A triumphant Paula Radcliffe yesterday put her Athens nightmare behind her by winning the New York City marathon and declaring: ''It's good to be back.''

The world record holder sprinted over the line to record a time of two hours 23 minutes and 10 seconds.

It was a remarkable turnaround in fortunes for the 30-year-old athlete, whose dreams of winning Olympic Gold ended in misery on an Athens pavement 11 weeks ago.

''It's good to be back, feeling like myself and enjoying it,'' said Radcliffe, who crashed out of the Athens marathon after 22 miles.

''I felt totally different. I felt totally myself, nothing like the emptiness and horrible feeling I had then - no dizziness.''

It was the closest finish in the history of the prestigious marathon, as Radcliffe battled Kenyan-born Susan Chepkemei in the final stages.

But the Briton said her main mission was to enjoy the race rather than try to prove herself after the Olympics.

''Today was not about times to me. It was about getting in there, enjoying the race and enjoying the atmosphere.''

And she thanked the fans who waved the flag for Britain on the streets on New York.

''There was a hell of a lot of British support out there and thank you very much for that,'' she said.

Radcliffe clinched victory after a gripping sprint finish, completing the gruelling 26 miles and 385 yards just outside the course record of 2:22:31 and behind her own world record of 2:15:25.

She ran neck and neck with 29-year-old Chepkemei right up until the final metres when she found enough energy to make a break for the finish line and win by four seconds.

''I was just confident in hanging on and running hard in the closing stages to win the race,'' Radcliffe said.

But it was not all plain sailing for the Bedford star.

She said she woke up the night before the race with a stomach ache - a result of eating a reheated spaghetti bolognese.

She feared it could ruin her race, and felt stomach pains after 22 miles. But she knew she could beat Chepkemei if it came to a sprint finish, and held on.

Radcliffe, who decided just two weeks ago to compete in New York, made a strong start, breaking ahead with the front-runners early on.

After about 17 miles, she drew slightly ahead of Chepkemei and another Kenyan-born rival, Lornah Kiplagat.

After 20 miles it was a two-horse race, when Radcliffe and Chepkemei pulled ahead of 30-year-old Kiplagat.

At 22 miles Radcliffe and Chepkemei were neck and neck.

It stayed that way until the closing few metres of the race, when Radcliffe surged for the finish, laying the ghosts of Athens to rest.

Tired but overjoyed, she draped herself victoriously in the Union Flag.

After such a public Olympic failure, many expected Radcliffe to keep a low profile until April's London Marathon.

But instead she decided to make a very public comeback.

Millions of people across Britain tuned in to watch the race.

Worldwide, an estimated 224 million viewers in 125 countries were expected to tune in.

Hendrick Ramaala, who also dropped out of the Olympic Marathon, was a much easier winner of the men's race. The South African took the title in 2:09.28.