Radcliffe Selected for 2012 Marathon

Paula Radcliffe, Mara Yamauchi and Scott Overall have been selected as the first members of Great Britain's athletics team for London 2012.

Radcliffe, who finished 23rd in Beijing in 2008, has been picked for her fifth Olympic Games at the age of 37.

Yamauchi finished second in the 2009 London Marathon, while Overall made his debut at the distance in September.

They join 11 sailors and five boxers as those who have secured their places in Team GB for next summer's Games.

Radcliffe matches the achievement of heptathlete and javelin thrower Tessa Sanderson and race walker Chris Maddocks as the only track and field athletes to make the British team at five Olympics.

"To represent your country at a home Olympics is something special and I'm over the moon to be selected for Team GB," said Radcliffe.

Her time of two hours 23 minutes and 46 seconds in September's Berlin marathon was well inside UK Athletics' 'A' qualifying time of two hours and 31 minutes.

The race was only the world record holder's second since returning to the roads after the birth of her second child.

Yamauchi clocked two hours, 27 minutes and 24 seconds in November's Yokohama marathon to put herself in contention for selection.

"Thanks for all the tweets. Very proud to be in Team GB. Hoping 5th time lucky!" @PaulaJRadcliffe

Overall, who splits his time between south-west London and the United States, has made an immediate impact after stepping up from 5,000m.

The 28-year-old finished fifth on his marathon debut in Berlin in a time of two hours, 10 minutes and 55 seconds, more than a minute inside the men's 'A' qualifying time.

His place, along with Radcliffe and Yamauchi's, was assured when the British Olympic Association accepted UK Athletics' nomination of the trio at a meeting on Monday.

Other British marathon runners could join them at London 2012 after UK Athletics' second nomination process on 23 April.

RADCLIFFE'S OLYMPICS

Atlanta 1996: 5th in 5,000m

Sydney 2000: 4th in 10,000m

Athens 2004: DNF in marathon

Beijing 2008: 23rd in marathon

Radcliffe Marathon History Stands

Paula Radcliffe has won her battle to prevent her marathon world record being downgraded to "world's best" status.

In August, the International Association of Athletics Federations decided to recognise only times from single-sex events as world records.

Radcliffe, 37, broke the world record at the 2003 London Marathon with two male pacemakers.

However, athletics body IAAF has now ruled that existing records will continue to be recognised.

But, following an IAAF Competition Commission for women's world records for road events, new records will only be recognised and ratified if they come from single-sex races from the start of next year.

Nobody will cancel Paula's record. Her record will never be diminishedIAAF council member Helmut Digel

Radcliffe went to Monaco to lobby IAAF president Lamine Diack about the matter in October.

She had been adamant that her time of two hours, 15 minutes and 25 seconds, which beat her previous world record by 1:53 mins, should still count.

The 2003 London Marathon was one of only two occasions when Radcliffe has run a marathon in a mixed field and she has always argued that she gained no advantage from the two male pacemakers she ran with.

IAAF council member Helmut Digel said: "The record will stay. Nobody will cancel the record of Paula. That is sure. Her record will never be diminished.

"It was not against old records at all. We realise that these performances were excellent performances."

Radcliffe Held on for London 2012

Women's world marathon record holder Paula Radcliffe said she "might have given up" without the "carrot" of London 2012.

The three-time London Marathon winner will take part in her first marathon since 2009 in Berlin on 25 September.

She suffered Olympic disappointments in Athens and Beijing and has also had a number of injury concerns.

"This year has been the hardest ever and if I didn't have London I might have given up," she told BBC Sport.

"Having injury and illness is always difficult. When you are battling through and you've had a number of setbacks, you wonder if you can take one more. But you get over it and get back to what you enjoy about running and the racing and put it behind you.

"I'd been lying if I said I didn't contemplate giving up, especially when you suffer more and more setbacks.

"I did have a couple of weeks of thinking I wasn't going to do it any more but then a couple of days later I was back and decided I wanted to try and do it. I still enjoy doing what I am doing and when I am healthy there is no place I would rather be.

"You have the carrot of London in 2012 and that is what I am working towards.

"I still think I would be trying to do it for as long as my body keeps allowing me and if London hadn't got the 2012 Games I think I still probably would have been in the sport."

The 37-year-old was fourth in her last marathon outing in New York and since then gave birth to son Raphael last September.

She made her comeback in a 10,000m road race in London in May, finishing third in a race she described as "a disaster" after struggling with a back problem.

But now fully fit again, she is hoping to beat the UK Athletics Olympic qualifying time of two hours 31 minutes on her debut in Berlin and try to get the Olympic medal that is missing from her collection.

"Competing in the London Marathon and in front of a home crowd at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester are memories that will always be special but imagining what it would be like in London gives you goosebumps," she said.

"Berlin is a great race and a great course and along with Boston is on my wishlist of marathons.

"I want to go out and win and run well and strong and just enjoy it. It's a while since I've been able to do that."

PAULA RADCLIFFE - Factfile

Born: 17 December 1973

Made marathon debut in London in 2002, winning in the second-quickest time in history

Three-time London Marathon winner (2002, 2003 and 2005)

Set world record of two hours 15 minutes and 25 seconds in the 2003 London Marathon

2005 World Championship marathon champion

Winner of the New York Marathon in 2007 and 2008

Last Marathon appearance was in New York in 2009 where she finished fourth