One of athletic's most intriguing duels - Cathy Freeman vs Marie-Jose Perec - looks set to be renewed after reports that the enigmatic Frenchwoman is making a comeback.
Perec, 34, who won 400m gold medals at the 1992 and 1996 Olympics before relinquishing the crown to Freeman in Sydney in 2000,has not raced since her exit from Sydney days before her pet event.
Perec's coach, Camille Elizabeth, said yesterday the three-time Olympic champion would compete in the 400m at next year's world championships in Paris in August.
"Marie-Jo will be at the world championships to win," Elizabeth told Le Parisien newspaper.
Freeman's coach, Peter Fortune, sees the announcement as a stimulus for Freeman to get back to her best.
In their last confrontation, at a meet in Brussels in 1996, Freeman nudged out Perec.
