CROSS COUNTRY/European Championships: Ian O'Riordan finds Sonia O'Sullivan remarkably upbeat ahead of Sunday's big race, despite the presence of a certain Paula Radcliffe.

Around lunchtime last Friday, just as Sonia O'Sullivan touched down in London after the long-haul flight from Australia, word come through that Paula Radcliffe was definitely running in the European Cross Country Championships. For hopes of Irish individual and team glory it seemed like killer news.

Only O'Sullivan doesn't quite see it that way. The presence of Radcliffe on the starting line in Edinburgh this Sunday was something she'd always expected, and it certainly hasn't altered her own ambitions of winning. And what better way to end a year she'd otherwise like to forget (think Paris and that World Championship 5,000 metres) than by beating Radcliffe on home territory?

"Well I'd figured all along that Paula would be running," says O'Sullivan. "There was never really any great reason why she wouldn't run. I mean she's not doing anything else at the moment, or training for anything specific.

"But I've definitely been totally focused on this race for weeks now. And of course it would be a great end to the year. And I think it's as good a chance as you'll get to beat Paula. I mean I don't really know what she's been doing in training, but she hasn't been to altitude training or anything like that."

Despite that calamity of a race in Paris, a performance she might never truly explain, O'Sullivan sounds quietly confident of her current form. She'd returned to Australia in early October after scoring a couple of victories in road races, and in the slightly warmer climes of Melbourne she geared her training solely towards Edinburgh - while also celebrating her 34th birthday.

And cross-country running still motivates her in a big way. It's still only five years since she became the first athlete ever to win both the long and short world titles in the same year, and before now the European event has never fitted into her plans. In fact it's one of the few medals missing from her collection.

"Yeah, I am feeling quite good," she admits. "I had been doing some good sessions down in Australia before coming out here. And all the people I'd been training with ran last week in Melbourne, in the Zatopek track meet, and they all showed very good form. And hopefully I will too."

Radcliffe was beaten into third place just three weeks ago at the Chiba International Relay in Japan, finishing 30 seconds behind Ethiopian Berhane Adere in the 10km leg. So up to last Friday she was still undecided about running in Edinburgh, before fitness tests convinced her there was nothing seriously wrong.

O'Sullivan, however, expects nothing less than a fully fit and typically competitive Radcliffe to toe the line on Sunday. The Briton won this event in Italy five years ago for what was her first major title since the world junior cross country in 1992 and - just five days short of her 30th birthday - she continues to set standards in distance running.

"Well Paula still ran 30:42 in that race in Japan. And there can't be that much wrong with you if you run 30:42. That's still a pretty good run," said O'Sullivan.

"But I suppose in the past the European cross country has been generally quite an easy race. But by all accounts it's looking like a very good race this year."

Both O'Sullivan and Radcliffe will also have team glory in the back of their minds on Sunday. It's quite possible whoever wins will also lead her team to the title, as the Irish and British women appear to be the main contenders.

And for the first time since 1997, when they took team bronze at the world cross country in Turin, O'Sullivan and Catherina McKiernan wear the Irish vest in the same race: "Oh yeah, it's great having Catherina in there. And I definitely think there is a good possibility of a medal for the team."

For the past week O'Sullivan has been back running around her old haunts of London. Her partner, Nic, and their two daughters have remained in Australia, leaving O'Sullivan alone with the thoughts of the 6.5km race that lies ahead. And the thoughts of winning.