Paula Radcliffe is a British long-distance runner who was born on 17 December, 1973 in Davenham, Cheshire, England. She is married to Gary Lough, her trainer and former Irish international 1500 m runner. They currently reside in Monaco and have a daughter Isla, who was born on January 2007.
Paula Radcliffe studied at Little Leigh Primary School, after her family moved to Barnton. When she was twelve, they shifted to Oakley, Bedfordshire, where she became the member of Bedford Athletic Club. Her father became the club’s vice-chairman and her mother worked as the manager of the women’s cross-country team. Paula Radcliffe then attended Sharnbrook Upper School and Community College, after which she studied French, German and Economics at Loughborough University. She graduated from the university, with a first-class honours degree in modern European Studies.
Paula Radcliffe took up running at the age of seven, despite the fact that she was suffering from asthma and anemia. She was deeply influenced by her father, who was a keen amateur marathon runner.
Paula Radcliffe had her first victory at the World Junior Cross Country Championships held at Boston, USA in 1992. Through the years, she competed in many tournaments at the senior level. Her next podium finish came in 1996 at the World Cross Country Championships held at Turin in Italy, where she finished second. The following year, she emerged victorious at the European Cup in the 5000 m event and this fetched Paula Radcliffe her second gold medal. In 1999, she was the first to cross the finish line in the same event and tournament, which was held at Paris, in France. At the World Half Marathon Championships that took place in Mexico in 2000, she won the event convincingly, thus adding to her tally of gold medals. In 2001, Paula Radcliffe further cemented her position in long-distance running by winning Bristol Half Marathon tournament.
Paula Radcliffe continued her winning streak in 2002 and earned gold medals in most of the events that she participated. Some of the notable ones that she took part that year were the World Cross Country Championships, the Commonwealth Games, and the European Championships. But 2002 was more important in her career as she began competing in marathons. She made established her presence here too by winning the Chicago Marathon that year. In June 2002, Paula Radcliffe was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) and later that year, she was voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
She maintained her impressive form through the next three years. In 2003, she emerged victorious among other runners at the New York City Marathon, thus increasing her gold-medal count. Paula Radcliffe became a familiar face at the London Marathon by winning gold medals in the 2002, 2003, and 2005 editions. Her performance at the New York City Marathon has been equally impressive, with her winning the event in 2004 and 2007. The results of the 2005 World Championships, held at Helsinki, Finland were no different, as Paula Radcliffe convincingly won the race to clinch the title. She was recently seen running at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where she had participated in Women’s Marathon and managed to finish the race as the twenty-third runner even after suffering a cramp in the middle of the race.
The distinctive nodding action as she runs had made Paula Radcliffe easily recognizable to British viewers. She does not rely on sprint finishes, instead she is known for her brilliant starts in order to maintain a decisive lead over her opponents
