this Olympic

:10:34. > :10:44.marathon and it is the Russian leading. Two Kenyans with her and

:10:44. > :10:51.the Ethiopian. Augusto being passed by Meyer rover. Another 20 seconds

:10:51. > :11:01.behind Flanagan. Kenya desperately want to win this gold medal. They

:11:01. > :11:19.

:11:19. > :11:22.want to win this marathon title. recent years to produce the better

:11:22. > :11:27.athletes to come and win the Olympic titles in the distance

:11:27. > :11:37.events. I remember you were saying in the stadium the other night, Kip

:11:37. > :11:41.Koenig talking about an ambitious target of medals. The men's 10,000m

:11:41. > :11:46.last night did not materialise. It did not materialise in the women's

:11:46. > :11:56.10,000m, either. But will it in the marathon? The Kenyans have never

:11:56. > :12:10.

:12:10. > :12:14.won the marathon. The women's behind. Shalane Flanagan 32 seconds

:12:15. > :12:19.behind the leaders. We are all waiting for something to happen.

:12:19. > :12:25.Will it be a move from the Russian or will the Ethiopian record holder

:12:25. > :12:31.make a move? Is Mary Keitany strong enough? We look at Shalane Flanagan,

:12:31. > :12:35.who has run a lonely but brave race. Her training partner, Goucher, says

:12:35. > :12:39.she doesn't know what pain is, Flanagan. She hurts herself but she

:12:39. > :12:46.never shows it. You know she is hurting now, but the relaxed look

:12:46. > :12:51.on her face, the inner pain she is going through. This is a tough road.

:12:51. > :13:01.She aimed for a marathon medal. She got a medal in the 10,000m last

:13:01. > :13:05.

:13:06. > :13:11.time around. Not to be in the into the last six: it has of this

:13:11. > :13:18.Olympic marathon. -- they are into. Slowed a little after that very

:13:18. > :13:28.quick five-kilometre stretch between 25 and 30. Faye ran 16.21

:13:28. > :13:31.

:13:31. > :13:34.for that section. -- they ran. But the damage has been building. The

:13:35. > :13:41.pace was slightly slowed when the Russian could come back onto the

:13:41. > :13:45.leading group. Kiplagat has really suffered. Flanagan might hope that

:13:45. > :13:49.she can get the Kenyan in her sights in these last few miles. She

:13:49. > :13:53.can see her on the other side of the road and the gap is not as big

:13:53. > :13:58.as it was before. That gives her a chance to see what she has to do.

:13:58. > :14:04.She now has her in her sights. She is running strongly again, working

:14:04. > :14:14.hard, and looking relaxed. She is checking on the opposition behind

:14:14. > :14:24.

:14:24. > :14:29.road. That is Dibaba. The other Russian as well. The crowd are

:14:29. > :14:35.seeing a really good race here today. Two hours and four minutes

:14:35. > :14:39.and still the marathon is in question. It is always in question

:14:39. > :14:44.in the last four miles. Even though sometimes it looks as if athletes

:14:44. > :14:49.have winning leagues, this is where the body struggles and suffers.

:14:49. > :14:54.When you run out of glycogen, when you have defeated your reserves,

:14:54. > :15:04.some fates -- sometimes athletes can suddenly slowed down

:15:04. > :15:12.

:15:12. > :15:22.drastically and occasionally others really well. And is in that leading

:15:22. > :15:24.

:15:24. > :15:32.group. This is where all of the action is. Mary Keitany at the

:15:32. > :15:40.crunch -- at the front, pushing things along. We have seen Edna

:15:40. > :15:50.Kiplagat, the world champion, for a way, under pressure. Mayorova, the

:15:50. > :15:50.

:15:50. > :15:56.other Russian. Do you think the crowds on the streets will be

:15:56. > :16:00.waiting for the silly hats? I think they are wearing the silly hats!

