Jo Pavey and Beth Potter will lead Team GB and south west London’s charge for medals today as the athletics gets under way in Rio.
The 10,000m is one of three events in the athletics handing out medals on Friday, along with the men’s 20km race walk and the women’s shot put.
Pavey and Potter will be joined by 37 other athletes in the race, which will begin at 3.30pm.
The main contenders include Vivian Cheruiyot, the World Champion who won medals in both the 5M000m and 10M000m in London, Tirunesh Dibaba, the Olympic Champion, and the dangerous Ethiopian Gelete Burka, who took silver at the Worlds.
In among the quality of the field, Teddington-based Potter and Pavey will be up against it in terms of getting on the podium, but will hope for at least a top 10 finish.
Teddington’s Pavey is bidding to become Britain’s oldest ever medal winner, competing at the grand old age of 42.
She has a habit of making history, becoming the oldest female European Champion at the age of 40 years and 325 days after winning gold at the 2014 European Championships in Zurich.
Potter, who attended St Mary’s University, is competing in her first Olympics, and will be looking to beat her PB of 32:03.45.
