Radcliffe, 30, had the operation in Germany after pulling out of last month's world cross country championships with a hamstring injury.

"I was running again five days after the operation and three weeks later I'm back in full training," Radcliffe was quoted as saying in the Daily Telegraph newspaper on Saturday.

"If I hadn't found out what the problem was, it could have grumbled on, causing more niggles later on."

"The surgeon said it would have continued to have caused injuries in the lead-up to Athens," added the European 10,000 metres champion.

Radcliffe is one of Britain's leading medal hopes for the Olympics in August, where she is expected to run the marathon.

She set a world record of two hours 15 minutes and 25 seconds when winning the London marathon last year but will not defend her title on Sunday.