:16:00. > :16:07.They are providing great support, there are flags from all over the

:16:07. > :16:12.world, which is great to see. Even here, on the Mile, the stands are

:16:12. > :16:20.packed, there still applauding athletes who still have one lap to

:16:20. > :16:24.go. Giving them greater support. It won't be long before they see the

:16:24. > :16:34.winner of this marathon, which will come from this group, after 23

:16:34. > :16:57.

:16:57. > :17:01.wonder, the Russian is starting to dictate things a little bit. Gelana

:17:01. > :17:11.has looked relaxed for a long time now, just glancing across at the

:17:11. > :17:14.

:17:14. > :17:21.Russian. Jeptoo. That right foot flicking out. It is hard to tell

:17:21. > :17:25.from their facial expressions. I think if Mary Keitany was feeling

:17:25. > :17:32.good, she would be pushing from here, wanting to break up this

:17:32. > :17:42.group. When we have seen her at her best, she has been able to force

:17:42. > :17:53.

:17:53. > :17:57.Edna Kiplagat, out of it now. She is struggling, working hard.

:17:57. > :18:03.Flanagan it is working hard to get back into contention, she has run

:18:03. > :18:09.an awful long wait on her own, with great support from the crowd, as

:18:09. > :18:19.they have recognised the American strip. She has her target in sight.

:18:19. > :18:26.

:18:26. > :18:31.accurate, 51 seconds behind the leaders. Flanagan, running well.

:18:31. > :18:41.But maybe not close enough to this group. Mary Keitany, this tiny

:18:41. > :18:42.

:18:42. > :18:47.Kenyan. Petrova on that side. The Ethiopian record holder, Gelana.

:18:47. > :18:53.World Championship silver medal, Jeptoo, has been there all the time,

:18:54. > :19:03.hasn't done anything serious. Petrova. We have had a Russian

:19:04. > :19:04.

:19:04. > :19:10.winner before. That was back in 1992. She had looked as if she had

:19:10. > :19:20.lost it at one point. In Barcelona, they had a massive hill to contend

:19:20. > :19:25.with. Searing heat, hilly course. Then, Atlanta was really tough, as

:19:25. > :19:32.in Sydney. Here, with the weather conditions, they haven't been kind

:19:32. > :19:36.to us in the commentary box, but they have been kind to the runners.

:19:36. > :19:42.And in the second half of the race, to the fans who have come out in

:19:42. > :19:49.numbers to watch this. Flanagan, closing down on the world champion.

:19:49. > :19:55.Moving into 5th place. Edna Kiplagat, she won that race in

:19:55. > :20:00.Daegu. She looked comfortable for most of the race today. This group

:20:00. > :20:10.of four, the Ethiopian record holder, the Kenyan, winner of the

:20:10. > :20:15.

:20:15. > :20:20.London Marathon. Silver medal, Jeptoo. And the Russian, Petrova.

:20:20. > :20:30.We have never seen in a Kenyan win the women's marathon. Is today

:20:30. > :20:48.

:20:48. > :20:58.going to change that? They have two Flanagan down. She herself is very

:20:58. > :21:00.

:21:00. > :21:08.close to Edna Kiplagat. The Russian, for the first time, looks as though

:21:08. > :21:17.she is fading a little bit. She has only 11 of her marathons. They are

:21:17. > :21:25.rallying again. That burst comes to an end rather quickly. Blackfriars

:21:26. > :21:32.Bridge, along the Embankment. Jeptoo, the world silver-medallist.

:21:32. > :21:36.Gelana, from Ethiopia, has looked relaxed all the way through.

:21:36. > :21:40.Flanagan now moving into fifth- place. Xiaolin Zhu is finishing

:21:40. > :21:45.really strongly as well. I do not think they will affect the race at

:21:45. > :21:52.the front, they are too far behind at this late stage. Coming along

:21:52. > :22:02.this embarrassment, a part of this race, particularly Mary Keitany

:22:02. > :22:12.will remember, winning the London and Rathen -- marathon. You can see

:22:12. > :22:21.

:22:21. > :22:31.the action of Jeptoo. That is where, sometimes, she caused us problems,

:22:31. > :22:36.

