When I went to school, oblique lines went off at angles. Sunday night at the Japan National Stadium, Oblique Seville proved the fastest man up the straight on his way to a shock victory in the men’s 100 metres. It was supposed to be a rematch of the epic Paris...
Day one of the Tokyo 2025 world championships was amazing in its own right; from Evan Dunfee and Maria Perez in the 35km road walk early on a hot and steamy morning, to Beatrice Chebet and Ryan Crouser on a still hot and still oppressive opening night it dripped...
Looking back at the Tokyo 1991 world championships a couple of years ago, I wrote that If I had to pick one abiding memory it would be the humidity which descended on your shoulders like a heavy cloak the moment you stepped outside. As we return to Tokyo 34 years...
If you’re an Australian distance runner who is still living in the ‘70s, you are probably aware of Brian Lenton. Indeed, there’s even a chance you are in them. Back then, Lenton hit on an original idea for ‘his’ first book. He wouldn’t write it himself; he would send out...
Cross-country is a grass roots discipline. True – given that almost every kid around the world has been introduced to the sport via their primary school’s sports day. And if that’s not grass roots, I don’t know what is. It’s also true in the physical sense, because cross-country is conducted...
We are drawing ever closer to Tokyo25. The qualifying window closes on Sunday 24 August. The Diamond League final in Zurich some days later will determine which athletes get a wild card invite into the championships (spoiler: if you’re in the final you probably have no need of a...
Let’s go back, let’s go way, way, way back to the days before rock ‘n’ roll. No, sorry, that was a few weeks ago when your columnist referenced Van Morrison and his song/poem On Hyndford St on another matter. Let’s stick to the recent past this time. Just last year...
Talk about come in from the cold. This week, Wednesday 30 July, the Parliament gave a belated welcome home for the Moscow 1980 Australian Olympic team. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese gave the welcome. Leader of the Opposition Sussan Ley concurred (not without demur; see later). ‘Albo’ did not name check...
Can it really be sixty years since 1965. Six decades on from a year which shook up distance running like few others. Three men from three continents, running largely the same events, often against each other, all ranked in the world’s top 10 athletes of that year. Australia’s Ron Clarke,...
A column by Len Johnson From the time I started following Australian athletics seriously – lost in the mists of time, but probably the 1970s – there’s been one constant helping my research: Paul Jenes and his Australian lists. Jenesy, as he’s so known to such a wide extent that it’s...
