Bedford slates UK men

Taken from The Sun

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By VIKKI ORVICE

DAVID BEDFORD has accused Britain’s male distance runners of laziness — with not one finishing in the top 10 of the London Marathon.

Kenyan Felix Limo clocked 2hr 06min 39sec to win the 26.2-mile event as race favourite Haile Gebrselassie faded in the final stages, crossing the line ninth in 2:09:05.

And with Jon Brown out injured, it was Peter Riley who was the first British runner home — finishing 12th in 2:14:31.

Race director Bedford said: “Most of the youngsters on the men’s side aren’t doing nearly enough training or distance work.

“Twenty years ago, we had around 15 men who could run faster than two hours 12 minutes, now we only have Jon Brown.

“Athletes need to have the right commitment and at the moment they don’t.

“You have to commit your life. You can’t be out nightclubbing or messing around with PlayStations.”

Riley, who was making his marathon debut, said: “I was happy. It was a new experience as I’ve only ever been over 10km three times before.”

Oxford-born Mara Yamauchi, whose husband is Japanese, showed the men how it should be done. She was sixth behind American winner Deena Kastor in 2:25:13 — the second-fastest ever UK women’s time.

Yamauchi, whose effort has only ever been beaten by Paula Radcliffe’s world record of 2:15:25, has taken unpaid leave from the foreign office as she prepares for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

She said: “The crowd support was great despite the weather. I’m pleased I ran a personal best.”

One of the founding aims of the London Marathon when it began in 1981 was to improve the overall standard of British distance running.

But Steve Jones’ British men’s record of 2:08:16 has stood since 1985.

Bedford insists the exploits of Radcliffe, who pulled out with an ankle injury, prove mixing with the best is possible.

He said: “Paula’s the greatest female distance runner the world’s seen.”