For an athlete, the biggest pressure comes from within. You know what you want to do and what you’re capable of.
It’s important that athletes can compete on a level playing field. And youngsters coming into the sport can know that if they are working hard and training hard, they’ll see a true reflection of where they stand and what they can achieve worldwide and not be swayed by people who are cheating.
I took a lot of bad things after Athens. I just learnt to deal with it. The problem was beforehand I had this feeling where I was trying to please everybody – I wanted everybody to like me.
You can’t magic yourself back 10 years.
I set myself some specific goals, but the key one is just getting myself into as good a shape as possible for one day this year: the Olympic marathon.
I just want to be in the best shape I can be. Not to stand on that start line and say: ‘Oh my God, I have this injury and that injury.’ I just want to be able to go out and race.
To represent your country at a home Olympics is something special and I’m over the moon to be selected for Team GB. I was pleased to get the qualifying time in Berlin earlier this year and my sole focus is getting in the right shape for London.
I try not to worry about things that I can’t control.
Actually I don’t choose to expose myself in public. I choose to compete; the other side just comes with the package.
Yeah, ideally, I’d probably wish to be more anonymous. But scrutiny and success go together. And I want to be successful.
I can’t imagine living and not running.
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.
You can wish as hard as you like but all that really matters is the shape you’re in on the day of the race. I’ve always felt these really big races aren’t necessarily won by whoever is the fastest. They’re won by the athlete who is the smartest and in the best shape on the day.
You see, with me, when I’m nervous, I smile and laugh.
I’ve always been good at putting things behind me–I fall apart, do my crying bit, and then put it away and move on.
I deliberately returned slowly to training after Raphael was born and everything, apart from being bitten by a dog whilst out training in Monaco at the beginning of the year, has gone pretty well.
I have achieved a lot and I’m grateful for that – I’m just a bit greedy because I want to add the Olympics. It’s once every four years – everyone wants it and very few people get it.
I have always loved running on the roads, ever since I used to take part in relays for my club when I was 12 and 13. I felt really at home on the surface.
It’s totally different from last year because I came in with good shape with no health worries so it was about going out there and running well and enjoying it.
In my Olympic history I don’t think I have achieved my potential as an athlete. That’s what I want when I look back at my career. I want to be able to say I gave it my best shot.