Clayton’s marathon career brought wins in some of the world’s most prestigious marathons but no Olympic or Commonwealth medals. Despite the absence of precious metals, however, this was no ordinary career. Of his 22 marathons, Clayton won 14. Included in those wins was Fukuoka in 1967, one of the occasions on which Derek Clayton very definitely smashed the marathon. He ran the classic distance on this classic course in 2:09:36.4, becoming the first man to break 2:12, 2:11 and 2:10, all in the one race. Less than 18 months later, Clayton ran even faster – 2:08:33.6 in Antwerp. This performance stood as a world best until Rob de Castella ran 2:08:18 at Fukuoka more than 12 years later. Runner’s Tribe, in the book Australian Marathon Stars, interviewed Clayton and detail. Below are some nuggets of gold.
I mean, let’s be serious for a second. If the sport really thought what he was doing was wrong, why didn’t they change the goddamn rules? But here’s the rub. The sport’s entire existence is predicated on a set of norms. Those norms must be enforced. So he was found guilty of minor infractions and given a punishment for “conduct unbecoming a coach.” Put another way, they didn’t ban him for his infractions, they banned him to set an example that some norms are not to be challenged. I’m fine with this. Salazar was violating the central norms that make track and field a viable sport. He knew this full well. He also knew people would come after him and he knew one step over the line could be the end. He did it anyway. Salazar got what he should have known was coming to him.
Where Are the Medals? Written by Mark Tucker - Runner's Tribe In the 51 years since the Mexico Olympics in 1968, Australia has won a total of four medals, from the 800m upwards, in a World Athletics Championship or Olympic Games. That’s male and female combined competing in all of the...
Now for members only - Milly Clark is one of Australia's fastest woman ever over the marathon distance. RT caught up with Milly in 2016 to cover her process. Music by The Passion Hifi. Note: Used with permission
1:59:40.2 in the INEOS 1:59 Challenge. Eliud Kipchoge broke one of the greatest barriers in sport history in a thrilling performance in Vienna when 34-year-old Kenyan became the first to run the classic marathon distance in under two hours. To the jubilation of the spectators this exceptional athlete ran 1:59:40.2...
In part 2 of Ben's episode, RT spends some time with the 2019 Chevron City to Surf winner, to gain some insight into his process. Instagram @benchamberlainn https://www.runnerstribe.com/features/workout-series-s2-episode-06-featuring-2019-chevron-city-to-surf-winner-ben-chamberlain/
Runner’s Tribe reporter Dave Ross caught up with Lopez Lomong after he helped Eliud Kipchoge make history in Vienna. Lomong is one of the USA’s leading distance runners and was part of Eliud Kipchoge’s pacing team in the Breaking2 attempt in Monza in 2017. Lomong was born in South Sudan...
Runner's Tribe reporter Dave Ross caught up with Augustine Choge after he helped Eliud Kipchoge make history in Vienna. One of Eliud Kipchoge’s best friends and now one of his training partners in the Global Sports Communication (GSC) group. Choge was a World Youth (3000m) and World Junior champion (5000m)...
Runner's Tribe reporter Dave Ross caught up with Eric Kiptanu after he helped Eliud Kipchoge make history in Vienna. Kiptanui is a half-marathon specialist who is the sixth fastest man ever over the 13.1-mile distance thanks to the 58:42 time he clocked to win the 2018 Berlin Half-Marathon. He has...
Runner's Tribe reporter Dave Ross caught up with Victor Chumo after he helped Eliud Kipchoge make history in Vienna. Part of Eliud Kipchoge’s GSC training camp, Chumo has a personal best of 60:03 for the half-marathon which he set in in Lille last September. The 32-year-old has won a number of...