:22:36. > :22:44.towards the finish. Gelana of Ethiopia, who won the Rotterdam

:22:44. > :22:51.Marathon. The last time they will take

:22:51. > :23:01.sustenance on board, the Russian deciding not to bother. Jeptoo not

:23:01. > :23:19.

:23:19. > :23:23.only Grad heroine, but another. The passed by Jessica Augusto. Xiaolin

:23:24. > :23:29.Zhu has moved into 5th place. Jessica Augusto is running well,

:23:29. > :23:37.just checking her time. She has run a conservative race but came

:23:37. > :23:42.through nicely. She looks really strong.

:23:42. > :23:52.This is real sportsmanship from Jeptoo. Mary Keitany, being the

:23:52. > :24:31.

:24:32. > :24:41.team captain, a wonder if she gets looks for her drink. Xiaolin Zhu of

:24:42. > :25:03.

:25:03. > :25:11.often tell. On the track sometimes you can look for expressions and

:25:11. > :25:16.how people are feeling, but all four of these... Keitany is maybe

:25:17. > :25:21.showing some strain on her face. are coming down to it. None of them

:25:22. > :25:25.will know who has got a really, really fast sprint finish because

:25:25. > :25:30.they have never been in this situation before. They have never

:25:30. > :25:40.seen each other sprint at the end of a marathon. Augusto is running

:25:40. > :25:42.

:25:42. > :25:49.great now. Really, really well. From absolutely no where, the

:25:49. > :25:54.Ukrainian, who has run a personal best this year of 2:24. That was in

:25:54. > :26:01.Japan. You were talking about a track runner, she is looking like a

:26:01. > :26:08.10,000m runner. She has come from way back. Flanagan has run a hard

:26:08. > :26:13.race today. But the Ukrainian... Obviously the plan was to run the

:26:13. > :26:21.second half of the race first event -- faster than the first half. She

:26:21. > :26:28.is eating up the arts. She has got... She has made up a minute on

:26:28. > :26:34.Flanagan in four kilometres. Terrific running. Absolutely flying

:26:34. > :26:44.at the moment. She will not do anything about the medals, but may

:26:44. > :26:48.

:26:48. > :26:55.well have a top five or top-six have run the second half of her

:26:55. > :27:02.race much quicker than she has done before. Who is your money on? Who

:27:02. > :27:07.do you think will take this? Kenya have never won this Olympic

:27:07. > :27:12.marathon title. Russia have done before, Ethiopia have before. This

:27:12. > :27:21.is the quickest runner on the road at the moment. She certainly is.

:27:21. > :27:27.She looks strong. Two: it has to go in the women's marathon. -- Tim

:27:27. > :27:31.kilometres. They are getting the kind of support we witness annually

:27:31. > :27:37.in the London Marathon. Priscah Jeptoo, near Arras to the crowd.

:27:37. > :27:41.Archipova of Russia in the White first. Gelana of Ethiopia, the

:27:41. > :27:48.Ethiopian record holder, next to her. Probably the race favourite,

:27:48. > :27:53.Mary Keitany. They turn next to Big Ben and what a race we have in

:27:53. > :27:58.prospect. Who will make the first move? Is Keitany coming under

:27:58. > :28:03.pressure? She moves to the outside. Gelana presses on. Jeptoo is

:28:03. > :28:08.looking good. This is anyone's race. Will it come down to the last

:28:08. > :28:11.couple of hundred metres? You would like to get the race finished

:28:11. > :28:21.before it becomes to a sprint finish, maybe they will not be able

:28:21. > :28:23.

:28:23. > :28:32.to do that today. They have only got a mile to go. Maybe that Clarke

:28:32. > :28:39.is for the leaders, actually. I'm sure it is. -- that clock.

:28:39. > :28:45.Ukrainian will move into 5th place, but a long way behind these four.

