Sonia O'Sullivan will not compete in the World Indoor Championships in Birmingham next month.

O'Sullivan has told Irish athletics officials that she will instead concentrate on the short course event at the World Cross Country Championships a fortnight later.

The Olympic 5000m silver medallist had indicated her intention to compete in both championships.

However, the 33-year-old has evidently decided that doubling up would be asking too much.

Carroll unavailable

The World Indoors will take place in Birmingham from 14-16 March with the cross country event a fortnight later in Lausanne.

O'Sullivan had planned to run the 3000m in Birmingham.

Over the same distance, she was narrowly beaten into second place by Romanian Gabriela Szabo at the 1997 World Indoors in Paris.

Mark Carroll, meanwhile, has informed the Irish selectors that he will unavailable for both the World Indoors and World Cross Country Championships.

Carroll is in training for the Boston Marathon in April.