Greenwood to skip Comrades

Johannesburg - British ultra-distance specialist Ellie Greenwood as withdrawn from next month's Comrades Marathon with an ankle injury.

"I will not be able to compete at Comrades this year," Greenwood told the Nedbank Running Club in an e-mail.

"I have been focusing on recovery through time off, easing back into running, physio etc but at the moment I am seeing no real improvement in my ankle pain.

"It is pain on my peroneal nerve and I simply feel that I am not even sure if I could run 89km right now let alone compete."

Greenwood finished fourth on her Comrades debut in 2011, and was second in last year's 'down' run behind Russian Elena Nurgalieva, who won the women's race for the seventh time.

"I am keener than ever to compete in 2014 at Comrades," Greenwood said.

The 2013 edition of the annual ultra-marathon, an 'up' run between Durban and Pietermaritzburg, will be held on Sunday, June 2.