SONIA O'SULLIVAN has sensationally revealed that she wants to run in the London Olympics in 2012 . . . when she's 43.

The 37-year-old has won everything in middle-distance running except an Olympic gold medal, but is unlikely to compete in Beijing in 2008. London four years later, however, has piqued her interest. The Sydneybased mother-of-two trains in London during summer months and said the 2012 games would suit her better than Beijing.

"Beijing is two years away but in a way, it doesn't grab my attention, " she said. "I could throw something at you totally unrealistic and far fetched but not impossible. My vision for the future is that it wouldn't be impossible for me to run in the Olympics in London. That would have a much greater attraction to me than Beijing because I've got more affinity with London than Beijing.

"If I was 20 years old, the Olympics could be on the moon and I'd still want to go and win. I've been to the Olympics before and I've experienced the good and the bad. Now I think, from a participatory point of view, the London Olympics would be fantastic and it's not impossible that I could qualify and run for Ireland."

The Cork-born runner may compete in the marathon in London as she has become increasingly taken with the the event in recent years. Comparing herself to tennis great Martina Navratilova (49) who has competed in this year's Wimbledon, O'Sullivan today said she was enjoying training more than ever.

"Navratilova felt that she was forced into retirement and forced to stop doing what she loved the most, " she said.

"I'm in the same position, I love doing what I do. I love training. Young athletes make you feel young when you train with them."

One of the leading middledistance runners for most of the 1990s, O'Sullivan won a gold medal at the 1995 World Athletics Championships.

She took a silver medal at the 2000 Olympics as well as three European Championship golds and two World Cross-Country Championship titles.