The 33-year-old from Nottingham continued his stunning long distance form earlier this month after he smashed his own world record for a leg amputee by nearly three minutes with an astonishing time of two hours 42min 52sec in the Chicago Marathon.

Whitehead said: "It was fantastic to claim another personal best in Chicago, particularly when the conditions were so hot and not at all ideal for marathon running.

"I took a bit of time off earlier this year to really concentrate on my schedule and this shows that my hard work in training is beginning to pay.

"My goal for next year is to run well at the London Marathon.

"It would be great to do it with the 2012 Games just around the corner and great to show the people of London just what a Paralympian can do over the distance."

Whitehead's world record sees him close in on his long-term target of running 2:35:00, which is expected to be the A standard qualifying time for the T46 disability category at the London 2012 Paralympics.

There is actually no marathon event for leg amputees at the Paralympics so in order for Whitehead to compete at London 2012 he is going to have to qualify in the T46 disability category against arm amputees.

But rather than feel bitter about having to qualify in a category where he faces an obvious physical disadvantage, Whitehead admitted he is confident of not only competing at the London 2012 Paralympics but also of doing very well.

He said: "London 2012 is a huge goal for me but I'm not just going there to make up the numbers.

"I want to do really well and I believe that if I can reach my best form, I can even medal at the Games.

"I've got a lot to think about between now and then though, and I've obviously got big events coming up like the IPC World Athletics Championships in Christchurch in January where I will be doing the 200m - to work on my fast-twitch muscles - as well as the marathon.

"But 2012 and running through the streets of London is always at the back of my mind and that is why the London Marathon is a big goal for me.

"I've been sitting down a lot with my coach Liz Yelling and working on areas where I can improve.

"Next year I'll be going full-time as an athlete, which will be a huge boost as it will give me a lot more time to rest, recover and focus on what I'm eating and when.

"That is really important when you are a marathon runner and I hope that at some point next year I can really start to come into my peak form ahead of 2012 and continue to lower my world record even further."

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