:28:45. > :28:52.They come down towards Birdcage Walk. We've seen this in the London

:28:52. > :28:56.Marathon before. We've seen three or four coming around the last

:28:56. > :29:05.corner together. Are we going to see a sprint finish? This is Mary

:29:05. > :29:10.Keitany starting to struggle. She is trying to hang on. That little

:29:10. > :29:15.gap appears as Gelana and Jeptoo put the pressure on. For Russia and

:29:15. > :29:21.is still there, but Keitany is struggling. A we go back down the

:29:21. > :29:29.road and see the changes occurring. Augusto in the background. The

:29:29. > :29:33.Ukrainian moving past bijou of China. These are the minor places.

:29:33. > :29:37.Mary Keitany is off the group. It is down to three and it looks as

:29:37. > :29:43.though the medals are decided. Which country is going to take the

:29:43. > :29:49.gold? Keitany, the favourite, the winner of the London Marathon this

:29:49. > :29:54.year, isn't going to be strong enough today. The gap has opened.

:29:54. > :29:58.The Russian coming under pressure, too. The Ethiopian and the other

:29:58. > :30:06.Kenyan, Jeptoo, at the World Championship silver medallist. She

:30:06. > :30:10.looks like she will get a medal today. Will Gelana prevail? Often

:30:10. > :30:16.when you see Ethiopian some Kenyans, Ethiopians always tend to have a

:30:16. > :30:22.good sprint finish as a general rule. Gelana is trying to make this

:30:22. > :30:25.a long run. A long run for Ethiopia and a gold medal. It looks like for

:30:25. > :30:34.Russia and is out of contention. It looks like she did her running

:30:34. > :30:41.early. The crowds are creating a real atmosphere. Gelana, the

:30:41. > :30:49.Ethiopian marathon record holder. We saw cheeriness Dibaba win the

:30:49. > :30:54.10,000m the other night. -- cherished Dibaba. Is this going to

:30:54. > :31:00.be Ethiopia's second victory in the Olympic marathon history? Moving

:31:00. > :31:05.alongside Japan. Incidentally, the race has been devoid of a great

:31:05. > :31:09.performance by the Japanese. Jeptoo, the World Championship silver

:31:09. > :31:15.medallist, on her way to becoming the Olympic silver medallist.

:31:15. > :31:22.Cheeky Gelana, winner of Rotterdam, the Ethiopian record holder, look

:31:22. > :31:27.at the sight ahead of her. She has always been in contention. 41.5

:31:27. > :31:30.kilometres to go, she is well within sight of the finish. They

:31:30. > :31:37.run around the Queen Victoria Memorial. She is beginning to

:31:37. > :31:42.sprint. She can't relax yet. It looks like it is a winning gap. The

:31:42. > :31:46.abroad goes up as the Ethiopian enters the Mall in first place.

:31:46. > :31:56.Buckingham Palace behind her. 26 miles behind her. Has she done

:31:56. > :32:00.

:32:00. > :32:07.enough? 12 years ago, in Sydney, her uncle won the Olympic marathon.

:32:07. > :32:12.Will Tiki Gelana make it two gold medals in the family or will she

:32:12. > :32:16.come under pressure in the last 300 metres from Jeptoo? Jeptoo is

:32:16. > :32:22.fighting hard, but the Ethiopian looked behind once more. It is hers

:32:22. > :32:28.to win. She grits her teeth and digs deep. She finds a bit of speed.

:32:28. > :32:37.She pumps the arms hard. It has been an enthralling marathon.

:32:37. > :32:43.What's more, it will be Ethiopia who will take the honours. One more

:32:43. > :32:46.look behind. A little bit of concern from her, but I don't think

:32:46. > :32:56.there's any need because Jeptoo can't raise any sort of sprint

:32:56. > :32:57.

