Pace yourself, Denise

Liz McColgan continued training until two weeks before giving birth to daughter Eilish in 1990 and resumed 12 days afterwards. Nine months after that she won the 1991 world 10,000m crown in a famously punishing race in Tokyo.

Lewis may be more motivated after missing last year's World Championships in Edmonton, pulling out at a late hour with a stomach bug. She was subsequently angered by public debate as to whether her competitive desire was as sharp as ever.

And Gunnell suggests this might again be a factor. "Denise might find herself asking if she still really has that hunger, that's what I found,'' said Gunnell, whose understanding of motivational issues has prompted her to support the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge in July, when 26,000 city workers will run three-and-a-half miles through Battersea Park for charity.

"Once I'd achieved all my goals, I'd had enough. I wanted to do something else, especially have children. I waited until I retired because I didn't want to drag a baby all over the world.'' But Gunnell expects gold this summer for long-time championship bridesmaid Paula Radcliffe. She also backs Radcliffe's decision to stick with track events at the Commonwealth Games and European Championships, despite her second-fastest marathon time in history at the London Marathon.

Gunnell said: "I can see her winning this summer because she's so relaxed, although we'll see how her marathon training affects her on the track. She's right to stick to the shorter events for a while. You can do too many marathons and burn yourself out, so she's doing one or two a year while she still has challenges on the track."