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The girl who once ran with a virus and reached such physical extremes she lost her vision, is utterly broken in her mind. Hopefully, it is a temporary condition but we cannot doubt that it is a crisis which was exposed all over again in the Olympic stadium.Her brilliant success in three marathons, her world record, meant nothing as she halted her labouring stride when it became detached from the front runners.The world, by a growing vote, may now be more inclined to say she is a quitter. Mixed news for start-ups

Mixed news for start-ups
Travellers in south-east England get a new option from this week that could speed their journeys as well as saving cash. Canadian Affair (08700 753 000; ) is to start non-stop flights from Gatwick next summer Departures are on Wednesdays. The planes are Boeing 757s, offering 35-inch seat pitch.Fares for travel in June are available at the impressively low price of £248 return.. And there’s a €23 (£15) one-way fare from Paris to London that has an advance purchase requirement of only two days, through of the week: Quebec CityThe capital of the province of Quebec is the biggest Canadian city never to have had a direct flight from Britain. Dr Thomas Lundberg says: “I found it to be poor value-for-money when compared with other Mediterranean destinations.

On the other hand, the history and culture are very interesting.” More happily, Eurolines reports that its buses are now scheduled to run non-stop between Calais and Paris. More information: National Rail Enquiries (08457 48 49 50).Warning of the week: prices in Malta higher than you might thinkAn error resulted in the Sterling conversions quoted in last week’s 48 Hours in Malta being significantly understated Several readers wrote in to point out the mistake. Until then, you can travel from Oxford to Cambridge and back for the day for £16.20 per person; from Warwick to Brighton (below) for £18.50; or from Exeter to London Waterloo for £22.05.The four-for-two promotions on the Gatwick and Heathrow Expresses to and from central London are excellent value – available indefinitely with no restrictions on time of travel. This deal is not available on Sunday 5 September, and ends on 25 September.In the South East, the main operators have joined forces for a summer-only promotion that ends a month from today.

The greatest value is on a Leeds-London ticket, on which the standard Saver return fare is £66.20.In Scotland, the main inter-city link between Edinburgh and Glasgow has a walk-up offer, with a day-trip available for under £4 return. A solution that many of them have come up with is the four-for-two promotion, commonly called “GroupSave”, whereby a party of four adults can travel for the same fare as a couple.Midland Mainline (08457 125 678; ) was a pioneer of the pricing policy, and is allowing three or four people to travel together between any two Midland Mainline-served stations for a total price of just £12 each return You have to book at least a week ahead. Bargain of the week: form a foursome to save on the trains

Bargain of the week: form a foursome to save on the trains
Britain’s train operating companies are constantly cutting fares to stimulate extra journeys while trying to prevent regular travellers taking advantage of the deal. Fares range from £1,319 (1 September-9 December, 24 December-14 June) to £1,519 (the rest of the year).BUSINESS-CLASS ESCAPADE London-Hong Kong-Singapore-Christchurch-Auckland-Fiji-Los Angeles surface to Las Vegas-London costs £3,180.David Orkin began his career in travel selling flights for Trailfinders, and later became a director of Quest Worldwide (now Quest Travel). Fares from £890 for departures between 15 August and 8 December.ONEWORLD EXPLORERLondon-Helsinki-Bangkok-Singapore-Perth-Melbourne-Sydney-Christchurch surface to Auckland-Santiago-Lima-Rio de Janeiro-London. It is best to assume a minimum of £100 for these extras.WORLD DISCOVERYLondon-Hong Kong-Sydney-New York-London. Fares range from £827 (20 April-30 June) to £1,166 (10-23 December).WORLD DISCOVERY PLUSLondon-Santiago-Auckland-Sydney-Perth-Singapore-Bangkok-London.

Fares range from £949 (20 April-30 June) to £1,325 (12-23 December).ESCAPADELondon-Delhi-Singapore-Hanoi surface to Ho Chi Minh City-Sydney-Christchurch-Auckland-Rarotonga (Cook Islands)-Tahiti-Los Angeles surface to San Francisco-London. Fares quoted in The Independent Traveller usually include taxes, fees and charges – except in this case. There is such fluidity in the market at the moment, with airlines adding fuel supplements by the day, that the information would rapidly be out of date. ROUND-THE-WORLD DEALSAll these prices are from Quest Travel (0870 442 3513; ).