:32:57. > :33:01.finish. The crowd showing their appreciation. She ran a super race

:33:01. > :33:04.in Rotterdam to qualify for the Olympics. She showed she could run

:33:04. > :33:11.a fast time and this time she showed she could win a major

:33:11. > :33:18.championship. Gelana is the Olympic champion! Ethiopia take the gold

:33:18. > :33:25.medal. Priscah Jeptoo of Kenya takes the silver. And then the

:33:25. > :33:33.surprise package, really. Archipova of Russia coming in to take a well

:33:33. > :33:38.deserved bronze medal. She is going to run a personal best as well. And

:33:38. > :33:45.then the favourite, the pre-race favourite, Mary Keitany, almost

:33:45. > :33:55.jogging as her dream of becoming the Olympic champion has been taken

:33:55. > :34:06.

:34:06. > :34:16.Keitany who knows about winning in London. Not able to do it here. In

:34:16. > :34:27.

:34:27. > :34:31.the distance we can see the quicker. Just under 69. Just under

:34:31. > :34:39.70 minutes for the second half of the race. Gelana are going in the

:34:39. > :34:49.opposite direction as the Ukrainian, absolutely delighted with her

:34:49. > :34:55.performance in 5th place. A top 10 finish as a conduit. Leading the

:34:55. > :35:01.Chinese challenge at these Olympic Games. She will finish in 6th place.

:35:01. > :35:06.Jessica Augusto will take 7th place. Shalane Flanagan has faded badly.

:35:06. > :35:13.Augusta will be pretty pleased. You can see how delighted she is with

:35:13. > :35:17.her performance. Brendan, I'm not sure many people would have tipped

:35:17. > :35:23.Tiki Gelana. She had a fast time coming into this. I would not say

:35:23. > :35:28.she was unknown, but in her first major championships to come and run

:35:28. > :35:34.in such a way. She looked really relaxed for such a long time,

:35:34. > :35:42.didn't she? The only strange that appeared on her face was in the

:35:42. > :35:52.last 200 to 300 metres. We see the athletes still crossing the line.

:35:52. > :36:05.

:36:05. > :36:11.but that was a great race. Goucher waving to the crowd. We can see the

:36:11. > :36:17.champion, Tiki Gelana of Ethiopia. That is Goucher finishing. We think

:36:17. > :36:23.Freya Murray is running well. We will give you the details of Murray

:36:23. > :36:26.and Hallissey When we get the final result. Kenya wanted to win this

:36:26. > :36:31.Olympic marathon title so badly, but once again they had to play

:36:31. > :36:35.second fiddle to the dancing Ethiopians. The gold medal to Tiki

:36:35. > :36:45.Gelana. A brilliant run from her. It was an Olympic record as well.

:36:45. > :36:49.The silver to Jeptoo and the bronze STUDIO: Queen Victoria did not live

:36:49. > :36:55.long enough to witness a London Olympics. I laugh at shot as the

:36:55. > :36:58.runners turned into a run down the Mall. There's the Queen Victoria

:36:58. > :37:04.memorial with her looking down. What a finish and congratulations

:37:04. > :37:14.to Ethiopia. We will head back to Canada Gate and Tanni Grey-Thompson

:37:14. > :37:16.

:37:16. > :37:19.is there. It is actually quite a deceptive shots... It is actually

:37:19. > :37:23.quite a deceptive shot as you come down the Mall because you still

:37:23. > :37:33.have several hundred metres of running today. The weather has

:37:33. > :37:33.

:37:33. > :37:39.changed again. We have come back to rein. July and I came into this not

:37:39. > :37:42.unknown, but possibly as a surprise. -- Gelana. She wasn't right up

:37:42. > :37:47.there, but she's got incredible time to her name. She was

:37:47. > :37:51.definitely going to be in contention. The way she looked so

:37:51. > :38:01.relaxed in the final stages, and you could see into the strain on

:38:01. > :38:01.

:38:01. > :38:51.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 73 seconds

:38:51. > :38:55.Kai tiny's face. Archipova did very One thing that did surprise me was

:38:55. > :39:05.seeing Jeptoo, running across to get a water bottle, to hand it over.

:39:05. > :39:06.

:39:06. > :39:10.In the final two kilometres of the race.

:39:10. > :39:15.Even the Kenyan team probably thought that Mary Keitany was

:39:16. > :39:24.favourite, then she had her team- mates around her, to help her.