Cracknell hits out at Radcliffe

Cracknell won his second Olympic gold medal in Athens

Rowing star James Cracknell says fellow Briton Paula Radcliffe was wrong to quit twice at the Athens Olympics.

Radcliffe failed to finish both the marathon and 10,000m, leaving Cracknell a disappointed spectator.

"I went to watch her 10,000m and I was not overly impressed when she quit," he told the Question of Sport magazine.

"Paula is a fabulous athlete and I am pleased she won the New York Marathon but as an athlete I feel uncomfortable with what she did in Athens."

Cracknell, who announced last week that he was taking a year off rowing to regain his mental strength, knows the importance of British support at major events.

"A lot of people cared what happened to her and the other British athletes. It is important not to forget that," he said.

Had Paula been tied to someone else's leg in the marathon, she would not have stopped running James Cracknell

"At 5.30 in the morning on the day of our race, there were 100 Brits standing in the dark to watch us during our warm-up paddle.

"So many Brits lined the marathon route and gathered in the stadium specifically to clap Paula round."

Cracknell contrasted the lack of criticism of Radcliffe with the treatment of Australian rower Sally Robbins, who stopped rowing in the women's eight final.

Robbins, who slumped in her boat suffering from exhaustion, was shunned by her team-mates and heavily criticised by the Australian media, who dubbed her "Lay-down Sally".

Aussie eight shun team-mate

"Had Paula been tied to someone else's leg in the marathon, she would not have stopped running," said Cracknell.

"You don't stop. The Australian eight were not going to win but you get sent to the Olympics to cross the finish line, not to start the race."