Gebrselassie retirement U-turn

Haile Gebrselassie confirmed on Monday he has reversed his decision to quit athletics.

The veteran Ethiopian tearfully announced his intention to retire after pulling out of the ING New York Marathon with 10 miles remaining due to a knee injury earlier this month.

The double Olympic gold medallist, regarded by many as the greatest long-distance runner of all time, hinted via his Twitter account last week he may have been too hasty and needed time to consider his future. And he confirmed via the same social networking site that he was going to carry on.

He wrote on Twitter: "First I want to thank you for all your support and great responses. After a few days in the countryside I could take some decisions.

"Running is in my blood and I decided to continue competing. My announcement in New York was my first reaction after a disappointing race.

"When my knee is better again I will start focusing on my next race. Thank you again for all your support."

Gebrselassie's coach Woldemeskel Kostre believes the 37-year-old can compete for another eight years at the top level.

He told L'Equipe: "As long as he has the desire and the willingness he can keep running until he's 45.

"People here have been urging him to continue running."