Jo Pavey will continue her long term build up to next year's Olympic Games when competing at the Bupa Great Yorkshire Run on 9 October, 2011
Pavey, who achieved the Olympic marathon qualifying mark at the Virgin London Marathon in April, continued her excellent form when returning to the capital at the end of May and winning the Bupa London 10,000, which includes a stretch of the Olympic course.
She then she suffered a niggling injury which forced her withdrawal from the World Championships Marathon in Daegu last month, but returned with a solid performance at the recent Bupa Great North Run.
Pavey, who finished fourth in a very respectable half marathon time of 1:10:49, said: "I was just delighted to be racing again after my recent foot injury. I would have liked to have gone a bit quicker, but that’s down to a lack of race sharpness.”
Now the 37-year-old former track star, whose next marathon outing will be in New York in November, plans to use the testing 10k terrain of the Bupa Great Yorkshire Run in Sheffield as a further stepping stone to reaching optimum racing shape.
"The race and the distance comes at the perfect time for Jo who, despite requiring essential endurance, will also need some speed in her legs for New York," said Peter Riley, the meeting's elite athletes manager, and himself a highly experienced former British international runner.
"I'm personally expecting a powerhouse display from Jo in Sheffield. She knows she needs to open the throttles and give her whole body a real test to ensure there are no niggles lurking which could prove a hindrance in the next few weeks."
Riley also revealed that Kenya's Micah Kogo, the former 10k world record holder and the current holder of the UKA All-Comers' record will compete in the men's race.
"He's in brilliant form at the moment and will replace Craig Mottram of Australia," Riley said of the Olympic 10,000m bronze medallist.
"He'll be the one to beat, although I'm sure the Brits, Chris Thompson and Andy Lemoncello, will give him a run for his money along with Viktor Rothlin of Switzerland."
Entries remain open for the event at www.greatrun.org with over 5,000 runners signed up to date.
