Radcliffe to tackle Dita in London

Assuming Paula Radcliffe is fit and well come the morning of 26 April – not something to be taken for granted, given her ill fortune on that front and the fact that there are 21 weeks still to negotiate – the woman who has taken the marathon world record beyond the grasp of her fellow mortals will get the chance to claim the scalp of the Olympic champion Constantina Dita in the 2009 London Marathon. The elite women's field for next year's big race was announced yesterday and it pits Radcliffe against the Romanian who holds the prize that has become a holy grail for the Briton.

It might have been different in Beijing in August had Radcliffe not arrived at the start line with just a couple of weeks of proper training behind her following a stress fracture of the left femur. As it was, she hobbled home 23rd while Dita stormed to victory. In 10 attempts at the 26.2 mile distance, Radcliffe has suffered only two defeats – when far from fully fit in Beijing, and when suffering from illness and injury in the 2004 Olympic race in Athens.

Her eighth win came only last month, in the New York City Marathon. That day she finished 2min 22sec clear of Dita. "I always like to race Constantina," Radcliffe said. "She runs an honest race."

Radcliffe will be attempting to emulate Ingrid Kristiansen, the Norwegian who won the women's race four times in the 1980s.