Brit Paula Radcliffe Wins New York Half-Marathon, Eyes Berlin Gold

British runner Paula Radcliffe took first place among women in the 2009 New York City Half-Marathon, completing the course in 1 hour, 9 minutes, 45 seconds, Bloomberg reports. Mamitu Daska of Ethiopia finished second with a time of 1 hour, 11 minutes, 4 seconds.

For Radcliffe, the half-marathon was a road test of sorts, since she had not seen any competitive action in nine months following a March 17 surgery for the removal of bunions and to repair fractures in her right foot. Based on how she feels in this race, she will decide whether or not she will participate in the IAAF World Championships in Berlin later this month, according to BBC Sport.

Bloomberg reports Radcliffe's foot felt okay, but she complained of some tightness in her hamstring during the race. Her decision about the IAAF World Championships in Britain will be decided in a few days. She has said previously that she will only go if she has a good feeling that she will win the gold medal.

Radcliffe's time beat last year's winner, Kenya's Catherine "The Great" Ndereba, who posted a time of 1 hour, 10 minutes, 18 seconds. Ndereba fell to third place this year. Radcliffe had won the New York Full Marathon in 2008 for the third time.

The winner among the men was Ethiopian Tadese Tola, clearing the stage in 1 hour, 1 minutes, and 5 seconds, not quite besting his win in the New York City half-marathon last year with 1 hour, 58 seconds.

On her online diary last year, Paula Radcliffe wrote "I was really pleased with the run in New York, especially as I felt sluggish the first few miles into the wind but was happy to pull through that and actually felt stronger as I picked it up in the closing stages. I have also been really happy with the way I have recovered since."

It certainly looks like Paula is back in top form, remarkable for a rehab stint less than a year old on a foot surgery. She previously had surgery in 2006 on her right foot for Morton's Neuroma, an enlarged nerve near the middle toe on the foot.

Radcliffe still holds many world records in long-distance running. The 36 year-old long-distance runner lives in Monaco, married to her coach/trainer husband, Gary Lough. The couple have one child, Isla, who was born in 2007.

Bloomberg, "Radcliffe Wins NYC Half-Marathon, Test For Worlds"
BBC Sport, "Radcliffe aiming for world glory"
Gary Davis, AC, "New York City Half-Marathon Winners Announced"
Paula Radcliffe, "PaulaRadcliffe.com Diary"