Carroll to miss Boston Marathon

MARK CARROLL has been forced to withdraw from next month’s Boston Marathon with a hip injury.

The Providence-based Cork athlete had his sights on Boston and John Treacy's national record since finishing sixth in the New York Marathon in 2:10.58.

While other faster courses like London or possibly Amsterdam beckoned, he chose Boston, where the 1984 Olympic silver medallist posted his time back in the 1980s.

And, in his build-up he went to train at altitude in Albuquerque, where he picked up the injury.

Yesterday, his agent, Ray Flynn, confirmed that he had informed the organisers of the Boston showpiece possibly the world's best known marathon of his withdrawal.

"It is a hip injury and it is responding to treatment," explained Flynn, who is still the Irish record holder for the mile and 1,500m.

"It is unfortunate, but it is something that needs time. I would see him back running on the track pretty soon and the plan will be to get the qualifying standards out of the way for the world championships in Paris.

"I'm convinced that, with his marathon background, he will run a pretty good 10,000m on the track and I think Paris could be the place where he will do it.

"Mark is a very much underrated athlete. Pound for pound he is the best male athlete Ireland has produced.

"I think that is reflected in the fact that he holds national records over all the middle distances from 3,000m up to 10,000m right now and it is just a matter of time before he gets the marathon record."

The plan had been to post the standards for the world championships in Paris once he returned from altitude training.

Meanwhile, the Irish party and fans left Birmingham yesterday after what was an exciting weekend at the world indoor championships a fact underscored by Paul McKee's bronze medal in the 400m.

And it emerged that McKee could have been awarded the third place on his own rather than sharing it with the former world champion, Welshman Jamie Baulch.

When the photo finish film was reviewed, while the outside showed Baulch might just have shaded it although even this was doubtful, the inner track film showed that McKee's green singlet was visible in front.

The two 400m finalists, McKee and David McCarthy, will now begin their build-up to the world outdoor

championships in Paris.

McCarthy will have the option of going to the World University Games in Korea, but it is unlikely he will take it up.

"It all depends on me getting the qualifying standard for Paris and whether or not we will have a 4 x 400m relay team there. Paris would be my preference right now but the option is there," he said.

McCarthy also has his sights on the European under-23 championships and a medal in the 400m which is now a very realistic target for the 6'4" Leixlip lad.

And the European under-23s is also the target for 60m hurdler Derval O'Rourke, but after that she will have the World University Games as her target.

"I finished seventh in the under-23s the last time and I would be hoping to make it into the medals this year," she said.

"The world student games are also on my list but they overlap with the world championships in Paris. I feel that they would be the better option at this stage in my career as they are in my age group."

She was thrilled with the fact that she ended up 12th in the world in Birmingham, particularly as it will improve her grant for next year.

She is a sports scholarship student at UCD and enjoys all the benefits of that status but she will graduate in May.

"If anyone had told me a year ago I would be in Birmingham lining up with the best in the world in the semi-finals of a world championships I would have laughed," she said.