The nineteen eighties decade was a rich one for middle distance running. In Britain the likes of Cram, Coe and Ovett dominated, whilst in Africa, Said Aoutia was the man. Down under, there was one man who had a stranglehold over Australian 1500m and mile running for most of the eighties, his name, Michael Hillardt. Mike won eight Australian titles for 1500m and two for the 800m. He also was the victor at the 1985 World Indoor Athletics Championships 1500m which was the highlight of his career. He finished with a personal best of 3:33.39 for the 1500m (2nd on all time Australian list. ED: Michael is now 4th on the all time list. Since 2008 both Ryan Gregson and Jeff Riseley have bettered his mark), 3:51.82 for the mile, 2:17.49 for 1000m and 1:45.74 for the 800m.
Elite athletes are like everyone else and contend with numerous day-to-day life challenges. Balancing these issues with what is required to be an elite athlete is something Brooke Stratton knows all too well. Brooke is a very private person, who is reluctant to discuss many of her personal battles via her various social media channels. 2019 was a difficult season for Brooke. After returning home from Doha and reading news articles describing her result as disappointing, it was time to speak up and discuss the physical and mental journey she's had to endure throughout her blossoming career.
By Julian Spence
The 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships were hosted by the city of Doha, Qatar. In 2014, when the announcement of the host city was made, I paid very little notice. My five-year-old marathon PR of 2:27 was as underwhelming as my training diary.
Seb Coe to this day is one of the greatest middle-distance runners to ever live. Coe won four Olympic medals, including 1500m gold at the Olympics in 1980 and 1984. He set eight outdoor and three indoor world record in middle-distance track events – including, in 1979, setting three world records in the space of 41 days. The world record he set in the 800m in 1981 remained unbroken until 1997.
In this article we reflect on the main lessons we can gain from the training and career of this brilliant athlete
A luxury holiday retreat in Bright, Victoria, has hit the market offering visitors a “luxury base camp without the summit.” The 5-star quality retreat claims to be Australia’s first commercial property with advanced high-altitude technology, allowing visitors to sleep at up to 3000m (the summit of Mount Kosciuszko, Australia’s highest peak is 2228m).
Before I delve into my theories on 800m training, I think it must be noted that I’m very new to coaching elite athletes. I only started coaching junior athletes in 2012, when Luke was still a schoolboy. And I only became an ‘elite’ senior coach when I took over Luke’s training again after the 2017 world championships. I am still learning my craft. I am forever devouring any information I can get from other coaches I speak with, as well as books, online coaching articles and any training logs that I can find.
Workout Any Day Series S2 E12 featuring World Championships and Commonwealth Games finalist, Alex Beck.
Produced for Runner's Tribe by professional filmmaker Louie Hadfield of Rolling. Production Co - https://www.facebook.com/rollingproductionco/
It’s getting to the end of the year, that time when you start to reflect on your favourite things of the previous 12 months.
Of course, we’ve only had just short of 11 months of 2019, which is one of the perils of end-of-the-year reflection. One of my perennially favourite...
“Long, slow distance running creates long, slow runners. If speed is the name of the game, then never get too far away from it.” - Peter Coe
Seb Coe is the only man to win back to back Olympic 1500m titles (1980 and 1984). At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics...
The 2004 world cross country (WXC) in Brussels was certainly the highlight of my career. It was my 4th world cross country (my first time in the 8km race) and without a doubt, going into it, I was in my best shape of my career to date.
