Kenya's world record holder Brigid Kosgei hopes her injury problems were not as bad as feared after she retired from the London Marathon less than four minutes into Sunday's race.
The 29-year-old, who won the London Marathon in 2019 and 2020, cut a forlorn figure as she pulled up lame.
The two-time Chicago Marathon champion, the world-record holder for women running in a mixed-sex marathon, had been suffering from hamstring and knee problems but said on Friday she felt they were "not so bad".
Even a fully fit Kosgei would have faced a daunting challenge to win a third London Marathon.
Yalemzerf Yehualaw, a 23-year-old Ethiopian, is aiming to follow Kosgei in winning back-to-back London Marathon titles.
The field also includes reigning Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir.
Dutch runner Sifan Hassan was enduring a tough baptism of fire over the distance – the 5 000 and 10 000 metres Olympic champion had been in the leading group but was dropped and holding her side after the hour mark.