In the marathon anything can happen.

I was glad I did a year abroad, because it helped me as an athlete and as a person. That took me out of my comfort zone. Watching the French athletes train in the Pyrenees made me realise what I had to do to become a top athlete.

I have always run as hard as I can. You are not going to run any harder with or without men. You are running on your own two feet.

From my training I can get a good idea of what I'm capable of.

An Olympic medal won't define my whole life, although it might look like it to onlookers. When I look back, I should have been able to get an Olympic medal.

I prefer just a women's race. It's a totally different game mentally.

I used to say that the newspapers were tomorrow's fish and chip paper, but I didn't really mean it; I could still be hurt by what they said. After Athens, I just didn't care.