Paralympic Games runner Michael Roeger swaps Boston for Canberra's Lake Burley Griffin

Paralympian Michael Roeger was supposed to be in the United States for the Boston marathon on April 20 before the event was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

So the 31-year-old T46 middle distance and marathon runner effectively had two options: scale back training with a long year ahead, or run his own marathon around Lake Burley Griffin.

Roeger opted to do the latter, racing around the lake and completing a 42.4 kilometre course in two hours and 23 minutes.

And what better way to celebrate that night than with a good feed and a bottle of wine before he sets his sights on the next chapter of his tumultuous road to Tokyo after the Games were postponed until next year.

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"I've been training for the past 12 weeks for that and it obviously got called off, so I just wanted to close this chapter of training," Roeger said.

"It's been a bit of an emotional roller coaster over the past three weeks with the Paralympics being called off, and all of the races being called off.

"I just said to my coach 'what do you think, can I just get out there and enjoy running a marathon on the Boston marathon weekend?' He said 'no worries'.

"I didn't expect to go 2.23, especially on a Saturday morning around Lake Burley Griffin. There's a few hills, a bike path, people, a bit of traffic, but I didn't taper at all and I just felt good. My coach said we could run about 2.30, but my legs were kind to me which is good for a change.

"The training plan for athletes is kind of like the bible so we follow it to a tee, which is why I wanted to do a marathon this weekend, because it was in the training schedule.

"The next week or two I'll just jog as I feel with no real schedule, and just freshen up mentally as well as physically, because it has been a draining month.

"To be honest, I'm 31, looking ahead to another year on top of four is exhausting. But the dream and the fire is still there to win gold, and if it's not 2020 then it'll be 2021."

But now Roeger has a chance to lighten the load just a little bit. He effectively has no choice with athletes unable to receive treatment at the AIS should they be injured.

Roeger had planned to run a big city marathon in Berlin or perhaps Boston after it was rescheduled to October after the Games were postponed, but international travel restrictions mean that is unlikely.

So now he has to find a way to adapt - something Roeger believes won't be too difficult given "the dream is still there, and the fire is still there" to win Paralympic gold.

"We're not training with a group, I don't think I've run with someone for the past month which is a bit annoying. It's hard to push and dig deep," Roeger said.

"When I've got a race planned or I've got other people with me, I'm just an animal, I can push and push and push. When you haven't got a race there, it's hard to hit that next level.

"I'm lucky being a marathon runner, because a lot of other sports can't train. I can still get out twice a day in the bush or around the lake, and still run 100 miles a week.

"That's great for not only keeping fit, but my mental sanity as well. I'm just adjusting my gym programs, I've got a few things I've able to take home from the gym.

"Having these races called off, it has showed me how much I miss competitive racing."