As the looms, Paula Radcliffe has acknowledged that her days of long-distance running are behind her. The Team GB icon hung up her running shoes after crossing the finish line at the Boston Marathon in the United States.

Radcliffe, aged 51, clinched the coveted Six Star Medal by finishing the Boston marathon, an accolade given to those who complete all six World Marathon Majors. Despite a calf injury just nine miles into the race, she persevered to finish with a commendable time of two hours and 53 minutes. Upon announcing her retirement, the Olympic athlete and 2005 marathon world champion conceded, "my body is done". With her competitive days now officially over, Express Sport reflects on her life and illustrious career.

Radcliffe's net worth is believed to be in the region of £6million, accumulated through her prize money over a distinguished career and various other investments.

In conversation with in 2009, Radcliffe discussed the property investments she had made at the time, revealing: "In Monaco we rent, but we kept our four-bedroom house in Loughborough and let it. I also own a student house I bought in 1996 and I let that.

"I'm lucky because I don't have a mortgage on either property. So, although they will undoubtedly have fallen in value, at least they are earning something for me.

"We can't afford to buy in Monaco - everything here is very expensive. Two-bedroom apartments cost anything from £1m up to £6m or £7m for a really good location with views. I'm certainly not in that bracket."

As previously mentioned, Radcliffe resides in Monaco, having moved there in 2004. The decision to relocate to the French Riviera came after a devastating experience at the 2004 Olympic Games, where she suffered a leg injury.

She endured the pain by taking high doses of anti-inflammatory medication, which ultimately wreaked havoc on her stomach and led to her drop out of the marathon after 22 miles. Just five days later, she had to withdraw from the 10,000 metres under similar distressing conditions, despite being a top contender for gold in both events.

The media spotlight was intensely focussed on Radcliffe, and while some showed empathy, others were harshly critical. It was then that she chose to leave the UK. In a 2016 interview with regarding her move to Monaco, while she cited training in the Pyrenees and wanting her children to grow up bilingual, she also felt like she had disappointed the nation.

She said: "I found it too distressing to stay in England after what happened in Athens. I felt like I'd let the country down. I decided I didn't want to live somewhere where I was recognised all the time."

Radcliffe's win-at-all-costs attitude was laid bare during the 2005 London Marathon. Looking back on that race from two decades ago, Radcliffe will cherish the triumph of crossing the finish line first in a stunning two hours, 17 minutes and 42 seconds.

This marked her third victory in the prestigious long-distance run through London. Yet, the public reminiscence of that day isn't aligned with the celebration of her running feat but rather an infamous pitstop she made along the way.

Faced with severe stomach cramps, Radcliffe had no choice but to step aside mid-race and relieve herself, an act unexpectedly performed in full view of the gathered crowd. Reflecting on the incident in 2015, she admitted: "It is funny because out of everything I have achieved I don't think I will ever live it down. It is one of those things you would obviously never do when you are not in that competition zone or environment but I did what I had to do and what was in the rules to win the race.

"I had bad stomach cramps and put up with it for as long as I could. I was looking and looking and looking for a toilet and I would have had to climb a barrier to go - and I couldn't envisage being able to climb a barrier at that point. I don't regret it because I won."

Radcliffe is married to former middle-distance runner Gary Lough, who competed for Great Britain at the 1995 World Athletics Championships. The couple, having met as students at Loughborough University, tied the knot in the year 2000.

They have two children together - Raphael, 14, and Isla, 18. Remarkably, Isla is geared up to participate in her first London Marathon this weekend, a significant milestone following her diagnosis with a rare form of ovarian cancer at just 13.

Reflecting on her daughter's treatment, which led to her being declared cancer-free four years ago, Radcliffe said: "It's the hardest thing a parent can go through.

"You can support them and be with them the whole way through, but you can't do that chemo for them. It's horrible to watch your child suffering through that, but at the same time we believed that if it felt bad, it was killing the cancer."