Edwards says Radcliffe’s Olympic struggles demonstrate that winning gold is never easy.
“This just shows how tough it is to win an Olympic Games,” he said. “You rely so much on good fortune to even get there. To arrive at an Olympics in your best shape is hard and just hasn’t quite worked out for Paula.”
Edwards still believes Radcliffe’s reputation is undiminished despite her lack of success at the Olympics.
“She should be remembered as one of our greatest athletes of all time,” he said.
“She has been a great ambassador for the sport in terms of attitude. Her single-minded focus, to be as good as she can be, the way she has overcome all the disappointments she has had – a lesser person would have been out of the sport long before now.”
Edwards is in no doubt that Radcliffe is a big favourite of British athletics fans.
“I think Brits love a plucky loser and Paula epitomised that,” he said.
“It’s the mindset and attitude she brings to the sport that makes her so popular. She was incredibly courageous.
“Initially, she never quite managed to win a medal on the track. She set the pace but would never have the speed at the end and the African runners would sprint away.”
Nevertheless, Edwards insisted her marathon world record, set in London in 2003 and still standing, is a glowing testament to her ability.
“When you consider long-distance running has been dominated by the Africans and she has got one of the hardest world records out there, it is absolutely outstanding,” said Edwards. “What she has done on the roads in the marathon has been incredible.
“There was that brilliant run in Munich, when she won the European title over 10,000m in the rain. It was an outstanding run.”
Edwards also praised Radcliffe for her anti-drugs stance.
“She should also be remembered for her fight against doping,” he said. “She has been very outspoken and that is very important as well. I think she is an inspiration to everybody.”
